iFixit breaks down... Apple's FineWoven case

According to my colleague Alison Johnson, "The new FineWoven iPhone case is terrible, so you probably shouldn't buy it." Still, I'm curious to learn more about them, and iFixit's new teardown gave me even more information than I thought I'd ask for: It put one of the new cases under the microscope, testing That's how it withstands things like hot sauce and coffee, and took apart cheese — and, best of all, took pictures every step of the way.

For example, there are some incredible zoomed-in photos of clothes; That black thing in iFixit CEO Kyle Wiens' post is a human hair, included for scale! Another photo shows how the fibers are affected when cut with a knife - it's not pretty.

iFixit also put the new cases to the stain test. A drop of coffee "evaporated without leaving a trace." A greasy thumb left a stain, even after iFixit applied some detergent to the spot. Hot sauce left a mark, and yes, iFixit looked at it under a microscope. (It's disgusting.)

As far as breaking down the actual case goes, iFixit cut the case in half and opened it up. There are several layers, which iFixit outlines as follows: "Finely woven fabric, gray foam, rigid plastic sheet, MagSafe hardware/white foam, another rigid plastic sheet, and finally, an inner layer of finely woven fabric. " iFixit also found that the side rails have a "finely woven weave" that is more durable than the rear fabric.

Seriously, just look at all the pictures in iFixit's article – they're amazing. Based on iFixit's investigation and Allison's article, it doesn't look like Apple's new FineWoven cases will hold up over time. (If only that brown color weren't so good...)