I Spent $29 on an Apple Polishing Cloth So You Don’t Have To

I Spent $29 on an Apple Polishing Cloth So You Don’t Have To

Every now and then Apple does something so unbelievably Apple that you just stop and think ‘Why?’. The Apple Cloth, if you cast your mind back to October-November, did exactly that.

Apple gadgets are expensive. The accessories for those gadgets are also expensive. This we know, and yet, the company seems to always find new ways to make us go: ‘Wait, you want us to pay how much now?’.

Well, friends, I paid $29 for a cleaning cloth.

But, it isn’t just any cleaning cloth. This one has an Apple logo on it.

If you’re thinking you’ve missed something, despite being about 100 words into this article, you haven’t. It’s a cloth and it cleans and it was purchased from the Apple website.

On the Apple website, the company lists the product as Polishing Cloth. It also provides the following blurb:

“Made with soft, non-abrasive material, the Polishing Cloth cleans any Apple display, including nano-texture glass, safely and effectively.”

So does this 10-pack of microfibre cloths from Bunnings for $10.

Apple says the polishing cloth cleans “any Apple display, including nano-texture glass, safely and effectively”. Under the compatibility section, the product page then goes to list every Apple device under the sun.

The logic here is that on Apple’s support page on cleaning nano-texture glass, it says you should “use only the polishing cloth that came with your Pro Display XDR or iMac”. So, this $29 Polishing Cloth is that, I guess.

Usually, when we review items at Gizmodo Australia there’s a long list of headings to move through and answer, such as usability, battery life and appearance. But for something like a piece of material, it’s a little harder. I will try to be as sincere as possible, but I just spent $29 on a cleaning cloth and I’m yet to recover.

Apple Polishing Cloth
Image: Asha Barbaschow/Gizmodo Australia

How does it feel?

Honestly, it feels like $29-worth of polishing cloth. It’s thick, textured – it actually feels a lot like suede. It probably is suede.

How big is it?

16cms x 16cms

Does it work?

This is the part I don’t want to admit. It’s the best screen/glasses cleaner I have ever used. It cleaned my MacBook Pro, iPad Mini and iPhone screens in one wipe. It also did a great job on my glasses, too. You don’t need to spray a chemical or fog the area with your breath, although Apple says you can use a 70 per cent isopropyl alcohol solution with it.

Should you buy it?

If you have a Pro Display XDR or iMac and you need a replacement cloth to clean it, yes. If you’re a fiend for all things Apple-branded, yes. Or if you just like spending $30 on content, yes.


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