Pelican Products’s $39.95 Pelican GO 40 Case is the first of the company’s “Personal Utility Cases (PUC),” which is described as “a new category of everyday carry cases for the adventure-ready consumer.”
It’s a smartphone case — except it’s not. The 7×3.5×1.6 GO 40 can encapsulate your iPhone, but it can also be used to protect other electronic devices, credit cards, and more thanks to its “crushproof, dust-proof, waterproof” design.
This isn’t a product for simply protecting your iPhone en route to work/school or lugging in around your home or office. The GO 40 is for protecting the smartphone and other items when you’re at the beach, in the rain, camping, etc.
The spacious GO 40 — available in lime, white, blue surf, slate, blush, and anthracite versions — easily housed my iPhone Xs Max dressed in its leather case. It’s equipped with a rubberized bumper, carry handle, and secure closure latch to protect small items. Speaking of small items, the GO 40 has an organization tray to hold built-in credit card pockets and a cord management strap.
The case boasts a cushioned EVA lining the lid and base to keep your goodies safe. When it comes to its waterproof-ness, it has an IP67 rating, which means its submersible for 30 minutes in a depth of up to three feet. If you drop it out of your canoe or into a swimming pool, you’re good. But don’t take it scuba diving.
Lots of folks won’t need the GO Case. But it can come in very handy for those of us who live to be outside biking, swimming, boating, and more. If you’re what the folks at Pelican call an “everyday adventurer,” the case could be a very good 49 buck investment.
Apple World Today Rating (out of 5 stars): ★★★★