Otterbox unvarnished gear review.

[MOAK]

I bought my new iphone 6 back in October of 2015 as a retirement gift to myself. I had done a lot of research and was convinced that the Defender Series of Otterbox case would keep my phone safe from the elements. The Defender Series defended nothing. I paid top shelf dollars for a cover that soon succumbed to even the slightest of elements and normal usage. (normal usage for me borders on the anal retentive, these phones cost upwards of $500 and they do get my respect. I've never accidentally "dropped" this one.) The first thing to fail after little more than a year, was the little trap door that opens to access the plug in port. The rubber hinge simply wore apart due to normal use. Then the side molding began to come apart, rendering the rubber cover loose and ill fitting. Then, just last evening, the rubber finally tore completely apart. It's safe to say that this product has a usable shelf life of about two years. I was really pushing the envelope on last years expedition and found myself being extremely careful with this very fragile and poorly designed case. I say poorly designed because I have an old iphone4 with a 10.95 Mickey Thompson rubber case that is still in excellent shape, made with real rubber compounds that was given to me a very long time ago. I'm shopping now for a reasonable priced cover that will not succumb to ordinary use.

 

[Kent R]

I have used LifeProof for some time now the main reason is I work in a dust environment and I drop it and it holds up. Not inexpensive though but for me worth the money.

 

[nickburt]

I've used Otterboxes for Iphones for a few years and they've done their job. The only failure, as above, is the flap for the charge port breaking off after a few weeks.

 

[Road]

I've had great luck over the years with Spigen Rugged Armor and Spigen Tough Armor cases for my iPhones. Some are two-part shock-absorption cases but nowhere near as bulky as otterbox. Had one of those and returned it.

Never had any longevity or durability issues with the Spigen cases, and I've used my phones constantly in all sorts of situations. I can look up the one I like best if interested.

 

[nickburt]

Would be interested in which one @Road

 

[Road]

Would be interested in which one @Road

Hope these help you, too, @MOAK, in choosing a new case.

I've used Spigen cases for five, six years now? The Spigen case I like best for my new iPhone is the Spigen Rugged Armor with Shock Absorption. Been using it since September without issue, have dropped the phone several times onto different types surfaces, even face down, without any sign of phone or case being damaged. It's sleek when compared to a lot of other tough type cases. I even keep one of the thin fabric card holders attached to the back and it all fits into my front pocket nicely.

I tried the Spigen Tough Armor with Kickstand but in the end didn't like it. Only needed a couple days to see it wasn't for me and that the kickstand would end up a problem, at least for my constant style of use. I have it still on the Pay It Forward thread if anyone wants it.

I've used a couple other Spigen cases in the past when I had iPhone 5s, and liked them a lot, so went looking when I got my new phone. One of the things I like about the Spigen over Otterbox--at least the one I had and returned--is the button receptivity. On the Otterbox it felt to clunky and thick, whereas with the Spigens feels more like the phone button, though protected.

They have quite a line of stuff, and though all I can vouch for personally is their phone cases, they have other holders and accessories.

Now my iPad and iPad mini, that's a different post. I need to write it all up sometime; the various covers and mount ideas, some found in threads here.

 

[nickburt]

Just ordered a Spigen to give it a try.

 

[James Deaton]

Not sure what the complaint is about... call Otterbox and they will send you a new case, no questions asked. Lifetime warranty.

I’ve been using Otterbox Defenders exclusively on all our Apple devices for the last 6 years. We’ve bought at least a dozen Otterbox Defenders, and all of them have worked remarkably! I’ve never personally experienced the kind of abuse you are showing, but have experienced wear.

We typically call Otterbox about every year or year and a half, tell them our case is worn, and they send us a brand new case.

I use my phone tons, all day long. Under the car, under the hood, at work, at home... plus I’m pretty clumsy so I drop it all the time. We’ve NEVER experienced any phone damage while using an Otterbox Defender.

Sorry if I’m getting a little wordy, but I don’t appreciate reading someone belittle a product that has been such a lifesaver to our household for so many years.

James

 

[Boort]

@MOAK

Hit them up and let Otterbox know about this case. I know My dad had some issues with the belt clip for his defender and they took good care of him.
Be interesting to see if they still stand behind their products.

Boort

 

[MOAK]

Not sure what the complaint is about... call Otterbox and they will send you a new case, no questions asked. Lifetime warranty.

I’ve been using Otterbox Defenders exclusively on all our Apple devices for the last 6 years. We’ve bought at least a dozen Otterbox Defenders, and all of them have worked remarkably! I’ve never personally experienced the kind of abuse you are showing, but have experienced wear.

We typically call Otterbox about every year or year and a half, tell them our case is worn, and they send us a brand new case.

I use my phone tons, all day long. Under the car, under the hood, at work, at home... plus I’m pretty clumsy so I drop it all the time. We’ve NEVER experienced any phone damage while using an Otterbox Defender.

Sorry if I’m getting a little wordy, but I don’t appreciate reading someone belittle a product that has been such a lifesaver to our household for so many years.

James

Hey, relax, I'm not "belittling" a product as you put it. I'm giving my review of a product that has failed to live up to it's name. If we all remain quiet when a product fails us then the manufacturer will have no reason to improve product. They have done the math. It costs them less money to honor their warranty than it does using an indestructable rubber compound that will actually hold up over time, and 2 1/2 years is not a great deal of time. If you have had great success with them fine, but if you have purchased a dozen of them in 6 years, does that mean you have 6 family members with two phones each? or 6 phones that need a new box cover every two years? I'm a bit confused on that one. What I will do is contact Otterbox, explain my grief and see what they do. Their warrenty is good for 1 year only. I'll give it a whir..

