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After a while of reviewing minimalist wallets, they all sorta start to feel the same. They have some tendencies to copy one another and iterate off of each other’s designs. However, one that has stood out to me recently as doing something a bit different is Fantom with their M Series of wallets. This MagSafe pull-tab ejector-style wallet is unique, and I’m super thankful that the brand was willing to give me this to check out.
So, how does it stack up to the competition? What do I like, what do I not like, and who is it for? That’s what we are going to talk about in this article, so stay tuned.
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What is the Fantom M Wallet?
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- The bamboo feels and looks great
- Side ejecting is really nice!
- The ejector tab is smooth and easy to use
- MagSafe - just yes
- The bamboo gets marks on it easily
- I still don't like money clips (cash straps are better).
- Cards sometimes get stuck, or are hard to insert
While John also reviewed the slimmer, carbon fiber version of this wallet (which you can find right here), I wanted to make sure we had my thoughts on this wallet, especially their bamboo-themed version, with a larger capacity.
This specific wallet offers a capacity of five to ten cards, has the silver money clip, and, of course, has the Mag-Safe capability. While it’s MagSafe, it does cut back on some of the customizability you get from some of Fantom’s other wallets, so it’ll be up to you if you prefer that trade-off.
One of the biggest capabilities of this wallet is its horizontal ejector. While most ejector wallets go out the top of the wallet, Fantom’s fan out of the wallet’s side via a pull tab.
What do I like about it
1. The bamboo feels and looks great
Outside of leather, wood is likely my next favorite material found on wallets (followed up by carbon fiber)! That’s no different here; the bamboo is light, making for a calm yet noticeable feel to it. The bamboo also has small ridges and divots all throughout, making for a texture that no wallet I have ever used offers.
Hands down, this has to be one of the best-styled wallets I’ve used by a long shot. It really is hard to beat wood, which is why high-end wallets like this, along with luxury scards, use wood throughout their designs.
2. Side ejecting is really nice!
Very few ejector, pop-up wallets offer the capability to have your cards pushed out horizontally rather than push them out the top. However, Fantom went in a different direction. One pullback of the tab and the cards are fanned out the side of the wallet (Paid Link). This leaves considerably more area for you to access each individual card without having to pull the complete stack out. This also means that you can access that first card single-handedly.
Another huge benefit of this is that it also makes access to the cards considerably easier when they’re attached to your phone! Instead of ejecting out the bottom of your phone or into the camera up top, having the cards go out the side gives easier access to the cards without having to remove your wallet from the phone.
3. The ejector tab is smooth and easy to use
Even high-end, expensive push-button wallets with metal card ejectors can suffer from a bit of clunkiness. Button presses aren’t always consistent, and the buttons sometimes get stuck and pushed inward. However, the smoothness of the pull tab on this wallet is one of the best I’ve ever seen.
When you pull the lever out, it slowly retracts itself, like a good-ole soft close door on a Rolls Royce. This means it’s nearly silent and feels considerably higher end than it deserves for the price.
4. MagSafe – just yes
Have you ever wondered why Fantom called this the M wallet? Well, it’s for this feature right here, the MagSafe compatibility. This means you can throw it on the back of any MagSafe-compatible device, such as my iPhone 15 Pro that I reviewed over here.
This means if you prefer not to keep your wallet and phone in separate pockets, you can throw them on the back of your phone and keep them together. It also makes it less likely to lose. I also would like to mention here that it is a STRONG magnetism; I have no worry at all about it sliding off of the device unless I mean for it to.
It’s a great feature that I wish more wallets took advantage of! Even if it meant losing out on some customizability of Fantom’s other wallets.
What do I not like about it
1. The bamboo gets marks on it easily
One of the first major downsides I noticed right away was that the bamboo wood material ended up with markings from just about anything I had in my pocket. Whether it be my key organizer, my car key fob, or loose change. In fact, its own money clip started to wear off on the bamboo.
Of course, with a bit of spit and a rub with my shirt, I was able to remove most of it; it feels like the rub marks are going to be there permanently. While I’ve not been able to test this wallet for years (as I test many, many wallets), I do feel like the wear and tear might cause some discoloration of the wood over time. Is having the wood material worth it? Yes! But it’s a bit of a bummer that the wear marks show up so quickly.
2. I still don’t like money clips (cash straps are better).
I don’t really understand why every wallet out there offers a money clip! I find that they are hard, cause unnecessary bulk, make getting your cards and cash out harder, and, in the case of this wallet, damage the wood. The much better solution for me is always the cash strap, which unfortunately is not something that is available for this wallet as an option, and I wish it was.
This meant (as I removed the money clip it came with quickly) I had to go without cash on me while I tested this wallet, which may not be a huge issue all the time, but you never know when it might be nice to have some cash on you, rather than paying with cards all the time. Not all buskers take cards yet, right?
3. Cards sometimes get stuck, or are hard to insert
How Fantom is able to have their cards ejected out the side while maintaining a compact size is that when you insert a card into the wallet, a corner of the card pokes out the base of the wallet until you rotate the card inward with the rest of its counterparts. However, if you don’t perfectly line the card up or pull the card out, it sometimes causes it to get a bit jammed inside of the wallet until you finagle it back into the spot it is supposed to be in.
While this doesn’t happen all that often, I found it annoying more than once. Deal breaker? No.
Who should buy this wallet?
If you are looking for a high-quality MagSafe cardholder and aren’t worried about carrying cash with you, this wallet is amazing (Paid Link)! In that context, I have no complaints (other than what’s detailed in this article). It does everything you could want and is likely the easiest wallet to use when it’s attached to the back of your phone.
However, if you plan on keeping cash on you due to its lack of a cash strap, I would probably recommend going in a different direction. Instead, you might want to look at the Fantom X wallet (that I have not had a chance to review yet), which can be optioned with a cash holder or a rubber cash strap, as it can have accessories on the back, where the MagSafe capability is on this wallet.
Where should you buy the Fanom M?
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- The bamboo feels and looks great
- Side ejecting is really nice!
- The ejector tab is smooth and easy to use
- MagSafe - just yes
- The bamboo gets marks on it easily
- I still don't like money clips (cash straps are better).
- Cards sometimes get stuck, or are hard to insert
