If you had asked me a week ago to recommend a thinner alternative to PopSockets’ magnetic phone grips, I would have told you to buy the OhSnap Snap Grip 5. Ask me now and I’ll redirect you right back to the company that accidentally invented the phone grip in 2012 when trying to come up with a better way to wrangle Apple EarPods. PopSockets’ new Low-Pro is its slimmest phone grip yet, and it’s not only thinner than OhSnap’s latest, it’s also more functional and more comfortable to hold.

Available starting today exclusively through Apple in four colors (it will be available from PopSockets’ online store and other retailers starting on July 29th), the $39.99 Low-Pro Grip is launching at the same price as the Snap Grip 5. I’ve been a devoted fan of OhSnap’s grips for the past few years and recently upgraded to the Grip 5, but after testing the PopSockets Low-Pro for just a week, I’m ready to jump ship.

The last PopSockets grip I used was the Kick-Out Grip and Stand that debuted last year and did a better job than the OhSnap Grip 4 as a phone stand that worked well in both portrait and landscape mode. But at 7mm thick when collapsed, I found the Kick-Out Grip would occasionally get snagged when slipping my phone into my pocket. I’ve never had that problem with either the 2.5mm-thick Snap Grip 4 or the 3mm-thick Grip 5.

The new PopSockets Low-Pro falls somewhere between OhSnap’s last two offerings at 2.6mm, which the company compares to the thickness of a pair of dimes or a toothpick. It’s definitely thin, but you have to look incredibly close to see the height difference when comparing the Low-Pro and Snap Grip 5 side by side. If you were going by touch alone the difference in thickness is imperceivable.

Far more noticeable is how the two grips feel between your fingers when you’re holding your phone. The Snap Grip 5 carries forward a design that uses a set of interlocking flexible arms that attach the base of the grip to an extending disc. It’s a unique approach that OhSnap has improved and strengthened since The Verge’s Victoria Song had a Snap 3 Pro break nearly three years ago. But while the durability is better, the Snap Grip 5’s flexible arms still aren’t the most comfortable. They’re not painful by any means, but using the Snap Grip 5 has always felt to me like I’m sacrificing the comfort of a PopSockets grip for something more svelte.

With the Low-Pro, you get the best of both worlds. Instead of plastic arms or the traditional PopSockets design that features a collapsing squishy cone, the Low-Pro uses what the company describes as a “one-piece polymer” expansion layer connecting a pop-out disc to the grip’s base. It looks like a tube that’s been sliced full of diamond-shaped holes to help it collapse compactly, but it’s made out of a squishy material that makes the Low-Pro feel softer and more comfortable to hold at any angle. My fingers occasionally get sore during prolonged one-handed doomscrolling sessions using the Snap Grip 5, but that hasn’t been an issue with the Low-Pro.

Both grips double as a phone stand, but the Low-Pro does it better. With the Snap Grip 5 you can tuck one edge of its extending disc into a notch on the base and use it to prop your phone up. But it’s limited to just one angle, and it works better with your phone laying sideways than standing up vertically. Surrounding the base of the Low-Pro is a hinged metal ring that folds out at any angle, so it works as a stand in either orientation. The base of the Low-Pro is a little wider than the Snap Grip 5 as a result, but the size difference is negligible.

There is a reason to still consider OhSnap’s Snap Grip 5 over PopSockets’ Low-Pro. Both accessories allow your phone to stick to metal surfaces, magnetic mounts, and wireless chargers with the grips attached, but the magnets on the Snap Grip 5 are stronger than those in the Low-Pro. The Snap Grip 5 always remained securely attached to the back of my iPhone 16 Pro when removing it from a magnetic wireless charging stand, but the Low-Pro consistently remained behind stuck to the stand.

If you regularly mount your phone to magnetic accessories like this, such as relying on a car mount to use your phone as a GPS device, there’s a very good chance the Low-Pro could get frequently left behind and forgotten. If you don’t, then PopSockets’ new Low-Pro Grip is a worthy alternative. It’s not the thinnest grip ever created, but PopSockets has improved on OhSnap’s design in a few important areas that make a grip a tempting accessory, even if you’re trying to keep your phone as thin as possible.

