The price you’ll pay Apple for MacBook Pro leather cases has varied widely over the years, but with its anti-leather kick, the closest you’ll get to a leather case on apple.com is a “vegan leather” one from von Holzhausen.
On the plus side, that has brought the price down well below Apple’s leather years. For the 16-inch MacBook Pro, for example, the case costs a comparatively affordable $99.95. But while I respect Apple’s stance on the topic, for me there’s no substitute for real leather …
As a man with admitted bagaholic tendencies, I’ve been through one or two MacBook sleeves and cases over the years. Different designs have different pros and cons, but the form-factor I’ve found most useful has been a rigid or semi-rigid portfolio or envelope-style. These tend to give enough protection to carry the MacBook on its own, while still being sufficiently compact to be used inside a carry-on bag.
Manuel-Dreesman was founded in Barcelona, Spain, in 2021 to create hand-made leather products based on minimalist designs and high-quality materials. Its leather sleeve for the 16-inch MacBook Pro is made from the highest grade of vegetable-tanned full-grain leather.
The sleeve claims compatibility with all models from 2019 to 2024. I tested it with the 2021 M1 Max model, and also confirmed it accommodates the 2019 Intel model, as a slightly snugger fit.
It’s available in a range of colors, both traditional and modern:
- Black
- Dark brown
- Brown
- Natural (akin to cream)
- Red
- Olive green
- Grass green
- Marine blue
- Royal blue
- Orange
You also have the option of ordering with or without the MaDre logo, and there’s an option for up to 10 characters of embossed personalisation too.
Every time I look at leather goods available in funky colors, I find myself briefly tempted before opting for the traditional black or brown. For this one, I went with dark brown, which matches most of my existing bags.
The design is very minimalist, essentially a single piece of leather folded back on itself at the botton to form the back and front of the case, and then folded over again at the top to form an envelope-style flap. The flap tucks into a broad front strap, which emerges from two diagonal slits at the sides. The interior is unlined but smooth.
It’s a really neat design, which very much appeals to my aesthetic preferences. The look and feel of the leather lives up to the high-grade claims, with a reasonably stiff thickness, and the quality of the stitching is impeccable.
Check out the gallery below for more photos (click/tap to view full-size):
The rounded bottom makes it feel comfortable when carried under-arm, and it feels sufficiently water-resistant that I felt comfortable carrying it as-is under an umbrella on a rainy day when it would inevitably get a few water droplets on it from time to time. It shrugged this off perfectly happily.
Some may prefer a briefcase-style with handle; I do own one of those, which was bought for a previous 15-inch model, but must say that I rarely used the handle, almost always carrying it under-arm.
At $194, it’s about twice as expensive as the fake leather sleeve Apple carries in the store, and for me that’s a premium well worth paying for the real thing. Recommended.
The Manuel-Dreesman Leather Sleeve for MacBook Pro is available from the company’s website, alongside versions for other MacBook models, slip-sleeves, and a similar range for iPads.
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