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Radiating

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Dec 29, 2011
1,018
7
On launch day I ordered a iPhone 5 bumper which was 9mm thick and fit the phone like a glove.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/320981953680?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

The seller no longer sells these bumpers.

I ended up deciding to switch from a white to a black phone for personal taste reasons and I've tried to purchase the same bumper for my black one since.

I have a stack of 10 iPhone bumpers now, worth around $60, all of them are 10.5mm thick and were designed by "geniuses" who simply took the iPhone 4 bumper and made the rubber thicker not thinner.

These do not fit properly, look terrible and are an eyestore and a waste of money.

Seriously, where can I find some properly sized black 9mm bumpers, not messed up 10.5mm bulky modified iphone 5 bumpers? This is getting ridiculous.
 

Case1449

macrumors newbie
Oct 18, 2012
7
0
First off I would like to thank HazyCloud for linking to our store. I am pleased to inform you that our bumpers are of the "thin" style. Comparable to those that Apple personally sells.

As expected with the lower price point, they aren't AS high quality as Apple's but out of over 100 orders, there have been little to no complaints.

For a nice review on the cases I invite you to check out a review of our cases at http://michaelsteeber.com/post/33811201065/a-week-with-case1449s-iphone-5-bumper

Thanks again.
 

Radiating

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Dec 29, 2011
1,018
7
First off I would like to thank HazyCloud for linking to our store. I am pleased to inform you that our bumpers are of the "thin" style. Comparable to those that Apple personally sells.

As expected with the lower price point, they aren't AS high quality as Apple's but out of over 100 orders, there have been little to no complaints.

For a nice review on the cases I invite you to check out a review of our cases at http://michaelsteeber.com/post/33811201065/a-week-with-case1449s-iphone-5-bumper

Thanks again.

Order placed. Thanks. I'll update this when I get it to confirm this is the correctly designed style. From the pictures it does look like it's right.
 

Giuly

macrumors 68040
That looks like it's exactly the same as the i-BLASON bumper.
41-gt5Z1v8L.jpg

618peLS54OL.jpg


The only one to be even slimmer seems the Poetic Borderline:
31yKDmf63xL._SS400_.jpg

31CBP6BvGnL.jpg


SGP Spigen has updated their Neo Hybrid EX range with slimmer bumpers as well.
spigen_iphone_5_neo_hybrid_ex_slim_bumper_colors.jpg

iphone_5_neo_hybrid_ex_slim_snow-white_spigen_1.jpg
phone_5_neo_hybrid_ex_slim_metal-metal_slate_spigen.jpg


Here's a whole topic about slim bumpers.
 
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Case1449

macrumors newbie
Oct 18, 2012
7
0
Radiating, I was curious if you received your case yet? Not sure if you ordered a black case; if so it went out today. Or if you opted for a different color; which would have went out earlier in the week.
 

Radiating

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Dec 29, 2011
1,018
7
First off I would like to thank HazyCloud for linking to our store. I am pleased to inform you that our bumpers are of the "thin" style. Comparable to those that Apple personally sells.

As expected with the lower price point, they aren't AS high quality as Apple's but out of over 100 orders, there have been little to no complaints.

For a nice review on the cases I invite you to check out a review of our cases at http://michaelsteeber.com/post/33811201065/a-week-with-case1449s-iphone-5-bumper

Thanks again.

I just received your product and I am unhappy to report that the cases you are selling are of the 10.5mm design not the 9mm design.

There are 3 types of Apple style bumper cases that are made for the iPhone 5:

(Edit: See better description on post #13)

1) 10.5mm where the manufacturer added 0.75 mm of rubber top and bottom mating edge of the iPhone 4 bumper.

2) 10.5mm where the manufactuer added 1.5mm of rubber on the bottom, (these are the worst kind as they offer do not even offer more protection than the oversized bumper for the screen but they look like they are correctly designed in photos as the screen distance is the same as the iPhone 4).

3) 9mm where the manufacturer actually made a bumper to fit the phone properly instead of poorly modifying a iPhone 4 bumper design to fit.

The Case 1449 bumpers are of the #2 variety.
 
