Lezyne's Phone Wallet is a handy pack for keeping your phone safe and for carrying some cards and ID, so handy in fact I haven't restricted it to just on the bike usage.
If you are carrying a few hundred quids worth of mobile computer in you jersey pocket it needs some form of protection against the elements and being dropped, or worse still, being landed on should you crash.
Made from nylon the Phone Wallet has pretty much got these boxes ticked as it's very hard wearing and robust enough to take a fairish amount of abuse. Admittedly I didn't test the crashing part but I have dropped my phone countless times, once at speed when I was trying to move the wallet from a jacket pocket to jersey. The wallet skidded across the tarmac and apart from a few scuffs everything including my iPhone was fine.
The phone sits inside its own sealed zipped compartment which while not fully waterproof is very water resistant and will keep heavy downpours at bay for a long time. Even if the rain does get through it doesn't come in at a speed capable of soaking your mobile, more a dampness to the material.
The compartment has a seam welded clear screen that allows you access your phone's screen without taking it out of the wallet and you can also use with gloves to, ideal when winter really starts to kick in.
The other side is, as you've no doubt guessed the wallet part. Four card slots means you can keep bank cards, license or whatever for ID plus I keep some folded up pieces of paper should you need to exchange contact details or whatever along with a small pencil in the phone compartment. This is held closed by a strip of velcro which is very strong so no worries about it coming open by accident.
On the rear is a small zipped pocket ideal for a bit of change or a door key. Its quite slim though so you won't get loads in it without putting the zip under strain.
The Phone Wallets overall size is kind of governed by the continuing growth in size of smartphones these days though saying that it isn't long enough to fit the likes of the iPhone 6+ or Galaxy Note 4. At 145x100x25mm it'll fit pretty much any standard style phone.
It's a snug fit in a jersey pocket to and you'll need one that is made of some pretty taut material as the 112g weight plus phone seems to make it feel noticeable on your back.
Overall I think the Phone Wallet is a well thought out bit of kit and well made to which warrants its £17.99 price tag. Yeah, you can pick up similar phone cover/wallets on eBay for a couple of quid but they aren't anywhere near as robust or well-made as the Lezyne one. The size is bulky but as I mentioned above this is determined more by the size of smartphones today rather than anything else.
Verdict
Well built, robust, protective organiser for use on or off the bike, a bit on the bulky side though
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road.cc test report
Make and model: Lezyne Phone Wallet
Size tested: Black
Tell us what the product is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?
"The Lezyne Phone Wallet is a streamlined single fold design that makes this wallet a great smartphone organizer for the jersey pocket or pack".
It holds your smartphone and keeps things organised so it does the job its designed for. Its a good design for both roadies and off roaders to thanks to the robust construction and water resistance.
Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?
WEIGHT: 112g
DIMENSIONS: 145x100x25mm
MATERIAL: Nylon
SPECS: Seam welded smartphone screen window, 4 card slots, change pocket, zipped phone compartment.
Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose
Very well indeed. It does well to keep the water out and everything inside in its place.
Tell us what you particularly liked about the product
The robustness of it.
Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product
Its bulky and can feel heavy in a rear pocket.
Did you enjoy using the product? Yes.
Would you consider buying the product? Yes.
Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes.
Anything further to say about the product in conclusion?
A solid product for protecting your phone with the added benefits of being able to keep cash and cards organised. Its well put together and should last for ages making it what I think a good long term investment.
About the tester
Age: 36 Height: 180cm Weight: 76kg
I usually ride: Kinesis T2 My best bike is: Kinesis Aithien
I've been riding for: 10-20 years I ride: Every day I would class myself as: Expert
I regularly do the following types of riding: time trialling, commuting, club rides, sportives, fixed/singlespeed,
Stu knocked out his first road.cc review back in 2009 and since then he's chucked the best part of seventy test bikes around the West Country, a couple of them quite literally! With three alloy and two steel bikes in his fleet he's definitely a metal man (that'll be the engineering background) but is slowly warming to that modern carbon fibre stuff along with fat tyres & disc brakes.
It's not all nostalgia though, after spending the last few years in product design Stu keeps banging on about how 3D printing is going to be the next big thing and he's a sucker for a beautiful paint job too.