Less than two weeks ago, I followed up on my original BookBook for iPhone review. I noted some build quality issues and problems with its longevity, concluding:
I remain sold on the concept. The idea of a phone case with a wallet is a smart one, and Twelve South has executed theirs the best out of the ones I’ve tried or seen. However, I can’t use the BookBook every day. It’s not a finished product yet.
Thursday of last week, I received an email from the very nice marketing and P.R. people at Twelve South, creators of the BookBook:
Read your blog post about your experience with BookBook for iPhone. We’re really sorry to hear about the issues you’ve had, and would love to make it right — our BookBooks are designed to last, and for a lot longer than your 197 days! […]
When you have a moment, shoot me your current mailing address and phone number. We’d like to send over another BookBook for iPhone to replace the one that underperformed. Would that be OK?
My replacement arrived today, and it seems much more substantial than the first one I purchased. It still needs to be broken in, as all leather products require, but I’ll follow up again in another 197 days.
While I was disappointed with the quality of my original BookBook, I’m the proud owner of other Twelve South products. I knew they were purveyors of generally high-quality products. Now I know they take customer experience seriously as well. I noted on Twitter:
Twelve South is an Apple-influenced company right down to their customer service.
I stand by what I said. Great company.
Update
This is a great wallet-type case, and probably the best of that type. I don’t think I can recommend it in good conscience, however, due to the issues I’ve mentioned. They’re not big issues, but when combined, they make for a worse user experience than a separate phone and wallet. That’s the clincher.