e13tron s4v hybrid review & white 4S

[ga1d3n]

In looking for a case, I was concerned primarily with these factors:

• Aesthetics

I think that the white iPhone is gorgeous. I wanted a case that would complement the simplistic aesthetic appeal of the phone. Naked, it is primarily white and aluminum.​

• Minimalist

I was looking for a slim case that is not overly bulky, heavy or feels like a giant mass. As the 4S is relatively thin, I did not want to add on more mass to the design.​

• Protection

At this point, I could have gone with a Desmay slight, or the Incipio feather. But, I want more protection than those thin cases offer. I have dropped by Motorola Atrix before from waist high, and shattered the screen. Even after getting it repaired, I still drop it all the time. Thank god it has an otterbox commuter case on it. I definitely don’t want to risk it on the iPhone​

• Performance

With the full aluminum case offerings, I read too many impacts on the signal quality. As this is primarily my work phone, I cannot have that degrade the signal strength too severely.​

• Price

I was not too concerned with cost, as long as it was less than a hundred.​

My hunt for the ideal case for me, came to an end with the e13tron s4v hybrid. Fully customizable in colors, I had my pick and choice in the design of the case. I chose chrome polished for the aluminum and white acetal on the bottom half. I ordered on 10/21 and it arrived yesterday on 11/3. Not bad for a custom order, but relatively slow speed in throughout the entire ordering process that was sped up only because I called in somewhat frequently to inquire about my order status. Finally, as they had not been delivering on their promises, they upgraded my shipping speed from ground to 2 day delivery, which was nice of them (though I hate being a naggy customer). I am pairing it with a SGP Seinheil Ultra Crystal front screen protector on the phone.

I took the pictures on my Motorola Atrix, so sorry for the lack of quality right now. Will update when I take some shots with my better camera.

Pics:

Pros:

• Love the design and complement of the color
• Fully customized order
• The feel of the phone in your hand
• No issues with case and button placement
• Love the “clean” look
• Protection I needed without adding too much bulk
• No noticeable degradation to signal strength. Still constantly at 4 bars.

Cons:

• Price – relatively expensive despite the 15% off coupon code used. $70 final price w/ shipping.
• Customer Service – no contact or continued status update on the process. Had to call in multiple times to inquire. Will give them a few points for making me happy by upgrading my shipping speed.

Overall, I would give it easily a 4 stars, maybe 4.5 stars on the entire product. If the price was a little lower and their ordering process/customer service was top-notch, I would consider this a 5 star must-have case.

I would strongly consider purchasing from them the next time I need an iPhone case.

 

[aznguyen316]

Looks super nice and classy. Glad to see the white acetal back as I have only seen black. Not bad. Do you think the white would get stained from jeans etc?

 

[ga1d3n]

Looks super nice and classy. Glad to see the white acetal back as I have only seen black. Not bad. Do you think the white would get stained from jeans etc?

Thank you

I actually wear slacks and khakis for most of the day, so I don't think I can give an accurate assessment a few weeks from now on whether they would get stained from jeans. Right now though, it looks great, but it's still practically brand new

 

[zelaya]

In looking for a case, I was concerned primarily with these factors:

• Aesthetics

I think that the white iPhone is gorgeous. I wanted a case that would complement the simplistic aesthetic appeal of the phone. Naked, it is primarily white and aluminum.​

• Minimalist

I was looking for a slim case that is not overly bulky, heavy or feels like a giant mass. As the 4S is relatively thin, I did not want to add on more mass to the design.​

• Protection

At this point, I could have gone with a Desmay slight, or the Incipio feather. But, I want more protection than those thin cases offer. I have dropped by Motorola Atrix before from waist high, and shattered the screen. Even after getting it repaired, I still drop it all the time. Thank god it has an otterbox commuter case on it. I definitely don’t want to risk it on the iPhone​

• Performance

With the full aluminum case offerings, I read too many impacts on the signal quality. As this is primarily my work phone, I cannot have that degrade the signal strength too severely.​

• Price

I was not too concerned with cost, as long as it was less than a hundred.​

My hunt for the ideal case for me, came to an end with the e13tron s4v hybrid. Fully customizable in colors, I had my pick and choice in the design of the case. I chose chrome polished for the aluminum and white acetal on the bottom half. I ordered on 10/21 and it arrived yesterday on 11/3. Not bad for a custom order, but relatively slow speed in throughout the entire ordering process that was sped up only because I called in somewhat frequently to inquire about my order status. Finally, as they had not been delivering on their promises, they upgraded my shipping speed from ground to 2 day delivery, which was nice of them (though I hate being a naggy customer). I am pairing it with a SGP Seinheil Ultra Crystal front screen protector on the phone.

I took the pictures on my Motorola Atrix, so sorry for the lack of quality right now. Will update when I take some shots with my better camera.

Pics:
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image


Pros:

• Love the design and complement of the color
• Fully customized order
• The feel of the phone in your hand
• No issues with case and button placement
• Love the “clean” look
• Protection I needed without adding too much bulk
• No noticeable degradation to signal strength. Still constantly at 4 bars.

Cons:

• Price – relatively expensive despite the 15% off coupon code used. $70 final price w/ shipping.
• Customer Service – no contact or continued status update on the process. Had to call in multiple times to inquire. Will give them a few points for making me happy by upgrading my shipping speed.

