Apple Launches $230 iPhone Pocket: The Internet Calls It a Sock

[justseyi]

Apple has quietly introduced the iPhone Pocket, a stretchy knitted pouch designed to hold your iPhone and a few small essentials, and the reaction has been instant and unanimous: people are roasting it.

Priced at $149.95 for the short-strap version (eight colors) and $229.95 for the crossbody style (three colors), the pouch has no zippers, no clips, no buttons—just a single 3D-knitted sleeve that stretches around your phone like an oversized sock.

Yes, an actual sock.

The internet wasted no time. Reviewers and everyday users alike have labeled it everything from “Borat’s mankini for iPhones” to “the most expensive phone condom ever made.” Many pointed out that two decades ago, Apple sold a six-pack of colorful iPod Socks for $29, and just two months ago released a perfectly functional iPhone strap for $59.

So why the sudden $230 price tag?

The answer lies in the name on the tag: Issey Miyake. The legendary Japanese fashion house, founded by the designer who created Steve Jobs’s signature black turtlenecks, collaborated with Apple on the project. The pouch is made in Japan using the brand’s signature pleating technique, and Apple describes it as “a celebration of craft, simplicity, and delight.”

Fashion critics have praised the tactile quality and minimalist elegance. Everyone else has mostly laughed.

Despite the jokes, the iPhone Pocket is already selling out in several regions, proving once again that when Apple puts its logo on something—even something that looks suspiciously like a sock—there will always be buyers ready to pay premium prices for the privilege of carrying it.

Available now at Apple Stores and online, while supplies last.

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