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Griffin Survivor or Otter Box Defender iPhone 5 ?

Hooterville

Hooterville

macrumors G4
Original poster
How does the Griffin Survivor compare to the Other Box Defender?
I like how the Survivor at least has some protection over the rear and front cameras.😱

What U think?🙄
 
I am not a fan of griffin, I had a survivor on my iPad and it fell apart and I bought a defender and it lasted a lot longer.

Just my experience with it.
 
Hooterville said:
How does the Griffin Survivor compare to the Other Box Defender?
I like how the Survivor at least has some protection over the rear and front cameras.😱

What U think?🙄
Click to expand...

I just got the Griffin Survivor in the mail today for my iPhone 5. Fit is perfect, only issue I have is that the cover for the camera on the opposite side of the screen seems like it could easily tear off. Also it might be annoying to have to move that cover every time you pull your phone out of your pocket and want to take a quick picture. I'll post pics if you want.
 
Laimbeersux said:
I just got the Griffin Survivor in the mail today for my iPhone 5. Fit is perfect, only issue I have is that the cover for the camera on the opposite side of the screen seems like it could easily tear off. Also it might be annoying to have to move that cover every time you pull your phone out of your pocket and want to take a quick picture. I'll post pics if you want.
Click to expand...

A few pictures would be great.
I have the defender and was thinking about ordering up a survivor also.
 
Hooterville said:
A few pictures would be great.
I have the defender and was thinking about ordering up a survivor also.
Click to expand...

Will get the pics at halftime, 1:20something left. Just found a minor issue, the sound is muffled pretty significantly when the case is all together with the ports covered. Case seems like a solid case though, and that issue would be one that would rarely surface for me since if I'm listening to it, it's usually through headphones or bluetooth.
 
Thanks, what about the sound from the ear piece? Is that OK?
I'll look for the pics in a while. 🙂

How fast did Griffin ship the case to you?
 
Hooterville said:
Thanks, what about the sound from the ear piece? Is that OK?
I'll look for the pics in a while. 🙂

How fast did Griffin ship the case to you?
Click to expand...

Several headphones fit fine into the jack, although I just now realized what you were talking about was the sound from the earpiece as if you were listening to a phone call, no muffling at all on when I just made a phone call. I'm taken aback at how huge this case really is though. It will be my everyday case because of the rough environment I work in, but I think I have a few bucks left over from Best Buy Reward Zone, so I may grab a Defender as well, as I heard they were significantly thinner than the 4/4s models.

As for shipping time, my sister bought this case for me as a delayed birthday present. She pre-registered and ordered it as soon as she was notified it was available for purchase. She said it was about 9-10 days from the day she was notified that it was available for purchase, to the day I got the case in the mail. Will probably be quicker now, but who knows?
 

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Thanks for the pics, laim
I can't imagine the survivor being any larger/bulkier then the defender is.
I believe the survivor would keep more sand/dust out of the ports then the defender where everything is open.

I think I just go ahead and order one in the morning and see for myself.🙂

Is the rubber real soft on the survivor?
 
Just throwing another option out there as I have there cases on 3 iPads in the house and have been throughly impressed. You may want to check out... http://www.gumdropcases.com/iphone-5-cases.html

I have a Defender on my iPhone 5 right now. It has not been on long enough to run it through its paces. Protection of Gumdrop and Griffin is greater, I am just not a fan of Griffin Survivors with the "flaps" and the texture/feel of the material.

My .02 just adding more for your to consider...of course Lifeproof and Taktik will join the party at some point too......
 
Hooterville said:
Thanks for the pics, laim
I can't imagine the survivor being any larger/bulkier then the defender is.
I believe the survivor would keep more sand/dust out of the ports then the defender where everything is open.

I think I just go ahead and order one in the morning and see for myself.🙂
Click to expand...

I work in the desert and drive around in dusty trucks all day, plus carry tons of stuff in my pockets, so the last week or so with just a Casemate ToughCase as protection for my new phone has about killed me. This Survivor looks like a great case overall for my work needs, now to find a slimline one for my days off.
 
Here is a pretty cool review/unboxing of the Griffin Survivor for the iPhone 5.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rw_lb9rjqW8

I had the Survivor case on my 4 and the protection that it offered was great but the biggest draw back was the back camera cover and the annoyance of having to open it every time I wanted to snap a picture. I went with the OtterBox Defender for my iPhone 5 for that very reason 🙄.
 
Just got in the Survivor today and I'm scared to put the phone in because of 3 sharp plastic ridges inside the back of the case that you have to push real hard and squeeze the phone by them.

These ridges seem pretty sharp and I'm almost sure they would scratch or rip the finish on the sides of my black iPhone 5.😡

Keep it in the Defender for now.

