Review: Pitaka Cairn case with Aaron button for S26 Ultra

Review unit provided by Pitaka

Pitaka has released new phone cases for the Samsung S26 Ultra. There's the Edge case which is thin and lightweight but does not provide full or drop protection, and there's the Cairn case which is thicker and provides full protection. Prices of the cases are each USD 69.90.

You may think these phone cases are expensive, and you're right. But there's one amazing feature that provides tremendous value and convenience.

These phone cases features three side buttons, called Aaron buttons, which can be customised to open apps. An app is required to customise the buttons and they can launch apps, or use some pre-programmed shortcuts, e.g. launch touch, enable/disable airplane mode etc. These buttons is the key feature that differentiate Pitaka phone cases from other brands.

Those shortcut buttons are for power users and once you've used them, you won't want to use other cases that don't have them. They are that convenient.

These buttons have more tactility compared to those on the Pitaka Edge phone cases.

Back of the case is made with Aramid fiber so it's tough. Corners and sides are thin enough for drop protection. Edges are raised so placing the phone face down won't have the display touching the table.

Note that Aramid fiber are more susceptible to fingerprint smudges which are more obvious on darker colours, so choose lighter colours if possible.

Fitting is perfect and cutouts are precise.

I've actually reviewed the previous phone case made for the Samsung S25 Ultra and back then those buttons were called PinButton. That phone case would warp and become loose after months of usage and is a common problem reported by others too. With this new case, Pitika has said that the manufacturing issues has been fixed. Hopefully, because this is a really good case.

The phone case supports MagSafe and can be used with other MagSafe accessories such as thumb grips, wireless power banks, MagSafe tripods, etc.

Because Samsung has their wireless charging ring too near the camera bump, some power banks will not fit perfectly. In the photo above, I've to rotate the power bank so that it can rest perfectly flat on the back of the phone.

This is how the black case looks. I would avoid this because fingerprint smudges will show quite clearly against the black.

Conclusion

Those three shortcut buttons is easily the main selling feature to me. The downside is the case is quite bulky when compared to thinner phone cases, but the upside if you get full protection.

If you're interested to buy this phone case, you can get it from Pitaka online store.