Mophie is doing a nice job expanding its line of iPhone 5 battery cases to match its iPhone 4 and 4S selection. The latest to come through our labs is the Juice Pack Plus ($119.95 direct), which the company promises more than doubles the battery life of the iPhone 5. The design is almost identical to the slightly lower capacity Juice Pack Air, and noticeably bulkier than the Juice Pack Helium($10.00 at Amazon)(Opens in a new window). Our Editors’ Choice award remains with the svelte Helium for its stellar design and solid battery life, but if you want the most extra endurance available right now, the Juice Pack Plus is the way to go.

Design and Features
Placed side by side, you’d be hard pressed to notice any difference between the Juice Pack Plus($10.99 at Amazon)(Opens in a new window) and Juice Pack Air($79.98 at Amazon)(Opens in a new window). At 5.6 by 2.6 by 0.7 inches (HWD) and 2.68 ounces, it’s negligibly thicker than the Air, but a bit bulky when compared with the 5.5-by-2.5-by-0.59-inch and 2.44-ounce Juice Pack Helium. The Plus is coated in a rubberized soft-touch material like the Air, with a grippy band around the case’s edges.

Like the Air, the Plus uses plastic button overlays for Volume and Power, instead of the cutouts found on the Helium. The plastic buttons feel a bit flimsy, but they’re easier to access, since the Helium’s cutouts are a bit too deep. All three cases have the same camera sensor cutout and deeply recessed 3.5mm headphone jack, which requires the included extender if you want to use most standard headphones. The Plus is available in black, white, or red, while the Helium is only available in two shades of gray.

The case comes in two parts, with the bottom section housing the Lightning Connector on the inside and a micro USB port on the outside for charging. Around back are the battery indicator LEDs, Indicator button, and a standby switch for activating the flow of juice. The two pieces securely snap together, and installation is as easy as sliding an iPhone 5 into the top section and snapping the bottom on. I like Mophie’s choice to use a micro USB port for charging, as micro USB cables are plentiful and affordable, while Lightning cables are expensive and harder to find. Plugging in a micro USB cable allows pass-through charging of both the iPhone 5 and the battery case, but you’ll need to sync your iPhone using Wi-Fi instead.

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Performance and Conclusions
The Plus packs a 2,100mAh battery, which is a sizeable step up from the 1,700mAh Air and 1,500mAh Helium. In my tests, making a continuous call with LTE enabled with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth switched off, the Juice Pack Plus added 7 hours, 23 minutes of talk time to my completely drained AT&T iPhone 5. That result compares well with the 6 hours, 57 minutes of the Air and 6 hours, 20 minutes from the Helium on the same test.

The Mophie Juice Pack Plus is what the Air should have been, offering a sizeable gain in battery life over the Helium. If you want the absolute most battery life, the Juice Pack Plus is the way to go. Our Editors’ Choice remains the Juice Pack Helium, however, as it still offers substantial battery life while keeping things thinner, lighter, and less expensive than the Juice Pack Plus.