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Accessories Otterbox Defender - Multi-Fail

bwsmith

Member
Nov 6, 2009
97
7
I was stoked to finally get my Otterbox Defender case. This is the one I have been waiting for since I got my Evo. In fact, it is my first Otterbox case at all but I have always admired them on other people's various phones. There are a couple nice little pieces of engineering, but overall, What a raging disappointment! These are just a few observations, not a full review.

A couple nice things are the protective film for the camera lens and the point where the clip attaches to the phone is a hard plastic built into the soft skin. The belt clip is also very nice. Seats the phone well ( a little loose, but not too bad) and ratchets very nicely. It will also seat the phone in both directions sot here is no "this end up". Also I can't even tell there is a screen protector on it. Invisible and reactive. There are a few pros.

Everyone knows by now that the kickstand is an EPIC fail. Mine last a day and a half opening it less than 15 times and propping it up once. Next is the way the soft cover attaches to the rigid case. For those who have not seen it there is a little channel in perimeter the case that you gently work the edge of the skin into. It works great as long as you don't actually use you phone. But it comes out of the channel too easy and then has to be carefully reseated. In fact, I was in the car and tried to put it back in the holster(while seated of course) and the clip in the holster somehow got under the skin and pulled it off the whole side. The last big issue is related to this. The flap that covers the charging port is a ridiculous design. It "hinges" next to the screen so every time you open the flap to charge the phone, it pulls the whole bottom out of the channel and it has to be reseated. That is just dumb.

A couple small issues that maybe can't be avoided but still a pain. Because of the depth and design of the case over the light sensor, automatic brightness doesn't work anymore because the sensor is in it own little dark cave. And the inside edge of the hard case comes in far enough toward the screen that it makes swinging down your top notification bar very cumbersome. I have to wedge my finger in at an angle to catch that part of the touch screen. Two out of three times I end up long pressing my clock widget so it tries to move on the screen.

With the time it took OtterBox to design any cases for the Evo, one would think that they would have been tested. I truly do not believe that this case was actually used by anyone and tested prior to release. If it had, it would not have so many failures. I think they just designed a cool looking box and made sure it fit the phone and never even put it on a hip or tried to use the device with it on.

I will say that I called OtterBox about the kickstand and they are sending me a new case. But it is the same design. I appreciate the effort, but replacing a dog turd with an identical turd still in the package just leaves you with matching turds. Supposedly, they are working on the kickstand issue and may just send everyone a new kickstand to snap in. I don't use the kickstand anyway so no big deal for me. But I am pretty sure I won't buy another OtterBox case.
 
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i have had the Seidio Active X Exoskeleton case from Amazon since launch and love it. i typically hate cases but this one is awesome. super high quality, great protection, fits like a glove, and not too bulky or sticky -

Amazon.com: Seidio Innocase Active Case for HTC EVO 4G - Limited Edition: Cell Phones & Accessories

Ive had the white one of this for awhile now and have gone back to it after my kickstand snapped of my defender. Its a good case and have been totally happy with it.

But im always on the look out for different cases for different situations. If im at home on the weekend chilling i dont need all the protection that i would if i was out hiking and climbing rocks.
 
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I believe the ballistics kickstand was just designed to last,for instance that little V cut on the top of the kick stand is there for a purpose,that's a pressure point where the crack would originate,the second i think is premium choice of plastic used when compared to the very brittle and thin plastic that otterbox decided to go with,and the fact that the stand disengages from the hinge when the force is too hard and fast,,,plus I never got this many compliments on my evo as I do know with this case.
 
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i have had the Seidio Active X Exoskeleton case from Amazon since launch and love it. i typically hate cases but this one is awesome. super high quality, great protection, fits like a glove, and not too bulky or sticky -

Amazon.com: Seidio Innocase Active Case for HTC EVO 4G - Limited Edition: Cell Phones & Accessories

That is the one that I had prior to the Otterbox and it was great except it was only good for one drop. Dropped my phone from 2' in the air onto carpet and the whole corner of the exoskeleton broke off. Well, it was pretty good, not great. It did have the habit of the release of the holster going under the gel skin, but at least you didn't have to reseat it like the OtterBox. The exoskeleton also scratched very easily exposing the black under it. But I did get a lot of compliments on my green one.
 
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