iBattz Mojo Refuel Aqua S Case Hardware Review

I demand a lot from my electronics. Since I became disabled and lost my ability to write, I’ve depended on my touch screen devices for everything - especially my college work. Being in an environmental biology program means I’m in the field a lot in many weather conditions. Naturally when it rains I need a waterproof case, but my phone always runs out of juice before the day is out. Most battery cases didn't offer the waterproofing that I need; until I found iBattz’s new case.

The iBattz Mojo Refuel Aqua S Case (what a mouthful!) is pretty spiffy. The case can be used to extend battery life, then when you need waterproofing it takes less than a minute to switch it over and lock it up tight. I’ve been using the case for almost two weeks now and have noticed the good and bad of it.

The waterproofing is great! I took the case out on an all day bug-collecting trip where it rained the entire time, and my phone survived - the waterproof part of the case didn't distort the camera, either. The extra battery life is wonderful, too. It lasted for an entire day of heavy use while still leaving my phone at a 60% charge or better.

Being able to use it simply as a battery life extender was also very nice. I hate to admit it, but I’ve become rather dependent on not having to recharge my phone during the day. Either way you have it attached the case adds very little weight, which is a big issue for me. Best of all, it still allows you to unlock your iPhone 5s with your fingerprint - a feature I wasn’t expecting to work.

However, like most waterproof cases there are a few issues with the Mojo Refuel Aqua S. The audio is horribly distorted when the full waterproofing is on, which pretty much nixes the ability to listen to podcasts but this is an issue I’ve found with every waterproof case I’ve tried. It's also so thick that you need a special attachment to plug headphones into it. The case comes with two, so I put one in my car and the other on my headphones I keep in the bedroom, but I quickly discovered I really need two more. Another issue is when you have just the battery case together, it feels kind of flimsy and doesn’t seem to offer any drop protection.

The case only comes in black, which can be another problem. Aside from being a girl and liking pretty colors, using black in the field is a recipe for disaster because it heats up greatly in the sun and makes it hard to find if it's set down in the weeds. Lastly, the case removes the ability to charge via lightning cable and instead uses a standard Micro USB plug.

Overall though, the iBattz Mojo Refuel Aqua S case is an absolute winner in my book. It combines the much-needed extra battery life that iPhones sorely need and allows you to quickly and easily waterproof your phone. You won’t find many other cases offering this kind of utility, and this appears to be the top of the class.

Now it just needs to come in more colors!