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Case1449

macrumors newbie
Oct 18, 2012
7
0
I'm sorry you were unhappy with the case. Out of 200 orders you were our first unsatisfied customer.
 
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sk2sep2304

macrumors regular
Jun 18, 2009
230
47
OP, I'm in search also. I've spend $40-50 on 6-10 10.5 and a 9mm that doesn't use metal buttons.
 

reRESERVEDMD

macrumors member
Jun 27, 2012
71
0
On launch day I ordered a iPhone 5 bumper which was 9mm thick and fit the phone like a glove.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/320981953680?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

The seller no longer sells these bumpers.

I ended up deciding to switch from a white to a black phone for personal taste reasons and I've tried to purchase the same bumper for my black one since.

I have a stack of 10 iPhone bumpers now, worth around $60, all of them are 10.5mm thick and were designed by "geniuses" who simply took the iPhone 4 bumper and made the rubber thicker not thinner.

These do not fit properly, look terrible and are an eyestore and a waste of money.

Seriously, where can I find some properly sized black 9mm bumpers, not messed up 10.5mm bulky modified iphone 5 bumpers? This is getting ridiculous.

I've been on a hunt as well. So far the best one I found that is thin is this

Do not expect bells and whistles, but so far it is the best quality bumper I could find.
 

Radiating

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Dec 29, 2011
1,018
7
I will be posting a guide on how to identify each style of bumper in the next few hours.

Hopefully we can find a legitimate source for them.
 

Case1449

macrumors newbie
Oct 18, 2012
7
0
I will be posting a guide on how to identify each style of bumper in the next few hours.

Hopefully we can find a legitimate source for them.

Once you post it we'll send it to our suppliers and see if they have them in stock.

While all of our customers have loved our case, we do take our dissatisfied customers seriously; you don't get that from the $2-4 eBay/Amazon sellers.

If there is a difference after our supplier sees the difference, we'll send you a free one once we get that shipment in.
 

Radiating

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Dec 29, 2011
1,018
7
Once you post it we'll send it to our suppliers and see if they have them in stock.

While all of our customers have loved our case, we do take our dissatisfied customers seriously; you don't get that from the $2-4 eBay/Amazon sellers.

If there is a difference after our supplier sees the difference, we'll send you a free one once we get that shipment in.

That's pretty upstanding. As an update actually purchased 24 different iPhone bumpers and spent $160 so far (though I sold 8 of them for $80 last week to recoup my losses)

Here are the different categories of bumpers I've received so far (all 24 were purchased from different sellers)

Overhang means distance from the flat surface to the top of the rubber. It's worth mentioning that the iPhone 5 has a raised screen that is 0.5mm higher than the band so bumpers with even spacing between the band will be 0.5mm shallower in front.

Contoured means the rubber band has the same shape as what it fits on, meaning it was molded to the phone. Not contoured means that the rubber band was designed by somebody who has never physically touched the iPhone 5 and it is not contoured to the phone. The end result is that on the inside of the bumper it barley holds your phone and will be much much less safe if you drop it because it will not distribute the force evenly. Imagine trying to fit a square peg into a round hole and having just the square corners touch the edges of the circle (not contoured), compared to a tightly fitting round peg into a round hole (yes contoured).

Button fitment means how good do the buttons that lock the phone and work the volume buttons work.


1) "9.5mm low profile style (previously called 9mm low profile)" - 0.75mm front, 1.25mm rear overhang (even spacing from band), 3.75mm wide rubber, Contoured = Yes, Button fitment = Great

Only received 2 of these out of 24 (sadly both are inappropriate colors, the original seller no-longer carries these)

2) "10mm depressed style" - 1.0mm front, 1.5mm rear overhang (even spacing from band), 4.5mm wide rubber, Contoured = No, Button fitment = Great

Only received 1 of these out of 24. This one is weird because the edges are not rounded but actually form a ramp between the screen and back and the tops and bottoms of the bumper. Obviously a hack job with no contouring to the phone. I call it the depressed style because the way it touches the screen looks like the rounded edges of a normal bumper were deflated and turned flat.

