Everything you need to know about Smartphone Cases: Smartphones have gone through a series of changes in the last few years. They’ve upgraded from thick heavy bezels to the more modern bezel-less look.
When you buy a new smartphone, it not only looks naked, but it also feels light in your hands. So because of this lightness, it can easily slip out of your hand and drop to the ground. That’s how it then gets visible scratches and dents.
The new bezel-less look solved the inconveniences of carrying around heavy phones, but with this change also came an extra challenge. To solve this issue, companies have designed phone cases that offer extra protection against these unexpected accidental damages
The next time you purchase a new smartphone or if you currently have one, it’s advisable to also invest in a high-quality smartphone case.
Below are more reasons why it’s a good idea to invest in smartphone cases.
Yes, they protect your smartphone and also do much more.
Phone cases are designed to protect our phones from major accidental drops, knocks, bumps and falls.
They’re cheap
A nice smartphone case can cost you about £10. Others even go for as little as £5. So really you don’t have to worry about breaking the bank to purchase a smartphone case. Simply go for one that fits your budget.
Protection against visible scratches or dents
When you walk around bare feet, you can easily get dirty or even step on a sharp object that can harm you. This theory is the same for smartphones because if they aren’t protected, they can get damage such scratches and dents.
Cases make your smartphone look new
Smartphone Cases allow smartphones to maintain their original design even after so many years. Every time you take it out people will think it was recently purchased.
Give the phone a personal identity
With so many people around owning similar phones and exact designs, it becomes difficult to have some uniqueness. Only a phone case can solve this. Simply purchase one with a unique design on it. Today you can even buy a plain case and have it customized for you.
A Safety net for when your phone has no insurance
It’s so devastating when a newly-purchased smartphone gets damaged and you have no insurance. Having a smartphone case will save you from having to worry about insurance issues.
Visually appealing
The human eye likes to look at nice-looking things. That’s why phone case companies design them in the most attractive way possible with a wide range of colours to choose from.
Increases phone value
A smartphone case will keep your phone looking new. When you decide to sell it at some point, the value will still be fairly good compared to if you were to sell it with scratches and dents. It would only be able to fetch pennies.
Those are some of the major reasons as to why you need a phone case. It’s also important to know what type of phone case is most recommendable for purchase as explained below with advantages and disadvantages for each.
Leather cases
Leather cases are luxurious and soft to touch.
Advantages
Added texture to smartphone
They give the user a softer feel when holding, compared to basic phone cases. They’re comfortable to hold so you don’t have to worry about them slipping from your hands.
Very presentable
Some phone cases come with designs and prints that are way overboard, they end up looking like a circus. A leather case though gives an overall official and neat look that is worthy of being seen, especially in an official environment. No one will look at you weirdly as it would be the case if you were holding a phone case donned with cartoons all over.
Provides better thermal performance
Particular phone case materials limit proper thermal performance rather than promoting it. A leather case is a recommendable choice for someone that loves watching videos and playing games on their phones.
Protects your phone
This is the first expectation anyone expects to get when buying a phone case. A leather case delivers 100% on protection.
Disadvantages
Terrible at waterproofing
We don’t expect your phone to land on a watery surface especially when the case is of leather material. Leather cases aren’t waterproof so they are likely to get drenched. Endeavour to remove your phone as quickly as possible the moment you realize it has landed on a watery surface. This will help prevent further damage.
Difficult to maintain
Everything if not maintained losses its effectiveness. Leather cases aren’t excluded from this one. They need to be cleaned regularly. For example by avoiding direct contact with heat, staying away from direct sunlight, and rough surfaces. Also, make sure it stays as fresh as possible.
Silicone cases
Silicone cases are soft and smooth, with a rubbery kind of texture. They can have around for quite some time. Their rubbery and soft texture has since then become so popular in the manufacturing of mobile cases.
Advantages
They are light, soft, and flexible.
These properties make it easy to slip onto phones. They’re made of an elastic material which can easily fit onto the phone.
Silicone cases have a good grip
You can hold them and be sure they won’t just slip away from your hands.
They are very affordable
Compared to other case types like leather, metal, and wood cases.
They are not easily affected by water, chemicals, and fungus.
The silicone material doesn’t harbour fungus and other chemicals
These cases come in a range of beautiful colours and designs
You have a platform to choose what colour best represents your personality.
They can withstand temperatures.
The fact that they can withstand the heat of up to 300-degrees Celsius. This makes them fire-resistant.
Disadvantages
Silicone cases collect lots of lint and dust.
This is because of their build-up of static electricity. However, you can purchase silicon cases that are coated with an anti-static element that reduces the collection of lint and dust.
They have poor thermal conductivity.
Silicone cases can store heat for long, periods something that isn’t good for your phone. Too much heat will only cause internal damages.
Silicone cases are difficult to clean.
This is especially when they’ve collected a lot of dust
They are bulky.
This though can be overlooked because protection is much better than worrying about carrying around a bulky phone.
Silicone material easily gets damaged.
