Leathery goodness for your iPhone.

We were a little hesitant to try the MagnetFlipper at first. Magnets and electronic devices sometimes don’t mix, and if you search the Web, you’ll find several forum postings on the subject. Read enough Web material and you might decide to pass on cases that use magnets. The MagnetFlipper iPhone case has magnets to keep its flip cover closed.

We had a hard time finding definitive answers about magnet cases and iPhones. The iPhone manual doesn't address this issue. We found a few forum postings on Apple's support site asking our same questions without definitive answers (or at least an official word from Apple. We're still waiting to hear back from Apple PR). We decided we had to see for ourselves. We took our Precious and slipped it into the Croco Burgundy MagnetFlipper iPhone case, and powered up the iPhone with bated breath. It’s been a few months since that moment, and our iPhone is going strong. No problems here. Whew.

When we asked Sena's customer support about the possibility of magnets harming the iPhone, we were told by a Sena customer rep that the company uses "low-profile magnets." The rep also said that Sena has "done an extensive test of our iPhone cases and the possible effects of magnets to the phone. In our tests...we have not had any cases of harm caused by our magnets to the iPhone."

As for the case, the flap is thoughtfully attached at the bottom of the case so it’s not flopping down over the screen when you’re trying to dial your buddy’s phone number. The flap stays in place when it’s closed, providing vital protection to the iPhone screen.

The case itself is made of leather - the good stuff, not the leather you find on cheap $20 shoes. You can choose from 14 different colors, and the MagnetFlipper has all the openings you need for buttons, switches, and the dock port. The belt clip is removable but the metal knob on the case that holds the clip isn’t, which is too bad. The knob sticks out like a sore thumb for those who rather go sans clip.

The bottom line. The MagnetFlipper is a good-looking, well-constructed case. It’s one of our favorites. If you're still not convinced that a magnet case is safe for your iPhone, go ahead and check out other cases. We understand.

Editor's note 01/04/2008: Sena recently updated this case so it no longer has a metal knob protrusion for the belt clip.

COMPANY: Sena Cases

CONTACT: www.senacases.com

PRICE: $52

REQUIREMENTS: iPhone

Sturdy. Flip cover protects screen.

No way to remove the knob that hold the clip.