3) "10.75mm hack job style (previously 10.5mm #2 ie Case 1449 bumper)" - 1mm front, 2.25mm rear overhang (very uneven spacing), 4mm wide rubber, Contoured = No, Button Fitment = incredibly bad (75% of purchased ones disabled volume or lock button or both)

4 of the 24 I purchased are these. This one is poorly designed in every way compared to the others, the manufacture obviously tried to guess the depth dimensions and button fitment and guessed wrong. It's unlikely the manufacturer ever held the actual phone.

4) "10.75mm improved style" (I will add data to this one later), this seems to be the most popular style, the remaining bumpers I received all from different sellers are this style it seems to be a revision on #3 above with better and more even fitment all around. It's still very thick.


I will finish #4 and add detailed photos to all of these later.

It's worth mentioning that #1, the slimmest and highest quality bumper has a very unique and easy to identify feature:

IMG-0820.jpg


The lightning port opening is plastic surrounded by rubber, instead of just rubber. No other bumper has this feature.

Hope this leads to finding a source for these.
 
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Case1449

macrumors newbie
Oct 18, 2012
7
0
Thanks for the run down. Will send them out to my suppliers to see what they have to offer.

In your description of our case, the only thing we have heard from other purchasers is that the volume button "doesn't work". What happens is that due to the buttons being added on last, they are a "loose" piece for the lack of better terms. And occasionally gets a bit stuck prior to inserting the phone into the case. We've found out that if you remove the phone and press the top and bottom volume button down, it works like a charm.

As far as the other description regarding our cases, you are the first one to bring any of these up to us. And, as we mentioned, we will forward the full description to our supplier. I know the one thing I didn't care for was the way the buttons were made.

Thanks for updating.
 

Radiating

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Dec 29, 2011
1,018
7
Looks like a bad design for anyone having to use a 30Pin->Lightning adapter.

You cannot design a bumper case that will work with the lightning to 30 pin adapter. It would require warping the fabric of space.

On launch day several manufacturers released bumpers with massive slits at the bottom of the phone because they did not know how the port layout of the phone would work. These bumpers with massive slits that leave the bottom fully exposed are NOT compatible with the Lightning to 30 pin adapter, but are that way to rush the product to market. I have a few of those bumpers and they are shoddily designed and should be avoided.

The lightning adapter is as thick as the metal band before the chamfer so you just cannot design a bumper that will work with it (unless you get very creative with the design).

If you need to use the adapter you can:

1) get a bumper that comes on and off easily
2) get a lightning extension cable
3) get a snap on case like the incase snap:

incase-leather-snap-case-for-iphone-5-a.jpg
 
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Radiating

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Dec 29, 2011
1,018
7
Image


this site bumper for iphone 5 is good.

The site is:

http://www.iphone-5case.com

Actually it looks like that site does carry a few of the "9.5mm low profile style" high quality bumpers, example:

http://www.iphone-5case.com/double-...r-iphone-5-color-yellow-and-black-p-1213.html

http://www.iphone-5case.com/double-...for-iphone-5-color-blue-and-black-p-1212.html

But some of their bumpers are also the "10.75mm hack job" low quality style:

http://www.iphone-5case.com/double-...r-iphone-5-color-orange-and-black-p-1214.html

http://www.iphone-5case.com/yellow-tpu-protective-frame-for-iphone-5-p-701.html


I'm looking for the first bumper in black on black... still no luck
 
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Radiating

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Dec 29, 2011
1,018
7
Just orders that first black bumper you posted for $4.49 shipped. ^

The interesting thing is that those two bumper from the link above PROVE that the parts exist for a black on black thin bumper (again I have only ever received a white on grey and white on clear one).

My theory is that the lower quality junk is cheaper than the higher quality better fitting and thinner bumper so sellers always order the cheap junk in colors like black and white, unless it's not offered in a certain color, like blue on black or black on green.
 

xx01

macrumors newbie
Nov 5, 2012
8
0
The interesting thing is that those two bumper from the link above PROVE that the parts exist for a black on black thin bumper (again I have only ever received a white on grey and white on clear one).

My theory is that the lower quality junk is cheaper than the higher quality better fitting and thinner bumper so sellers always order the cheap junk in colors like black and white, unless it's not offered in a certain color, like blue on black or black on green.

