The idea of cases for true wireless earbuds has always been a funny one to me. Modern earbuds come with their own cases by necessity — it's how they charge. Why would I spend money to protect the thing that's protecting my earbuds?
Then I tried them myself. After spending a few weeks with Nomad's leather Pixel Buds A-Series cases, I've come to find they're as much about form as they are about function — and for 30 bucks, I'm here for it.
The company's A-Series cases come in black, brown, or blue, with the latter being a Google Store exclusive. I tried the black and brown versions — I find brown to be a better match for the olive green earbuds I'm using, but they're both very handsome. Save for the black plastic band meant to provide extra protection around the edges of the case, its entire surface is leather. I'm not a big leather guy, but even I have to admit, it feels a lot nicer in the hand than the semigloss plastic of the bare A-Series case. I haven't had mine long, but it's already developing some character through use — each scuff and indentation just makes it feel more lived in and unique, and that's definitely not how I feel about anything plastic.
On the right edge of the case, there's a spot to attach an included wrist lanyard. I can't see myself ever wanting to use that, but it's not required, and the versatility is appreciated. The inner surface of Nomad's cases are coated in felt, which shouldn't muss up your nice clean plastic of your earbuds' existing case.
Installation is a breeze — you just slip the two halves of the case on. Thanks to its snug fit, removing the case is a little trickier: the top half pops right off, but I found myself having to poke at the area around the earbuds' charging port with the blunt end of a pen to get the buds' case dislodged. My biggest complaint, though, is that the area around the A-Series case's flip-top lid hinge is completely exposed. I'm not particularly worried about that strip of unadorned plastic picking up scratches, but the big white interruption on a dark leather surface is a bit of an eyesore. Still, the cases add more than they detract here, aesthetically.
At the end of the day, is an additional $30 case to protect the case your $99 earbuds came in practical? No, I don't think it is. But it is really cool, and I'm a big proponent of dropping a few bucks on small luxuries wherever you're able. Nomad's leather A-Series cases make the act of using the earbuds that much nicer, and if you're planning on using yours for a period of years, they're absolutely worth the money.