Have you ever used your smartphone while lying on your stomach, losing your grip and dropping the phone in your face? You can admit, it happens to many. Perhaps it is one of the reasons – together with the increased size of the phones – why in recent years some smartphone accessories have spread that serve to grip them better: they are foldable knobs, rings or elastic bands to attach to the back of your smartphone or its cover. Overcoming the prejudice that they are clumsy objects, not very beautiful to look at and therefore a little loser, an editor of the Post tried two of them to understand if they are really useful and understand how to choose one of the many types that exist.
PopSocket
The first handle he tried is PopSocket, a telescopic knob to attach to the back of the smartphone, which was initially designed to wrap the headphone cable. “Telescopic” in the sense that while holding the phone in your pocket you squeeze it so as not to clutter up, or rather to clutter little: like the other handles, the PopSocket prevents the phone to which it is attached from resting directly on a surface, but this is not necessarily a disadvantage, since folding it only partially can also act as a lectern.
The traditional model of PopSocket sticks to the back of smartphones (or to a cover) thanks to an adhesive gel that also allows you to reposition the handle, if it is not left to dry (it happens after 15 minutes in the air, says the manufacturer): yes can easily detach and position (as often as you want, the manufacturer always says), if you are in trouble with the help of dental floss. The editor repositioned her PopSocket more than two months after attaching it for the first time and after giving it a light rinse: it re-glued very well, like the first time. It doesn't give the idea that the weight of the phone could make it suddenly come off. There is also an alternative way to attach it to a cover, the PopGrip Slide, but only for some iPhone models.
In an interview with The Goods, the consumer products section of the American website Vox, PopSocket creator David Barnett explained that the ideal position for PopSockets is in the center of the back of smartphones (a little lower only if you have a “Plus” model) and that the best way to grip it is between the index and middle fingers.
Most of the reviews on the PopSocket that you find online say more or less the same thing: the authors before trying it thought it was a stupid object and after trying it they say they can no longer live without it. The editor who tried it, however, is not convinced: perhaps it depends on her lack of dexterity, but she finds that holding a knob between her fingers is uncomfortable and not very functional, and does not really ensure a good grip.
Another thing to say about PopSockets – besides the fact that the basic models cost 15 euros, and you can also buy them on Amazon – is that the business of the company that produces it is largely based on its decorative character, as happens for cover producers: its flat surface, called “PopTop”, can be replaced and there are countless of them, in all kinds of colors and patterns. You can also have one made with your own image and there is a version that contains a small mirror.
Loopy Case
The second accessory to hold the smartphone that the editor of the Post tried is a cover that has a rubber slot on the back to hold the smartphone more firmly.
Much more than the PopSocket, according to the editor, it gives a sense of security: you have to fall asleep because using it in bed you will end up with the phone falling on your face. It is particularly suitable for tourism because it allows you to take photos of the landscape without fear of losing your phone even from the top of a mountain or a tower, from a chairlift, a sailboat or a tuk-tuk. In everyday life, less adventurous, it is useful on those occasions when you have to grab together a bunch of keys, a bag, an umbrella, the subway pass card and who knows what else: just stick a finger in the buttonhole and carry your smartphone like a ring.
It is true that even less than with the PopSocket the phone is not resting well on the top, but even in this case it can be an advantage, for example to better notice the notifications on the screen while you are doing something else. And if it really bothers you, just remove the cover.
It costs more than a PopSocket, but since it also works as a bumper, being a cover there is not so much difference: the basic model can be purchased on the manufacturer's website for 39 dollars, that is 35 euros. By buying two (to be precise, spending more than 50 dollars) shipping with DHL is free, otherwise it costs between 5 and 8 dollars; you will have to wait from a week and a half to three weeks for the package to arrive. Then of course, you can always punch two holes in a soft plastic cover and stick a piece of rubber into it if you're good at these things. At that point it remains only to learn how to do this:
Other smartphone grip models
Both PopSocket and Loopy Case have imitators, but there are also other types of smartphone grips. For example Love Handle, which can be glued like PopSocket, but grabbed like Loopy, or Phone Loop, a 6 euro and 50 colored rubber band to slip under a cover you already have. Or even a ring that attaches like PopSocket but gives some extra security: this one sold in pairs for 9 euros on Amazon is very practical and also acts as an anti-stress in moments of waiting.
Final warnings
In general, before buying a smartphone handle, take into account the use you make of your smartphone in the car: if you are used to hooking it in a specific support to use it as a navigator, some handles may be uncomfortable. PopSocket produces, for this purpose, its own support, the “PopMount”.
Another thing to consider is compatibility with wireless chargers if you use them. For example, wireless charging of Samsung devices does not work with a Loopy cover; it may work instead, in some cases, with iPhones.
Finally, the editor who has tried the grips in recent months warns you, remember that it will take some time for the people around you to stop asking you questions about the one you will choose and, in some cases, stop considering it a little unlucky.
– Read also: Cases to carry the smartphone over the shoulder
Disclaimer : on some of the sites linked in the articles of the Consumerism section, the Post has an affiliation and obtains a small share of the revenues, without changes in prices. But you can also google for the same things.
