Muc-Off Essentials Case

The Muc-Off Essentials Case is a plus-sized phone case made of heavy-duty 900D polyester with a few additional loops on the back for extra fitting options. It's not waterproof, nor does it claim to be, but it is good looking, hardwearing, and light both in weight and on your pocket compared to many of its competitors.

The Essentials Case is just that, a case to carry anything that you consider essential. It's 17 x 9 x 2cm internally and is a good fit for my plus-sized phone. The inside is divided up into three compartments – all in black, which is a shame. I was hoping for bright pink to match the zip and Muc-Off's logo... maybe next time?

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You do need to be careful which way round you put your phone in as, like all of these cases for some reason, there is an exposed zip inside. How hard can it be for someone to invent a secure money/coin pocket that doesn't require a zipper that can seriously scratch your screen or, worse, break it? I speak from experience here.

It's not just a phone case though, it's large enough to accommodate a mini tool, tyre levers, tube and gas canister in different compartments, as well as your money, cards and coins in the zipped pocket, which is pretty neat.

The heavy-duty polyester it's made from feels very tough and stood up well to being chucked in my riding rucksack, shorts and jersey pockets, and bikepacking bags with little to no visual marking during the test. There is no padding as such in the sidewalls, just the thickness of that camo material which should keep the inside in and the outside out, but it will not prevent a sharp item from marking your screen or worse.

That 900D material does 'wet out' in heavy rain, and although it doesn't flood the inside, the stitching isn't taped, so water does get through around the zip. You might want to invest in a ziplock bag – or a waterproof phone.

The bright pink zip tag is useful – you can easily find it in whatever storage bag you're using, if not your rear pocket. Speaking of which... I have found that the case is a little tall for some of my jerseys, though no worse than my Velopac – something that jersey designers need to catch up on really, with the growth of larger phones.

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On the back of the case are two sets of extra nylon webbing loops which, according to the Muc-Off website, can be used to fit the Essentials Case to your Muc-Off riding shorts. It's actually quite a neat system, though it will clash with a bum bag if you wear one of those, and some of the longer backpacks out there. But if you're riding light it's a useful system, if you want to buy into it.

It is only one use, however, and there are many more I can think of for those strap loops. If you have front or rear bikepacking bags you may well already have a number of attachment points that can be used to mount this case to your existing setup. All you would need is two small straps, which if you cannot make them yourself or don't have them, Muc-Off will sell as a pair for £10 which seems okay to me considering the £15 low price of this case and the potential increase in uses they offer.

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The Essentials case looks good value even when including the price of those two extra straps to improve its versatility, and at 52g it's competitively light too. At £15 it's cheaper than most, if not as cheap as a ziplock bag. We liked the Velopac Ridepac but it was starting to be expensive at £32; Alex liked the See.Sense Phone Pouch which was better value at £20, and Ian really rated the waterproof nature of the Fickaskap Waterproof phone case at £25, but that has no padding or versatility of the extra loops on the back.

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Overall, the Muc-Off Essentials case is a very good option for carrying your phone and/or essentials in a back pocket or bag. It's not waterproof and there's no padding in the sidewalls, but those would undoubtedly make it cost more. As it is, it's very good.

Verdict

Great value phone and essentials case for your back pocket, shorts or bag