A new iPhone deserves the strongest type of protection available. As someone who is a professed late adopter (I am always a few trends behind), upgrading to one of these phones was a big deal for me. It means that I have used up the upgrade opportunity that is part of my archaic contract and also means that my frequent travels (where mishaps and potential for phone loss or damage is greater) up the ante quite a bit for phone protection.
My Mophie case has been a long-time favorite for me. I am able to use it as a protective case for my phone, but also as a way to power up in times when my battery is drained. I had strong faith in the phone case until a few weeks ago when my screen broke when the phone fell (probably at the most imperfect angle). All of a sudden, the best battery charge in the world was not going to help fix it.
The synthetic rubber casing of the OtterBox Defender series case for iPhone 8 and 7 keeps this safe during a fall although I have yet to test that theory out (and don’t want to). What makes me feel better about this product is that it has a triple protection base including a screen protector, which is what broke while using my Mophie. If you actually take the case apart, it comes in three individual pieces that fit together.
The case is a bit heavier than other phone cases, but as a result, it delivers better protection as the weight comes in the case’s protective features. There are easy-use buttons on the side for the home button and volume on the side. Sometimes, they don’t really sync up well with the functionality, but Otterbox has done an amazing job with aligning everything properly so it works well.
It’s not the kind of case that you want to keep taking off and putting back on, which is something that I realized when I was using one of those mobile fans that only are compatible with the iPhone’s outlet itself. I noticed after removing it multiple times that the case started to become a bit looser after repeated removals and re-installations.
As an added layer of protection, it comes with a belt clip holder that assures the phone won’t easily slip out of your pocket (that is if you think wearing your phone on your belt loop is cool). No matter what your style preferences, OtterBox has a lifetime warranty on all of their products, which offers great piece of mind.
I really appreciate the built-in screen protector that comes with this case from smaller drops, which has mostly been my trouble and it gives great coverage from all sides. I liked the fact that I was able to grab it easily from my pocket without it easily slipping out.
What is unique about the OtterBox case is that it has a small cut out in the case to show off the Apple logo for some reason. Some of the newer cases have the circle for the cut out to be a bit off centered, but that should only really bother those that are particularly concerned with design perfection. Its style is rather stylish and slick to put it into your pocket or your briefcase or blazer pocket.
It retails on the OtterBox website for $40-60 on various sites including Otterbox. What is fun about it is that it comes in a variety of colors. While it weighs just a little but more, that added protection ends up weighing even more in savings than having to pay for a new phone itself. It’s all about thinking long-term rather than in the moment, right?