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Save $20 on a TurtleCell retractable headphone case

It's only for iPhone 5 and 5S users, alas, but it's also the easiest way to bring along earbuds. Plus, you get three months of Rhapsody Premiere.

Rick Broida Senior Editor
Rick Broida is the author of numerous books and thousands of reviews, features and blog posts. He writes CNET's popular Cheapskate blog and co-hosts Protocol 1: A Travelers Podcast (about the TV show Travelers). He lives in Michigan, where he previously owned two escape rooms (chronicled in the ebook "I Was a Middle-Aged Zombie").
Rick Broida
2 min read

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TurtleCell

A quick bit of housekeeping, cheeps: I'm traveling this week, so Cheapskate updates will be few and far between. Needless to say, if you find deals worth sharing in my absence, feel free to crowdsource the comments section till it's overflowing.

Now, then. I'll admit I had my doubts about today's deal. A phone case with built-in headphones? For $50? Um, yeah, no.

But then the good folks at Digital Treasures agreed to knock $20 off the TurtleCell retractable headphone case for iPhone 5 and 5S when you apply coupon code 20offdeal at checkout. That's by far the lowest price anywhere, and definitely back in now-we're-talking territory. Plus, it comes with a three-month Rhapsody Premiere subscription!

Available in your choice of four colors, the case comes with built-in earbuds that spool out when you want to listen to tunes and whisk away on a spring when you're done. A little gimmicky? Yeah. Totally cool and essential once you start using it? Definitely.

The cord extends a full 42 inches, and the case cleverly incorporates a toggle switch of sorts that lets you switch over to speaker as needed. There's also an integrated microphone and three sets of earbud tips.

Let me blunt: this is not for me. It is, however, for both my kids (aged 15 and 12), who went bananas for the case and fought over who got to use it. My daughter took it to school, showed her friends and reported, "Everybody wanted to steal it!" That's a pretty rousing endorsement.

It's a bummer that this is, for now, limited to the iPhone 5 and 5S, though given the extra bulk it adds to the phone, I suspect an iPhone 6 or 6 Plus version would be downright mammoth.

If you're tired of the constant struggle with headphone cords, I think $30 is a fair price for a case that not only solves that problem, but also protects your phone (and looks good doing it). Plus, three months of Rhapsody Premiere? That's a $30 value right there.

Bonus deal: Turn your head and click. Doctor on Demand is exactly what it sounds like, a Web service that pairs you with a physician for a "video visit." Normally this would cost you $40, but for a limited time, you can get a free Doctor on Demand appointment when you apply coupon code HOME. (Maybe this will help with the separation anxiety you'll be feeling this week?)