Yesterday at its annual WWDC keynote, Apple announced a whole bunch of new products, including upgraded MacBooks, iMacs, and even an all-new home speaker that is sure to spawn heated debates and opinions every moment from now until its eventual December launch. The company also launched a new iPad Pro model and, even though you didn’t actually see it presented on stage, a new iPad accessory also hit Apple’s online store. It’s a strip of leather, and it costs $29.
The Apple Pencil Case is exactly what it sounds like: a tiny sleeve for Apple’s do-it-all stylus. It comes in four colors, and doesn’t do anything but exist as a pint-sized home for your shiny white drawing tool. Apple describes it thusly:
A beautifully crafted case for Apple Pencil made of durable leather, it’s available in colors that match other Apple accessories. It protects your Apple Pencil when you’re not using it while making a graceful statement — cleanly and precisely designed, just like Apple Pencil
As elegant as the little thing is, there’s still one inescapable truth here, and that’s the fact that it’s literally a strip of leather with another, smaller strip of leather stitched to it, and it’ll set you back almost 30 bucks. If you’re willing to really go all-out, you can drop some more even more serious coin on the iPad Pro leather sleeve — which has a pencil sleeve built in! — for a tidy $129.
The Apple Pencil itself costs $99. If you’re willing to pay that, and the price of an iPad Pro to begin, $29 probably isn’t a huge stretch, especially if you’re an accessory impulse buyer. That being said, the “magic” premium has never been more apparent than it is here.
