This will be a detailed review of the A10 Adapt wallet, one of the best modular wallets ever made.
Dango A10 Adapt Review
The Dango A10 Adapt is a thin, aluminum, intuitive minimalist wallet. It’s a modular, adaptive wallet that can easily be tailored however you see fit. It can hold 5-13 cards, depending on your needs. It offers strong RFID protection and can be customized with great features like more pockets, a pen, and a notebook.
Should you buy the Dango A10 Adapt wallet?
In the summer of 2020, the famous wallet brand Dango has outdone itself yet again with the A10 Adapt. This model quickly became one of the best premium customizable wallets they have designed.
The A10 Adapt is love at first sight for minimalist lovers and tactical wallet geeks. This modular wallet from the A-series comes as the savior for those tired of wallets with the most extravagant features and designs. It is simple, durable, thin, fully adaptable to your own personal needs.
Buying
At the moment, the A10 Adapt wallet can only be bought from the official Dango website.
Depending on your location and time of purchase, you might be able to find it available in some places so make sure to check them out.
Price and value for money
The A10 Adapt is usually priced at around $79.
With that price in mind, it can be considered as an almost premium wallet, and is definitely one of the best wallets under $100.
If you take into account all the accessories you can get aftermarket, this wallet can easily end up being an even pricier purchase. However, the wallet easily justifies its higher price point, as it comes with some groundbreaking, multifunctional, high-quality features that are not found even on some of the more expensive options. It may not be made for those on a limited budget.
Shipping details
When ordering directly from Dango, you have two shipping options at your disposal.
You can choose the free shipping option, and get the wallet delivered in 5-7 business days. Or you can go with the fast shipping option, and get the wallet in up to 2 days for an additional cost of $8.
Customer support
Any questions, issues, or complaints you might have directed at the brand can be addressed at one of the many channels Dango uses to communicate with their customers.
The best way to reach the Dango customer care team is through the Dango contact page.
You can also contact them on one of their social media profiles on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter, or simply e-mail them at [email protected].
Warranty policy
As with most other higher-end minimalist wallets these days, the Dango A10 Adapt comes with a lifetime warranty period which covers any manufacturer’s defects that may occur with the product.
The policy covers original, unmodified wallets, and does not include any normal wear, tear, or damage done by neglect and misuse. You can submit your product for repair or replacement at any time, after which the brand will contact you to inform you whether the wallet is eligible for that.
Return and refund
Dango has a universal 30-day free return policy that applies to all their wallets.
Given you provide any proof of purchase, you can return your wallet during this period and get a full refund, minus any shipping costs for the product.
Dango brand
Founded in 2015, Dango is an accessories brand currently designing and manufacturing modern, minimalist wallets and watches.
Dividing its products into multiple categories and sub-categories, the company offers a huge assortment of minimalist, tactical wallets made from high-quality materials.
The signature aspect of the brand is their constant innovation and striving to create new ways to turn our most used items into multifunctional gadgets. The A-series wallets are a typical example, where the focus was put on customization and the ability to adapt your wallet to your own personal style and needs.
Where are the Dango wallets made?
All Dango wallets are designed and manufactured in the United States.
Dango A10 Adapt Basics
With the introduction of the A10 Adapt series, Dango made another splash on the minimalist wallets scene with one of their new innovations – modular wallets.
These wallets are designed to be fully customized, with options for various add-ons and accessories added aftermarket. The base of the wallet is a simple, open aluminum chassis to which you attach one of the many Dango wallet accessories.
We will explain all the add-ons available for the A10 in detail later in this review.
How to use the Dango A10 Adapt?
Using the base chassis of the wallet is as simple as it can be. It’s an open, two-pocket frame without any complicated mechanisms. There is one main, semi-enclosed pocket where you can keep your cards. In order to use it, you just take the cards in and out with the push of your thumb.
The other pocket is basically an open hole designed either to hold one card, typically an ID one, or to attach the add-ons. This pocket uses a typical rail system to hold the parts you attach.
The wallet can be used both with or without any accessories, as the chassis is designed to function as a standalone item.
Unboxing
The A10 Adapt comes in a metal, tin box, nicely protecting the wallet from any damage upon delivery.
Inside the box, you will find the wallet and a short instruction manual printed on a piece of paper. Depending on your order, any additional accessories will also be inside the same box, attached to the wallet.
The item comes completely assembled, and ready to use the moment you open it.
Features
Dango is a brand constantly pushing for new, innovative ways to upgrade their wallets and bring something new and unique with each series they release. The A10 Adapt is their biggest breakthrough in the A-series. A modular wallet that can be customized in any way the users see fit.
Weight and size
The wallet is surprisingly light, weighing just 2.3 oz / 65 gr. The aluminum build gives off a much heavier look, but it’s a nice touch that they managed to fit it into something lighter.
The dimensions of the wallet are:
- height: 4.1 in / 10.4 cm
- width: 2.7 in / 6.8 cm
- depth: 0.4 in / 1 cm
As you can see, the other great thing about it is its slimness. The base chassis is very slim, just above half an inch, and will not be affected by the number of contents you put inside of it. It’s truly a light, thin, minimalist wallet that you can carry around with ease.