 

[James Deaton]

5 family members, 5 apple devices, and we buy new devices every fee years, requiring new cases because of design changes.

James

 

[MOAK]

OK, got it, you've never really owned an otterbox then for more than a couple of years.

 

[James Deaton]

I think two years is the max i’ve kept one without asking for a replacement. I don’t really see the point in going beyond that if they are going to send me a brand new one with one phone call...

Plastic and rubber wear out, but excellent customer service lives on forever :)

James

 

[TOMB]

I have the obox for the 6+, only issue is rain gets under screen cover at the forward facing camera. Other than that it has done its job. Have had it for a few years now and dropped it countless times.


Sent from my iPhone using OB Talk

 

[rlhydn]

I had an Otterbox on my Nokia Lumia 900 unbreakable, beautifully made and designed for the phone.

Life proof for my iPhone 6s - rubbishy quality and the screen is very susceptible to damage. Allowed dust in too

Replaced with an Otterbox Commuter - better built but not as well designed as the older generation.

Currently using an Apple silicon cover and glass SP


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[smritte]

I had used otter box on my I Phone 5 (not defender) for over a year. My only complaint was the amount of dust it let in and how much bigger it made phone. I'm fairly brutal with my phones. Had to replace phone, got the the 7 and wanted something more stream lined. Went with the life case. Smaller, not as armored but has held up to my constant abuse. The problem's I have with life case is the touch screen isn't as sensitive and sometimes if I push the end call button it wont disconnect (I have to push button on the side to hang up), the screen cover is scratching faster than otter box and cant get replacement screen without buying whole case again.
When I'm out on the trail my phone sits in a Ram mount on my driver pillar by the window. Ton of dust, I need dust proof and mild water proof.
I have otter box on my I pad and again my complaint is dust and size.
I hope your problem is just a fluke and not a sign of cutting cost. Good of you to bring it up. I'm looking for something better and am going to look into the others suggestions.

Scott

 

[James Deaton]

Regarding dust: one suggestion I’ve seen before is to remove the OtterBox defender‘s plastic screen cover, then install a stick on screen cover directly onto the iPhone. That way you still have the perimeter and rear protection of the Otterbox, but not the dust collection of the plastic screen.

Removal of the clear plastic screen cover may leave a gap, so you might need to either add a shim of some sort, or leave the perimeter edge of the clear plastic cover intact, and just cut out the middle.

James

 

[MOAK]

Very true. I had forgotton about all the grime and dust that collected underneath the screen saver. After our trip of 2016 I had to take my phone to apple for a free cleaning.. BTW, I contacted Otterbox and they seem to want to send me a new one, even after the passage of time. Will I use it? It's kinda like a poorly made brand of battery, or rig, (neither of which I shall name) that has a great warranty for 3 years, or something like that, and you are a thousand miles from their nearest retail outlet, or a couple of days away from a certified repair shop or fed-ex drop site. By the time you're able to allow them to honor their warranty you've already had to buy a new battery or fix the rig yourself or worse yet, pay someone else to fix it.

I already bought the same brand phone cover that I've been carrying camera gear in for quite some time. It's slimmer, lighter, and it was on sale 50% off and another discount for being AARP and I got it for $13. No sense in my getting a high end case as I'll be upgrading my phone within a year or two. At that time I'll be seriously shopping for dependabillity and longevity. Pelican has been building the best cases for for decades. It would only follow that their phone cases would also be as good as the rest of their line. But, I will be shopping.

 

[James Deaton]

Try running both of them over with the car and let us know how the phone survives...

I don’t mean to pick on you, it just seems like an odd review you just left for a great company. You compare them to a battery with only a three-year warranty, while in fact they have a lifetime warranty on their cases.

This seems to be the reality of what happened as I understand it: your case started to wear, you waited a really long time until it wore even more and then finally broke, then you got on a forum and complained about them after buying another case.

It seems to me that instead you could have chosen to: notice some wear on your case a couple years ago, call Otterbox right away, received a replacement within a week for the cost of shipping which is about six dollars, installed a new case, repeat as needed.

Once again, seems like an odd review to me, when in fact the company stands behind their products very well, and ships free cases out with no questions asked. It really doesn’t get much better than that.

As I said before, there is no perfect case, but there is perfect customer service, and Otterbox has it.

James

 

[smritte]

Regarding dust: one suggestion I’ve seen before is to remove the OtterBox defender‘s plastic screen cover, then install a stick on screen cover directly onto the iPhone. That way you still have the perimeter and rear protection of the Otterbox, but not the dust collection of the plastic screen.

Removal of the clear plastic screen cover may leave a gap, so you might need to either add a shim of some sort, or leave the perimeter edge of the clear plastic cover intact, and just cut out the middle.

James

Good idea. If it was only the screen I would consider that if I still had one but, its the speakers and the camera also. My life case isn't perfect but I get no dust.
I have run over my I phone 5 in the otter box and that's why I have a 7S now. It was on a trail not pavement and didn't hit a rock. Set it on the tire and forgot it, the guy behind me saw it on the ground. I really don't think any of them are designed to have that happen.

Scott