If there’s one thing that’s universally true for those of us at Armchair Arcade, it’s that we love our gadgets. As such, we sometimes run into the issue of where to stow those gadgets, particularly when on the move. That’s where something like the Swift-n-Snug Running Belt comes in so handy.

Swift-n-Snug box front. The packaging was a bit crushed in transit, but the belt inside was unharmed.

Swift-n-Snug box rear. The packaging was a bit crushed in transit, but the belt inside was unharmed.

While some may call products like this running belt a fanny pack, that’s giving fanny packs too much credit. Products like the Swift-n-Snug Running Belt are purpose-built belts designed for running, workouts, or any other activity with demanding movements (cleaning inside or outside the house, for instance) where you also need to bring along a wallet, keys, or gadgets like a smartphone. Of course, it also doesn’t hurt that belts like this look like high performance sporting equipment rather than the stereotypical socially-derided fanny pack design.

My first experience with a running belt was with the SPIbelt Sports/Running Belt. I appreciated that belt’s functionality. I’m not a runner, but I do work out at a gym at least five days a week. Whether it’s lifting weights or doing cardio, if I’m not wearing shorts or pants with pockets, or I’m going to do activities where having something in my shorts or pants that do have pockets would be cumbersome, I wear this type of belt. With the SPIbelt, I used it with my HTC One M8 smartphone (with case), and it fit that large phone well. Since I have an iPhone 6 Plus now (with case), that’s what I’m putting inside my Swift-n-Snug belt. While the generous size of the iPhone 6 Plus does stretch the pocket to its limits, it still fits.

When you first take the Swift-n-Snug out of the packaging, be sure to remove the pull tab on the battery compartment so the light can work.

It’s important to keep in mind that running belts are supposed to hold their cargo securely, so there are no holes to run headphone wires out of the zippered pocket. While you can slightly unzip the pocket and run the headphone wire out that way, it’s best just to do what many of us who work out do these days and go wireless. I happen to use the Avantree Jogger Pro for when I listen to podcasts or music at the gym since it’s comfortable and secure with great battery life (and decent audio quality) and let’s me control my players’ remotely, but obviously any good bluetooth headset will do.

The sliding clip makes adjusting for various waist sizes and clothing thicknesses easy.

The Swift-n-Snug belt is fully adjustable for waist sizes up to 44″ using its sliding clip. As such, it fit my ~36″ waist just fine once I made a minor adjustment. I recommend that you use these running belts over clothing rather than under so there’s no chance of chafing against your skin.

The Swift-n-Snug with the light in the on position.

While the Swift-n-Snug belt only comes in one color scheme, black with some yellow, it does have a unique feature, a light that’s activated by pressing the button on the black and yellow oval. One press of the button creates a solid yellow light around the pouch, a second press flashes the light quickly, and a third press flashes the light slowly, with the fourth press turning the light back off. While this is not particularly useful for working out indoors like I do most of the time, this is certainly a great safety feature for running or walking outdoors in low light conditions. The batteries are the usual CRS2032 button cells, of which you’ll need two replacements once these go, but that should only be after many hours of use.

The Swift-n-Snug can fit several small items in its pouch, but if you have a particularly large smartphone, like an iPhone 6 Plus (in a case), then that’s probably near its limits.

I received this Swift-n-Snug belt as a review unit, and the communication with the Swift-n-Snug company rep has been excellent throughout the whole process. While I had no opportunity to contact customer service or take advantage of the lifetime money back guarantee, it does bode well in case an issue does ever arise. Frankly, the only failure point I can really think of is the light, and even that is designed and integrated so well into the belt I can’t see an issue being very likely.

The Swift-n-Snug can be placed in various locations on the waist. Here it is holding my iPhone 6 Plus (with case).