RFID Blocking
The high-quality aluminum gives the wallet great RFID protection and safeguards any cards from wireless information theft.
However, it seems this feature only applies to the main pocket that is covered from both sides. The open pocket where the rail system seats should only be used for holding cards without any electromagnetic chips on them.
Rail system
Now, this is where the main feature of the A10 Adapt comes into play. The base chassis has an open pocket where you put any adapters you get for the wallet. They can be attached through the rail system the pocket has on its edges.
All Dango adapters compatible with the A-series use a quick-release sliding plate mechanism. The plate mounts to the wallet and holds the part tight and locked in. This ensures that no tools are needed to attach or detach the pieces. It’s a 5-second process that can be done very easily.
There are three versions of the A10 Adapt that can be additionally bought to upgrade the wallet: a single pocket, a bifold, and a bifold pen wallet version.
A10 Adapt – Single pocket
The single pocket adapter is the cheapest and simplest one. It will cost you an additional $20 and can be ordered along with the base chassis, or separately through the Dango store.
As the name suggests, it has one pocket which gives you space for 3 more cards. It has the same dimensions as the chassis, except it’s much slimmer, about 0.2 in / 0.5 cm in depth.
A10 Adapt – Bifold
The bifold adapter is slightly more expensive – coming at around $30 if you order it separately, making the wallet $109 in total.
It uses a simple folding mechanism and significantly upgrades the space of your wallet, giving you two more pockets. The bifold adapter holds up to 9 cards inside of it, making it a total of 13 for the entire wallet. Naturally, it’s also slightly thicker, about 0.3 in / 0.8 cm in depth.
A10 Adapt – Bifold pen
The final and most expensive adapter is the A10 Bifold Pen wallet. This piece will typically cost you an additional $60, almost twice the price of the chassis, and will price the whole wallet at around $139.
It’s a whopping price and there is a lot to unpack in this particular Dango accessory. The capacity is the same as the regular bifold one – up to 9 additional cards in two separate pockets. But with those pockets come two more items: the signature Dango pen and notebook.
The pen is a high-quality, aluminum-made, ballpoint pen that’s attached to the edge of the adapter. Along with it comes a 48-page notebook as big as the wallet itself, nicely nested inside the bifold pocket. It’s a fairly unorthodox thing to have such items attached to your wallet and, to be honest, I never thought of how useful this might appear to some.
The pen and notebook do make the wallet slightly bulkier and heavier, pretty much doubling its weight. But if notes are something you constantly need around you, the A10 Bifold Pen might just be the minimalist wallet you were after.
All three adapters use the same material – a durable, non-leather, DTEX texture. It’s a flexible, water and scratch-resistant material.
They all come in the same, denim blue color and use a plastic plate to attach to the chassis.
ID Window
Of course, if none of the adapters spike your interest, and you don’t see why you would spend more money for extra capacity, you can always just use the chassis alone. The hole designed to hold the adapters can be used as an ID window, as it can hold one additional card in the place where the gliding plate usually comes in.
How many cards can the Dango A10 Adapt hold?
The Dango A10 chassis can hold 5 cards total when used alone. 4 cards go in the main enclosed pocket, and 1 in the ID window.
However, this capacity grows larger when you add an adapter to the wallet. The single pocket one gives you additional space for 3 cards, while the bifold ones add the capacity for 9 more cards.
How many cash bills can the Dango A10 Adapt hold?
Keeping bills is a bit tricky with the A10 Adapt wallet. The chassis itself doesn’t have a conventional space for cash in it. You can try and squeeze in a few bills in the ID window and cover them with a card, but you will likely struggle to use them.
You will always have to remove the card to take the money out while making sure they don’t fall off or get tangled inside. Removing all the cards out will also be inconvenient if you have money inside, as they will interfere with the card’s pocket and cause difficulties to put your cards back in.
You can, however, install the Dango A10 chassis clip for an additional $15. The clip will hold a dozen of bills, and you can even use it as a holder to attach the wallet to a belt or a pocket. But it’s still something you’re going to have to solve aftermarket for an additional price.
Is the Dango A10 Adapt waterproof?
The A10 Adapt offers no protection to your cards and other contents if the wallet falls into a pool of water. It’s an open-frame design with many holes in it and the cards might get damaged instantly.
However, the frame itself, as well as any adapters you attach to it, will be perfectly fine as they are all made from water-resistant, non-corroding materials (the aluminum and the DTEX texture). You can even wash and clean your wallet once in a while if you like. Emptied, of course.
Is the Dango A10 Adapt TSA compliant?
The Dango A10 Adapt is a TSA-compliant wallet, as all the materials used in the Dango A10 Adapt are perfectly safe to go through the airport security gate.
You will probably be asked to remove it for any additional check-ups as it is a metal item, but they will let you take it up on the plane afterward.
Build quality
Typical for any Dango product, any materials used in the manufacturing process are top-notch and of the highest quality possible.
Materials
The main chassis uses a 6061 aerospace-grade aluminum for its build, as well as steel screws to tighten it all up. In my opinion, this is one of the best aluminum wallets available on the market today.
