Received my OtterBox Defender iPhone 5 case other day, being an OtterBox fan since the release of the iPhone 4, this case for the 5 leaves me a little disappointed. For others all the changes vs the i;phone 4 variant may be all improvements, for me and how I use my iPhone, the changes are a few steps backwards.
History; I bought the Defender case when it was first released for the iPhone 4, LOVED it, wore it out, literally. As an Electrician and using my phone in the trade I keep it in my chest pocket. Early on with my pervious iPhones I learned the Silicone cases were better suited for me due to the stiction of the grippy silicone, wouldn't slide out of my pocket when I bent over and the soft silicone added a good measure of shock absorption for those times when I did drop the phone. OtterBox to the rescue with the Defender, flaps to cover the ports to keep debris and dirt out, good overall protection, etc. After a year the silicone skin was wore through on the corners, the flaps were tore surrounding the hinge points and the plastic inner shell was cracked in two places from multiple drops, yet the phone was still in as new condition. Extremely pleased with how the case faired and protected my phone especially considering the environments I subjected it to I didn't hesitate to purchase another Defender case to replace the worn out case. 8 months later ready for the new iPhone 5, again didn't hesitate to order the new Defender case. Case arrived, opened the package and... It looks very nice but the new rubberized skin is much harder and slipperier than the previous iPhone defender silicone version. For some/most this may be a welcome attribute, for me its not. 1) It does not have the grippyness of the previous skin allowing the phone to fall out of my pocket when I lean over, 2) the harder rubber "feels" chincy in comparison, 3) the flaps now push against the charge connector and headphone plug with considerable side loads that I am not comfortable subjecting my new phone to. It feels like it may create issues internally over time with the amount of side loading the hard rubber flaps put on those connectors.
Granted, the sides of the skin around the face don't peel up like the previous softer version but to me that was a compromise worth dealing with, now the added strain being placed on the connectors and a slipperier skin, compromises I am not wiling to make for how I use my phone.
Currently looking into alternative cases, a few have my attention, the LifeProof water proof case, Ballistic Hardcore, Griffin Survivor, and the TakTik, (TakTik is an exotic case, price is bit higher and adds considerably more to the perimeter dimensions and smooth, not grippy).
My $.02