Review: FlipBelt. Who needs pockets anymore?

Since I’ve been listening to more audiobooks because of my FitBit, I’ve run into the problem of how to carry my phone on my walks. I don’t like armbands, and the belt clip case is fine, assuming I’m wearing a belt, but what if I’m not? Fortunately, the folks at FlipBelt anticipated my needs and sent me one of their products to review.

What is FlipBelt? This image demonstrates it pretty well. (And no, I’m afraid my stomach doesn’t look anything like that.)

Basically, it’s a way to keep phone, keys, money and other small items secure while you’re on the go. The belt is made of a spandex-lycra blend which fits snugly, but comfortably, at your waist. There are small slits (seen in the picture), and you slide your items inside the belt, where they are secure.

I usually use mine to carry my iPhone and FitBit. There’s still plenty of room for a credit card, key or a small stash of bills. I expected it to be hot, but it’s comfortable around my waist. Once it’s on and loaded up, I barely notice it. My earbud cord snakes out of the belt with no problems.

The items are secure. The belt does twist a bit while in use, and I did have my FitBit slip out once, but I hadn’t pushed it far enough into the belt, so I’m calling that user error instead of product flaw. If you flip the belt around, that locks everything in place, but mostly I don’t bother with that extra step. My phone is large enough that it’s never come close to falling out.

One thing I like is that it doesn’t bounce. No matter how I move, the belt stays in place at my waist.

It’s not just for exercise, I discovered. I tested it under a sweater, and, because I wear the belt high on my waist, the phone bulge was less noticeable than when I used my belt clip holster. I wore it all day, and it was both discreet and comfortable. Now that spring is finally here, with warmer temperatures, I don’t think I’ll use it that way again until fall, but it’s nice to have the option to not look quite so geeky with my “Bat belt.”

However, getting items in and out quickly does take a bit longer than, say, taking your phone out of a belt holster. If I’m walking and using headphones, I can answer calls or use Siri to check the time, but getting my phone out to look at a text isn’t the easiest. Fans of digital disconnecting would probably tell me that’s a feature, not a problem. 🙂

I’ve been using it for about a month now, and I like it. You can purchase it in a variety of colors and sizes to fit just about any body type or preference.

Here’s a video to see it in action.