The adapters, as we previously mentioned, are made from non-leather DTEX textures for their cover, and plastic for the plate used to mount them to the chassis. All materials are scratch and water-resistant and will serve you for ages.
Aesthetics
The Dango A10 Adapt chassis is your typical open-frame, aluminum plate with holes all around the pockets designed for easy use and simple looks. When you add the adapters to it, it does get some nice denim touch which makes it look elegant and clean, not coming off as too strong nor with a harsh color palette.
Design and fit to style
The wallet comes in 5 color options:
- Crimson red
- Slate grey
- Champagne gold
- Satin silver
- Jet black
The wallet can be a great fit for many purposes. It is designed to be worn with a more casual, jeans and shirt outfit, suitable for sporty people. The sole monochromatic design can be easily pulled off even with professional office attire. After all, who needs to carry around a small notebook with them all the time, except for maybe busy office suits?
Known issues and problems
As with any other breakthrough product, the Dango A10 Adapt is something that is far from perfect.
The main issue users have had is the capacity. The chassis holds only 5 cards, and only 4 of them are RFID protected. Any additional space you want will cost you about $30-60 more.
On a similar note, the A10 is not exactly ideal for carrying cash either. There is no dedicated space for any cash bills, and the only pocket you can actually keep them in causes many inconveniences to the other pockets.
And finally, all the adapters make the wallet feel much bulkier than its original form. They add some significant weight and thickness to the item and can sometimes make it very uncomfortable to keep in your pockets.
How does the Dango A10 Adapt compare to other wallets?
Let’s see how the A10 Adapt compares to some of its most popular peers in the tactical wallets sphere.
Dango A10 Adapt vs Dango M1 Maverick
Lots of the issues with the A10 Adapt wallet were solved by Dango’s later M1 series.
The M1 Maverick has almost the same design as the A10 Adapt wallet, it also uses aluminum for its frame and has roughly the same looks, more or less. But the M1 wallet, which came out in the fall of 2021, has much more to offer than its A-series cousin.
The latter one has twice the capacity, being able to hold up to 9 cards in its pockets. All of them are safely stored with a much better rail system, an improvement to the one found on the A10. The Maverick is also compatible with the Dango MT04 multi-tool, a multifunctional steel plate that holds about a dozen functions ranging from a bottle opener, rope tensioner, to a sharp edge and many more.
But most importantly, the M1 Maverick also comes with many adapters, such as the single pocket, a tactical, or a 4-pocket bifold option, all of which can be bought to upgrade the capacity of the wallet.
Naturally, all of this comes with an extra cost of $30 or more per piece, with the base chassis of the M1 wallet usually being priced at $109. If you are already in the market for a premium Dango wallet, spending a bit more to get a much better product should be something to consider.
Who should not buy the Dango A10 Adapt?
There are many types of people who will not find the features and value propositions of the A10 Adapt offers all that useful.
If you always need to carry multiple cards with you, sometimes maybe even a dozen of them, then this wallet will not do you any good. Although the bifold option might suit you well, the chassis alone will not be sufficient for your needs. See my guide on the best wallets for many cards if you need more capacity for your cards.
Additionally, many users don’t really like to customize and play with their wallets all that much. Some simply want to order a full product that satisfies them at the original price. In fact, many are looking for just a nice, slim, two-pockets wallet that will fit elegantly in their daily attire. And the A10, especially after you mount an adapter to it, is not exactly that.
The wallet is not a good option for carrying a lot of cash. If you need that type of feature, see my guide on the best wallets for cash.
Finally, this is not a low-priced wallet and it may easily exceed your budget. So if you are looking for something cheaper, I would suggest checking out my guides on the best wallets under $50 and the best wallets under $30.
Who should buy the Dango A10 Adapt?
The Dango A10 Adapt is the perfect product for those wanting to jump on the Dango train and upgrade to their next, high-quality wallet.
I would recommend this wallet to people who love an open-frame design and are not afraid to experiment with less enclosed wallets. It doesn’t come off as too futuristic, nor too vintage. Dango kept it simple with this one and you can pull off the A10 easily, no matter your style.
It is also great for people who often find themselves in jeans. As all adapters come in the same, blue denim color, it’s a great fit for your usual blue jeans you wear almost everywhere.
The A10 Adapt would also be a good fit for people who don’t need to wear a lot of cards or cash with them. If you only keep 3 or 4 cards and rarely use any cash bills, then there is no need to carry a large, bulky wallet just for these few things. A slim, one-pocket chassis like the A10 Adapt is a great fit for you and you will use it for ages.
Dango A10 Adapt Specification
| Type | minimalist |
| Max n. of cards | 5 |
| RFID blocking? | yes |
| TSA compliant? | yes |
| Materials used | aluminum |
| Height | 4.1 in / 10.4 cm |
| Width | 2.7 in / 6.8 cm |
| Depth | 0.4 in / 1 cm |
| Weight | 2.3 oz / 65 g |
| Features | Mountable adapters, ID window, RFID |
| Water resistance | some |
| Warranty | lifetime |
| Return period | 30 days |