Hi Radiating, do you think the following bumpers belong the #1 high quality category you mentioned? The sell dirt cheap ($1.5) and have all sorts of colour including black on black. Thanks

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BUMPER-CA..._MobilePhonesCasesPouches&hash=item3f1f07e00c

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PREMIUM-B...sPouches&var=450141722686&hash=item232516ec49
 

Radiating

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Dec 29, 2011
1,018
7
Hi Radiating, do you think the following bumpers belong the #1 high quality category you mentioned? The sell dirt cheap ($1.5) and have all sorts of colour including black on black. Thanks

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BUMPER-CA..._MobilePhonesCasesPouches&hash=item3f1f07e00c

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PREMIUM-B...sPouches&var=450141722686&hash=item232516ec49

I went ahead and ordered two of the black ones, less than $10 shipped. I'll review them once I get them. They appear to be to correct high quality slim version (based on the pic of the blue version which has plastic around the lightning port, a unique feature of the slim high quality version).

Radiating, I ordered the Elago bumper. http://elagostore.com/elago-S5-Bumper-Case-for-iPhone/M/B00A4AJIDQ.htm

I was wondering if this fits into one of your categories or if it's totally different, because it doesn't have the fake metal buttons. It looks promising, and I should receive it next week.

That looks identical to the Photive Hybrid case.

The Photive Hybrid case was one of the first cases I got. It went straight into the trash.

#1 It was thick and large
#2 It fit very tightly because it was designed poorly and does not contour to the bezel but just relies on pressure and deforming to stay on, which offers much less protection than a contoured case as there is only one point of contact instead of a large area - clearly it was designed without ever having the device in hand which also makes it hard to remove.
#3 The buttons were made of rubber which feels much cheaper than the metal like buttons they normally use on Apple style bumpers.
#4 the buttons were too small and difficult to use because they were rubber and not solid material so they cave in.
#5 the cut out for the bottom was just a big ugly slot, they clearly threw the design together based on preliminary specs without ever seeing the phone and the lower opening seems like they tried to approximate what they say in photos instead of contouring it tightly to the phone.

The Photive Hybrid case was just hacked together, a lot of people like it because the buttons are the same color as the bumper which matches the phone, which is why I plan to paint my metal buttons. :)
 

KeithLilja

macrumors member
Nov 8, 2012
94
0
I went ahead and ordered two of the black ones, less than $10 shipped. I'll review them once I get them. They appear to be to correct high quality slim version (based on the pic of the blue version which has plastic around the lightning port, a unique feature of the slim high quality version).



That looks identical to the Photive Hybrid case.

The Photive Hybrid case was one of the first cases I got. It went straight into the trash.

#1 It was thick and large
#2 It fit very tightly because it was designed poorly and does not contour to the bezel but just relies on pressure and deforming to stay on, which offers much less protection than a contoured case as there is only one point of contact instead of a large area - clearly it was designed without ever having the device in hand which also makes it hard to remove.
#3 The buttons were made of rubber which feels much cheaper than the metal like buttons they normally use on Apple style bumpers.
#4 the buttons were too small and difficult to use because they were rubber and not solid material so they cave in.
#5 the cut out for the bottom was just a big ugly slot, they clearly threw the design together based on preliminary specs without ever seeing the phone and the lower opening seems like they tried to approximate what they say in photos instead of contouring it tightly to the phone.

The Photive Hybrid case was just hacked together, a lot of people like it because the buttons are the same color as the bumper which matches the phone, which is why I plan to paint my metal buttons. :)

Dang dude! You should change your username to BumperGuru or something! Thanks for all the useful knowledge, its super insightful. Good connection between the plastic light port surrounding being the key element of the "good" design. Now we all know what we're looking for. However, I think that the Elago might be in a different category completely. Although they don't have pictures showing the bottom port cutouts head on, you can tell from the pictures of the bumper (with no phone in it) that there are three separate cutouts unlike the Photive/Monoprice/Poetic. I would also think that since they are known for being made in USA and all that jazz that they might be made to a bit better standard of specifically meeting their standards? Just a thought.
 
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