Photography by Andrew Liszewski / The Verge

Following the launch of the surprisingly popular Kobo Remote, Boox has released its own device to ease the burden of reaching for an e-reader’s touchscreen that’s an arm’s length away. The Tappy isn’t Boox’s first page-turning remote, but its design takes a much different approach to the company’s slim but boring B.T. Remoter. The Tappy feels like a mashup of wireless remotes, fidget toys, and macro pads, with a healthy dash of retro charm. 

While the Kobo Remote looks like a streaming dongle accessory with a design that prioritizes ergonomics, the Tappy can be best described as a miniature keyboard distilled to just two buttons that draws its design inspiration from a retro typewriter. It’s not as comfortable to hold as Kobo’s accessory, but it’s small enough to sit discreetly in your hand. There are also four rubber feet on its underside so it won’t slide around if used on a desk, and it’s available in two very glossy color options: olive green and a bright orange that I tested.

Tappy’s two round buttons don’t use actual keyboard switches but they have about a quarter-inch of travel and are satisfying to press when you’re in need of something to fidget with. Out of the box, the buttons are labeled with a pixelated heart and steaming mug of coffee, which I just don’t understand. I immediately switched to the included alternatives that are instead labeled with an X and an O, but more customizability, even if it was just a sheet of stickers I had to apply myself, would be preferred. Forward and back arrows, or even just a plus and minus, would be welcome alternatives to what’s included.

Pairing the Tappy to a Boox device is easy, but don’t misplace the fold-out quick start guide that walks you through the process. After powering it on using a sliding metal switch on the side, you put the remote into pairing mode by holding down both buttons for about two seconds until a single LED on the side flashes blue. From there, you just need to connect to it through your Boox device’s Bluetooth settings. When you power it back on in the future, it reconnects automatically.

Boox Tappy Wireless Page Turner

Where to Buy:

• $29.99 at Amazon (Green)
• $29.99 at Boox (Citrus)
• $29.99 at Boox (Green)

The buttons’ default functionality is Reading mode that turns pages forward and back or controls volume when outside a reading app, but the Tappy can be switched to two other modes. Multimedia mode changes the buttons’ functionality to skipping tracks in music, video, podcast, or audiobook apps, while Browsing mode lets you scroll up and down through long webpages or social media feeds for as long as you’re pressing either button.

Pressing both buttons for about five seconds switches modes, which causes the LED to momentarily flash green. Repeating that process cycles through Reading, Multimedia, and Browsing modes, and every time you switch, a notification pops up at the top of your Boox device letting you know the current mode. But it’s not persistent and can be easily missed. A trio of labeled LEDs indicating the Tappy’s current mode or even having the single LED display a different color for each one would make it easier to know what mode it was in at a glance, especially when using the remote with other devices.

While Tappy works best with Boox e-readers and tablets running the company’s V4.2 firmware or later (which includes recent hardware like the Boox Palma 2 Pro), it can also be used with other Android mobile devices, and iPhones and iPads, with varying levels of functionality. The functionality is supported in both the Kobo and Kindle Android apps, but not in the iOS or iPadOS versions. However, I was able to use the Tappy on my iPhone and OnePlus phone to scroll webpages, control music playback, and adjust the volume.

The bigger challenge when using the Tappy with non-Boox hardware is you don’t get the useful pop-up notifications letting you know which mode you’ve just switched to. And without any LED indicators, the only way to know what mode Tappy is in is to just press the buttons and see what happens. Did the volume go up and down? Great, you’re in Reading mode and are just two switches away from the Browsing mode you want.

Other e-readers from companies like Pocketboot or BigMe are supported, according to Good e-Reader’s testing, but I had no luck getting the Tappy to work with the Kobo and the Kindle. That’s unfortunate because while I still regularly enjoy using the Kobo Remote for reading at night, I would happily abandon it for the Tappy. The tiny remote has already replaced my Apple Watch for skipping tracks when streaming my iPhone through my HomePod, even if its buttons occasionally get accidentally pressed when it’s bouncing around my pocket. At $29.99 it’s the same price as the Kobo Remote, but its buttons are more satisfying to use and it’s more than just a one-device accessory.

Photography by Andrew Liszewski / The Verge