Overall, I would give it easily a 4 stars, maybe 4.5 stars on the entire product. If the price was a little lower and their ordering process/customer service was top-notch, I would consider this a 5 star must-have case.

I would strongly consider purchasing from them the next time I need an iPhone case.

Care to share the bmw wallpaper...thank in advance.

 

[ga1d3n]

Care to share the bmw wallpaper...thank in advance.

Sure.

The lock screen is from this page: http://www.mycarportal.net/2010/09/collection-of-iphone-automotive-wallpapers-for-september/

The homescreen is from this thread on BMW forums: http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=419556

You may find other ones that you like.

Cheers,

 

[ProMed12]

Pros:

• No noticeable degradation to signal strength. Still constantly at 4 bars.

Your pics show the phone at 3 bars...

 

[zelaya]

Sure.

The lock screen is from this page: http://www.mycarportal.net/2010/09/collection-of-iphone-automotive-wallpapers-for-september/

The homescreen is from this thread on BMW forums: http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=419556

You may find other ones that you like.

Cheers,

Thanks for the links......I thought on getting this case but I went for Draco IV and Graft Laverage case instead. I might consider adding to my collection the element Vapor pro silver/silver.

 

[qqvins]

They have white hybrid? i keep seeing that they only have black in stock

 

[STC]

But, I want more protection than those thin cases offer. I have dropped by Motorola Atrix before from waist high, and shattered the screen. Even after getting it repaired, I still drop it all the time. Thank god it has an otterbox commuter case on it. I definitely don’t want to risk it on the iPhone

Sweet bumper, but w/ what I read above why would you only get a bumper? I would think you would get a full case as you said you "still drop it all the time"?

 

[thaghost]

Looks good.

I wonder if the chrome will eventually chip....

 

[Tanax]

Wow, the polished chrome actually looked really nice together with the white iPhone! Having all of these color-options can be quite overwhelming, lol.

I'm soo soo not able to choose if I should go with the white or the black acetal back for my white iPhone. The black makes a nice contrast but I always thought the white makes it blend better and a more clean look. However, after viewing these pictures I'm not so sure, it's a completely different white than the white of the iPhone. Gah. White or black.. that is the question.

 

[hizzaah]

While I do think white on white looks nice, I would have to go with the black hybrid back since their white doesn't exactly match the white of the iPhone.. The contrasting black would also work well with the chrome..

To each their own though! Nice case.. Still trying to get the issue rectified with my knock-off case.. For >$20, I can't complain too much I suppose.

 

[TEMPA]

Is it just my eyes or is there a shocking gap showing in the case in some of those pics? It looks to be the bottom right hand side. Where the metal and plastic parts of the case meet.

 

[aznguyen316]

Is it just my eyes or is there a shocking gap showing in the case in some of those pics? It looks to be the bottom right hand side. Where the metal and plastic parts of the case meet.

I think the gap is made to be there, there's a plastic insert that goes there to keep a gap between the antenna and aluminum.

 

[TEMPA]

I think the gap is made to be there, there's a plastic insert that goes there to keep a gap between the antenna and aluminum.

Gee that's a bit strange isn't it? In the pics it looks like the case just doesn't fit together properly....

Weird design if that is how it is meant to be. I thought the fact that the case was half and half was to prevent antenna/reception issues?

 

[hizzaah]

It think part of it is the reflection in the chrome, but yes, it was designed so that it doesn't touch the glass. there are little plastic bands that sit on the top and underside of the iPhone's aluminum antennae and that's what the case clamps down on. they did this to help reduce the amount of interference, and they designed it so that it wouldn't touch the glass so if you dropped it, the impact wouldn't be transferred through the case and into the glass.

 

[ga1d3n]

Is it just my eyes or is there a shocking gap showing in the case in some of those pics? It looks to be the bottom right hand side. Where the metal and plastic parts of the case meet.

That is actually my bad. I didn't screw the pieces together as tight as it could have gone. In the pics, there is some gap between the pieces, and that's the reason why. I believe that is what you are referring to, unless you want to highlight which picture you are talking about.

It looks real snug on my phone, no apparent gaps between the pieces.

 

[TEMPA]

Pics:
Image
Image

These two pics are the ones where I can see the gap.

Not being screwed together properly would explain what I am seeing.

Sorry I do not have the software here to highlight the actual pics. The gap I am seeing is toward the bottom of the case, on the lower corner.

 

[ga1d3n]

These two pics are the ones where I can see the gap.

Not being screwed together properly would explain what I am seeing.

Sorry I do not have the software here to highlight the actual pics. The gap I am seeing is toward the bottom of the case, on the lower corner.

Ah I see, yep that is my over-eagerness of wanting to take a picture immediately.

It's tight & flush around the entire case now.

 

[TEMPA]

Ah I see, yep that is my over-eagerness of wanting to take a picture immediately.

It's tight & flush around the entire case now.

Cool. Thanks for clarifying. Looks good now that I know it actually fits the phone properly!

Cheers!

 

[aznguyen316]

Can you tell me if the old "fat" style dock connector fits into this? The ones with the push buttons to remove the plug from the connector? My current bumper only fits the new plug which you just pull out to remove.