Here is a quick picture taken with the iPhone 5 showing the Survivor and Defender cases side by side.

The Otter Box is not looking so FAT now 😀

IMG_0008.jpg
 
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Defender is nice and I own it, only flaw is that when clipping it using belt holder it tends to fray the side of the defender where the phone clips to belt clip. Not bad, but i want to say it is a design flaw. When you face the screen outwards when using belt clip it slides in flawlessly, but who wants the phone to face outwards.

Waiting for att to get new supply of black so I can replace or from Otter after the 21st. Once I get it replaced I will no longer use the belt clip.
 
Hooterville said:
Just got in the Survivor today and I'm scared to put the phone in because of 3 sharp plastic ridges inside the back of the case that you have to push real hard and squeeze the phone by them.

These ridges seem pretty sharp and I'm almost sure they would scratch or rip the finish on the sides of my black iPhone 5.😡

Keep it in the Defender for now.

Here is a quick picture taken with the iPhone 5 showing the Survivor and Defender cases side by side.

The Otter Box is not looking so FAT now 😀

Image
Click to expand...

Hi. Is there a diference between the screen protector plastic with defender and survivor? I have the survivor at my 4s and i really dislike the plastic. Its kinda "fussy/blurry" and doesnt give justice to the retina display. Now that i have the iphone 5 i need some tough protection to it cause of my work and im wondering between the griffin or otterbox.
 
renttu85 said:
Hi. Is there a diference between the screen protector plastic with defender and survivor? I have the survivor at my 4s and i really dislike the plastic. Its kinda "fussy/blurry" and doesnt give justice to the retina display. Now that i have the iphone 5 i need some tough protection to it cause of my work and im wondering between the griffin or otterbox.
Click to expand...

Yes, the plastic on the Survivor seems blurry compared to the Defender.
Defender has the better clear plastic screen protector.
 
I would get the Defender. The version for the iPhone 5 is by far the best when compaired to the other iPhone models.
 
I love Otterbox defender - although after 2 weeks the silicone is rubbing off where it clicks into the holster. Everything else is better with the iPhone 5 than the previous models
 

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Spink10 said:
I love Otterbox defender - although after 2 weeks the silicone is rubbing off where it clicks into the holster. Everything else is better with the iPhone 5 than the previous models
Click to expand...

Well that just plain sucks. Did you call Otter Box and see if they would send you a new silicone cover?
 
Hooterville said:
Well that just plain sucks. Did you call Otter Box and see if they would send you a new silicone cover?
Click to expand...

I purchased from AT&T - may be returning it completely. If not I will just stop by AT&T.

However, Otterbox has the best customer service of any company i have dealt with. They have replaced so much for me and co-workers. Co-workers recently request a new case - when ask who it was purchased from he told them from a friend over a year ago. They said no biggie - we will send you a new case. 🙂 I once requested if I could just purchase a different color silicone - they said we will send you another case with whatever color silicone you want. They are amazing!
 
I vote otterbox, I had the survivor and it was a lint and dust magnet. Gets stuck in your pocket if you put it in there. The rubber is just very grippy to everything. The new otter box is nice just the right amount of grip for your hand but slides in and out of a pocket easy with out having lint stuck to it. The belt clip on the survivor was crap also.
 
norwegian wood said:
I vote otterbox, I had the survivor and it was a lint and dust magnet. Gets stuck in your pocket if you put it in there. The rubber is just very grippy to everything. The new otter box is nice just the right amount of grip for your hand but slides in and out of a pocket easy with out having lint stuck to it. The belt clip on the survivor was crap also.
Click to expand...

The Survivor belt clip is one big piece of crap 😱
 
Hooterville said:
The Survivor belt clip is one big piece of crap 😱
Click to expand...

agree agree and so is the defender, i lost an iphone 3gs with a defender case, and both brands clips break easily, i think they need to go back to a pouch case with belt loops if you want something safe
leon
 
My defender is going good, no problems with screen protector or oil slicks. I didn't like the flap for the charger so cut it off. All good now.

They do gather a bit of dust also took case off today and the back of the phone had a imprint from the window and square patch in the case. luckily they wiped off.
Think it needs to come off every couple of weeks and cleaned.
 
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I have the Griffin Survivor and love it. I tried the Defender case but didn't like the fit. It felt loose in the case which concerned me. The griffin case is snug. Plus all of the ports are covered to prevent dust from settling in. The home button on the Griffin is a lot more responsive than the Defender as well. The sound on phone calls is a little muffled and the case is bulky, but I'm willing to make those sacrifices to know that my phone is safe.
 
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