I tried a silicone case before I bought this one. The angle makes them virtually unwearable. Firm enough to do the job well. Check out my veins popping out on the photo where I?m standing. I think that Anker should look at employing my kids to stress test the longevity of the cables lol :-)End of story if you want a quality well made product that is hugely superiour to orginal manfacturers cables such as Apple I will always recommend anker to anyone that ask my advise. It fits perfect It is not firm as the picture shows. I am not stating actual distortion levels since they are easily misunderstood in terms of audibility. It is possible I may have just gotten a dud which happens sometimes. The Smart Bike Training stand is easy to assemble, and great for indoor cycling exercise.