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Review on πŸ“Έ Advantus 6-Pack Photo Keeper Box: Clear Cases, Holds 600 Photos, Ideal for Embellishments & Craft Storage, 61989 by Carla Anderson

Revainrating 4 out of 5

Very Good Product

(each size holds 4" x 6" photos). I have about 10,000 old photographs. When I took these photos, I put them in photo albums; So they were all in chronological order, not grouped by topic. This made it very difficult to find specific photos. As a result, my photo albums just gathered dust on the shelves. In the end I decided to buy some of these photo boxes to organize my photos by theme. With as many photos as I have, I hesitated between buying the small cases (which have six inner sleeves) and the large cases (which have sixteen inner sleeves). . In the end I settled on small cases; and I'm glad I did. I think the big boxes would be too heavy and bulky if filled with photographs; But that's just my personal opinion. Each sleeve holds up to 600 photos. That's about the same number of photos I had in my 2.5 photo albums; and these cases take up less space. I started by saying that this review applies to both Advantus Photo Keeper Box and IRIS Photo and Embellishment Craft Keeper. Overall I am happy with the purchase of both products; but they have some minor differences that may or may not matter to you. Let's compare the PRICE first. Earlier this month I bought four IRIS cases. Revain had them as an add-on back then; and the price was only $5.34 each. I quickly filled these boxes and decided to buy a few more; but when I decided to do it, the price of Revain went up to $10.34 (almost double) a piece. What happened to this Revain? As for Advantus cases, Revain currently costs $8.09 each. Despite Revain increasing the price I bought two more IRIS cases. (This gave me six identical cases that fit perfectly on a bookshelf.) I also bought 4 Advantus cases. (Since they're on a different shelf, I didn't care if they fit the IRIS cases, and they were cheaper.) If you're just building a small photo collection, the difference in price is almost negligible; but if you need a dozen of those boxes, that's another story. Both products are available through Revain Prime; and since I'm a Revain Prime member, I don't pay shipping. In fact, the shipping cost doesn't even show up when I look at the product page. If you're not a Prime member, you'll need to factor in shipping costs. Next we compare SIZE. On the Revain product detail pages, the external dimensions of these cases are listed as: 8 x 7.5 x 5.2 inches. for the product Advantus; and 8.60"(L) x 7.40"(W) x 5.50"(H) for the IRIS product. IMHO, none of the size descriptions are accurate. From my personal observation (i.e. when I have two Looking at products side by side) they appear to be exactly the same. Front to back (listed as product length) these boxes are actually 9.25" square. This is true size when you factor in the rear hinges and front latch. Depends on Your shelving space or other designated storage space may or may not care. Width measurements were accurate; but the height of each box is 5.5". I don't know how the Advantus box was measured at 5.2" but it is actually 5.5" tall. Again, this discrepancy is negligible; but it might matter if you plan to place it on a bookshelf with fixed-height shelves. Product design. Both products are made of soft, acid-free plastic. The plastic is light and ntransparent; but the Advantus product is a bit cleaner than the IRIS product. Also, the plastic used for the Advantus product is slightly stiffer than the IRIS product. The outer shell of both products has a non-removable cover. They have loops on the back; and have a front latch that snaps under a small lip. The inner boxes (both products) also have lids attached. They don't have a real hinge. Instead, the plastic is simply thinner; so that it can be bent/folded easily. The front latch is hinged the same way and has a hole that snaps onto a small pin. Due to the more rigid nature of the Advantus product, cases (both internal and external) are slightly more difficult to open and close. I think they're less likely to accidentally open; But I'm also concerned that they might wear out faster due to the extra force required to open/close. Having just purchased these boxes I cannot rate or compare their actual durability yet. In addition, when these boxes are stacked, IRIS products stack more securely on top of each other than Advantus products. This is because the legs and lid are aligned with each other. In addition, IRIS outer sleeves have a small fingertip recess in the lid. This makes them more comfortable to hold than the Advantus case. In the Advantus case, I reach for the front latch; and that's probably not good as it increases wear on the latch. Conclusion: All in all, both products are very good. I give the design of the IRIS cases a slight edge; but I can't say they are worth the higher price (ie $2.26 more per box). If the hinges and clasps (on both products) were of a slightly better quality I would have no hesitation in giving either product 5 stars. . But given the way they are actually made I have serious doubts about their durability. So I give both products 4 stars.

Pros
  • Protect and organize photos, ephemera, handmade jewelry, historical memorabilia and other treasured memories
Cons
  • Boring Bundle