They can tear when scratched or pierced by sharp materials.
It’s sticky.
The stickiness of these cases tends to bother some people. It becomes a challenge to put them into pockets because they stick so much.
Hard cases
This can also be called hard plastic.
Advantages
- Hard cases are affordable.
- They adequately protect smartphones from scratches and dents.
- The cases usually come in many assorted colours to choose from.
- They provide openings for power ports and USB connectors.
- There are options in clear/see-through versions for users who wish to show off their phone designs.
Disadvantages
- They focus on protecting phones mainly from surface damages rather than damage when they drop.
- Their cases don’t give a tight grip because of their thin layer.
- The scratches on the cover are visible.
- Users normally complain about them having a “cheaper look” compared to silicone cases.
Designer cases
Designer cases express one’s sense of style and imagination. These designs can be in the form of popular brand names (i.e. Balenciaga, Louis Viton), images of popular TV personalities, quotes and characters.
Advantages
- They allow expressing one’s sense of style
- Give a chance to pick a style that fits their lifestyle or mood.
- They make the phone look stylish especially it was dull, black white, or grey.
Disadvantages
- Similar to other phone cases, they come in cheap and duplicated materials. It’s important to buy original brands that will protect your smartphone.
- Some of the designs are overly done especially for someone that wants to achieve a more official look.
Tough cases
Tech companies that make these tough phone cases know what it means to drop an expensive phone to the ground when it’s not protected. They are aware of how expensive it can be to replace a broken phone.
This is why they’ve made tough phone cases, also known as military-grade cases.
Advantages
- They offer up to three layers of protection, with one of them being an internal foam to protect the phone when it falls. Some of them have in-built screen protection.
- These many layers also make the cases waterproof, drop-proof, and dustproof. In other words, your phone is assured of 100% protection.
- Their thickness is an added element which makes them less slippery and easier to hold. Even if the phone drops, it’s heavily protected.
- Tough phone cases work well for clumsy people that just can’t stop knocking things over.
Disadvantages
- Some of them are a little expensive because of the extra protection they offer, for example, the Otter box case.
- They can be bulky and inconveniencing to carry.
- They don’t provide all-round phone protection.
- Tough phone cases spoil the phone’s original look because it covers almost the entire phone apart from the front screen.
Protective phone cases
Protective Smartphone cases are about as good as their name suggests.
Advantages
- They are water-resistant and dustproof.
- Are made of shock-absorbent material, strong polycarbonate back panel with an aluminum tough frame that works to protect the phone in case it falls.
- Their raised bezel protects the phone’s camera lenses from dirt and grit.
- It provides a good grip because of their rugged nature making it extremely easy to carry.
- The outer shell is scratch resistant and shock resistant.
Disadvantages
- They’re fairly bulky due to the large amount of protective material that makes up their body. However, it’s not all bad because when dropped to the ground, your smartphone is protected.
Flip cases
They’re famous for their all-round phone protection. Flip cases come in leather designs or some other material with a solid layer of protection inside.
Advantages
- Protects the entire body of the phone. It’s probably among the fewest phone cases that can do this.
- Some of them have pockets under the front lap where you can keep some money or receipts.
Disadvantages
- They are quite expensive compared to silicon, hard cases, and others.
- They are a little bulky because of their build, like having a back cover joined to the flip cover. For bigger phones, they even become bulkier.
Wallet cases
This is like a pouch where you can keep your phone. The wallet cases are usually made of leather fabric or PU leather.
Advantages
- Wallet cases provide all-round phone protection.
- The phone is safely tucked away in a pouch so even if it falls, there may not be any damage.
- They work well with your belt because that’s where they are safely attached. This is very convenient, as you don’t have to worry about holding your phone.
Disadvantages
- They are a bit impractical to use because you have to open the wallet every time you’re going to use the phone and then putting it back when you finish.
- The phone can easily get damaged when it’s not in the wallet. Without it being inside the pouch, it’s not safe because it can easily drop hence getting damaged.
Official cases
These are usually made of leather material or clear cases with minimal designs.
Advantages
- They come in a variety of assorted colours and materials like leather, silicone, plastic among others.
- Official cases look simple but yet sophisticated
- Similar to most cases, they protect the phone against scratches or and any other accidental damages.
Disadvantages
- They don’t offer all-round phone protection against damages.
- Have minimal designs that make them somewhat boring to look at.
Conclusion
Every phone needs a phone case to protect it against accidental damages as mentioned above. Each of the phone cases listed provides some level of protection while others give the smartphone all-round protection. Before you decide to invest in your favourite phone case, you must ensure that it’s a genuine type especially in terms of the material used. It can be such a waste of time to buy duplicate/fake phone cases that will not do what you expect them to do. Otherwise, you can now have the best smartphone experience knowing your phone is protected.
Arthur is a senior member of the communications team who has worked at several well-known companies over the past 10 years. As a writer with many years of experience in the technology sector, focusing on reviewing mobile phones and accessories, he has written about many products or has been hands-on with them at some point