The Frugal Networker

Figure 1: The Jackery Leaf Case and Charger Case Attachment

Jackery Leaf Snap-on Rechargeable Battery Case
Jackery, Inc.
$59.95 Amazon (Prime) or Jackery Web Store

The Jackery Leaf is a case plus an extra life battery charger. The case, as you can see in Figure 1, is an attractive iPhone 5 and 5S case, but it’s also an additional battery life extender/charger.

When you’re not charging your iPhone, you can slip off the charger part of the case and use the regular Jackery Leaf case for protecting your iPhone. The case fits snug and works quite well on its own as a case. And you can use your current case with the Jackery Leaf charger attachment, if it’s relatively open at the bottom so that there are no obstructions around the charger interface.

The case and attachment are well made, sturdy, and durable. Even with the charging attachment connected to the phone case, you can still plug in your earbuds, change sound volume, and perform all phone functions. The charging attachment adds a minimal amount of weight and bulk to your phone. It’s actually a pretty good tradeoff for the extra hours of battery life that you get from the Jackery Leaf.

The Jackery Leaf set includes these features and accessories:

• One 2400mAh premium battery case with built-in Apple Lightning Connector and two premium protective cases for iPhone 5S & iPhone 5; Detachable and easy snap on design.
• Certified by Apple MFI (Made For iPhone); Compatible with All versions of iOS.
• Dual-purpose high speed secured connector for charging and data transfer.
• Three-color LED charging status indicator; Secured battery safety with 4 layers of smart safety protection circuit.
• 1x premium audio extension cable and 1x premium micro-USB charging cable.

The manufacturer claims that the Jackery Leaf can provide up to 110 hours of extra operating time to your device. I have not tested this explicitly or done the math, but I can tell you that with a fully charged case, I get two full charges for my iPhone 5.

The one thing you have to remember when using the Jackery Leaf charger case is that you must press the button on the back of the case to begin charging your phone. The case does not automatically begin charging upon attachment.

You can also attach your “naked” iPhone to the charging attachment but because of the Lightning connector, you have to be a bit careful when doing so. It works, but the attachment is really meant to be used with the Jackery Leaf case.

Why it’s frugal: The Jackery Leaf case is frugal because it extends your phone’s battery life for up to 110 hours. This is frugal because you still have free use of your phone without some tethering to an external wired charger. The convenience of the Jackery Leaf becomes obvious if you’re in a place where handy electric power isn’t available such as a long plane flight, long car ride, or in a public location.

The Jackery Leaf sells online for $59.95. Regular iPhone cases sell for $5.00 to around $30.00 and higher. That’s for just the case–no extra charging capacity. The Jackery Leaf is two protective cases in one plus the added benefit of the extra power. To fully charge the case requires three to four hours and it uses a common mini USB connector interface for charging.

The Jackery Leaf Snap-on Rechargeable Battery Case is a good value and an excellent product. If you need extra battery power, but don’t want wires or tethering of any kind, this is the solution for you.

Rating: 9/10

Recommendation: Buy it to extend your battery life as well as providing protection for your iPhone.