Despite the assertion that my case was not coming for another two weeks, it arrived today. Not sure what that was all about but who cares - it's hear!
Anyway, on to the review!
I went with the Neo Hybrid after seeing the new color on their page, the one with the satin gold ring. It is very attractive, elegant I would say. I have the white GN3 and there is no doubt that this case would look so much better with the black GN3. But it is what it is. If Spigen offers a Neo Hybrid with a white shell material I might try that. But the black is okay for now.
The build quality seems very good. The fit is excellent. The cutouts for the various things like the mics, power/data plug, S-pen, speaker are all very well executed and well centered. I had no problem getting the S-pen out with the case on. The buttons do appear loose but that is by design. These are just button extensions and they work well. The case definitely adds some size and weight. Not a lot, but enough to be noticeable. Size wise, the phone barely fit into some of my shirt pockets (the ones with larger pockets to begin with) but with the case it now does not. It sticks out and the flap with Velcro cannot make contact to seal the phone in. This is important to me because it keeps the phone from sliding out and crashing to the floor when I bend over to do something. So now the phone will have to go into my front pants pocket. Not a big deal since many of shirt pockets didn't fit the GN3 even when it was naked.
The material is very smooth (both shell and ring) and is a little on the slippery side for me. It's not awfully slippery, but I would have preferred a little more tactile grip, at least on the black shell back material. The added weight does give the phone a more 'realistic' feel. By that I mean that the weight of the GN3 naked feels just too light for all the technology that is stuffed into the phone! With the added few ounces from the case it now feels like it should. There are two things I particularly like about the case: The raised ridge around the front bezel of the phone and also the raised area around the camera lens and flash on the back. One of the things I didn't like about the naked GN3 was the protruding camera lens and flash package. I thought that was just asking for damage from a drop.
While the added weight would detract from shirt pocket carry, I find I actually like it in my pants pocket. I can tell it's there and I feel like there is much better protection from bumps. Also now there is much better protection from drops. The shell material is very well made and should provide very nice shock protection from drops. The raised surfaces front and back should provide some protection as long as it lands on flat surfaces. I'm not digging on the added weight to the phone when holding it in my hands but that's just because I'm so used to the naked GN3. I'm sure I'll get used to it pretty quickly.
Will this be my last case? Probably not. But I'll keep it on for now and see if I get used to it. I wish I had gone with the black GN3 now as it would look so much better with this case. But at least I know it's protected now from minor drops. I'm not a kid so I don't drop my phone much, but I have on occasion. All in all, this is a well-made case and worth the $25 I paid. This my first time with a Spigen case and I like the look, feel and build quality. Minus the minor reservations listed above, I would recommend it.
I will attach some photos shortly.