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All Aluminum Cases
- Thread starter thepsychopinkie
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I feel you on the wanting to keep it in premo condition. My 3gs looks almost brand new and I abused that for over a year, now my wife has it. I don't sell my tech, I run it into the ground so Im not worried about resale. I was in the military and know many people with iphones some with cracks from hard drops, most without cases had scratched up chrome bezels and plastic backings (on 3gs) but the screens were fine. Just like my old iPT. So I appreciate the words of wisdom, however I do take precautions with my iP4 like it is the only thing that goes in the pocket it is in, and so forth. As far as I can tell, the Karas plates shouldn't scratch the phone. But I will give an update when I take the case off again.
I just received my 2nd EC Vapor4. This one is the new Extreme Metal Vapor Frost - Graphite. Shown @ home with my normal poor signal strength. Along with my insulated silver/silver Vapor4. lOOks like I'll be using the allen-wrench more often 
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No!!
********* US Postal Service! "Guarantee" that I'll get it in 2-3 days (New York to Georgia), then take 6 to get here! Sat in West Virginia for a full 48 hours. Scheduled to be here tomorrow, and I'll have pics up as soon as I can get the thing on my phone! It's the magnetic closure one, so I'm wondering how much of my front/back shields I'll have to take off. The tolerances are supposed to be VERY tight on this case. It's not really a big deal, as I take them on and off a lot (just lay/store them on wax paper when off the phone), but I'd still like to have them on inside the case. I'm worried that in a drop, this magnetic closure might pop open, but Daniel at Exovault said that they've dropped it repeatedly from about shoulder height and it never has popped open yet.
No!!
That sucks man. I know what it's like to wait. I'll keep my eyes peeled for the review.
Too pointy. Might poke a hole in your jeans resulting in the loss of pocket change.
A loss in funds equals less money to spend on cases.
Too risky!
Just for you Rhino!
Just got the Exovault Exo5 (hinged model) in just a few hours ago, and been putting it to some reception and data speed tests. First off, this case has AMAZING craftsmanship! The dark green anodizing (not an offered color right now, I was lucky enough to have Daniel from Exovault offer me this color...it's the only one of it's kind right now) and the dark rosewood just reek of quality. The fit/finish of the two materials being used together is amazing. And the really shocking part to me is how slim/thin the case is! I was expecting it to add bulk, but it really doesn't. It's slimmer front to back than the Speck PixelSkin HD, and is the same thickness front to back as the Apple Bumper! Very slim case.
Interior:
The inside back and front of the case are lined with a soft plastic type liner (feels similar in make-up to electrical tape) to protect the glass surfaces of the phone from scratches. The inside sides of the case have no lining, but with the rosewood inserts, they are all that are touching the sides of my phone. The tolerances this case is built to are VERY exact, and the phone has to be lined up perfectly to drop in this case. There's zero wiggle room for the case inside (I like this). And I had to remove my SGP matte rear shield, and front crystal SGP screen protector,as the case will not close with them on. But...I got lucky and had a very, very thin SwitchEasy screen shield laying around, and low and behold it will fit on the phone and still close inside the case fine. The magnets are VERY strong, and I really don't see the case opening in a normal drop. This is the part I was skeptical of the most, but it seems fine so far.
Exterior:
The anodizing is flawless. Consistent shade of deep green all around. The rosewood is a beautiful dark shade, and the joints between it and the aluminum are done really well. In the front, the case does come all the way to the edge of the screen all the way around, but due to the thinness of the material used, it doesn't really hamper typing at the edges of the screen (White/Rhino, I know this concerns you, like in the Seidio Rugged case). It can make dragging icons to different screens take just a bit more effort, but it's not hindering typing so far.
Reception:
So far, I'm sometimes seeing a drop of signal by 1 bar, but it's not consistent. I've not dropped a call, and my data speeds are still the same as without an aluminum case (averaged 2.6Mbps down/1.2Mbps up today with the case on). GPS is locking in what seems to be a standard time. Bluetooth has shown no noticeable drop in performance. I will report back on reception as I use it more, but so far, no trouble like I had with the Element Vapor.
UPDATE: (10/3/2010)
Wanted to update on the reception with this case. Used it exclusively going into metro Atlanta last night with some friends. In very low signal areas (2 bars or less), the case can cause the phone to drop signal or switch to EDGE. Also, using the GPS all the way there and back (to test it out, I knew where I was going!), I noticed that it would lose lock occasionally and just be locating off of cell tower triangulation (the large pulsing circle would appear around the blue location dot). The one very useful feature of this case that I found that helped with these issues is the fact that you don't need tools to open it. The two times I lost cell reception (inside an auditorium), I could just pop the case open and pull the phone out to make the calls I needed. And when I needed to just use the internet (inside the auditorium), just simply opening the front of the case, leaving the phone in the case (it's in there very tight, you can even turn it upside down with the front lid open and the phone won't fall out) worked to get 3G service back so that I could look something up really quickly. This same trick worked while traveling down the road when the GPS would lose location. Opening the front of the case for maybe 3 seconds tops would lock back on, catch up to my location, and I could shut the case again and it keep tracking me. So, there are some minor issues so far with the case and reception, but the fact that it's able to be opened without the tools needed for the other aluminum cases makes work arounds possible when reception issues arrive.
Access ports/cut-outs:
Sleep/awake button and volume/silent buttons all easily accessible, as this case is very thin around the phone. It's actually thinner around the outside than say the PixelSkin HD. Headphone jack is a good size, and I've tried all my headphones in it so far (Westones, Shures, Apple In-Ears, Sennheisers...I'm a headphone junkie too!), and they all fit fine. Dock connector is larger than the Apple Bumper and Element Vapor, and I've had no 3rd party connectors not fit so far. It's not huge, so there may be some out there that have difficultly fitting in, but I have a wide assortment, and not had trouble so far. The home button cut-out is very shallow, so there's no trouble getting into it at all. The camera and flash have their own cut-outs that totally enclose each (see pictures), and so far, there is no flash interference into the camera in low light pictures.
Overall, I'm very pleased with this case! Granted, it's not going to protect the phone in a severe drop like the Seidio Rugged or Otterbox Defender would, but it's a beautiful case. Has quality written all over it, and is more of a piece of artwork than anything. In a drop, you're probably going to scuff/mark up the case, so some people might not want to outlay this kind of money for something that could possibly get damaged, but I'd rather it be this than the phone that gets damaged. And at least this looks good. I think it looks better than any case I've had so far (and for the few of you that know me, you know I have A LOT of cases!), including the Vapor. This is the first case I have that I completely love the looks of. To me, it's definitely worth the money I paid, more so that the Vapor ever was.
Thickness compared to Speck PixelSkin HD:
Thickness compared to Apple Bumper:
I updated my above review (as well as the separate review thread I created here: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1024428/ ) to reflect these additional findings on the ExoVault EXO5:
Wanted to update on the reception with this case. Used it exclusively going into metro Atlanta last night with some friends. In very low signal areas (2 bars or less), the case can cause the phone to drop signal or switch to EDGE. Also, using the GPS all the way there and back (to test it out, I knew where I was going!), I noticed that it would lose lock occasionally and just be locating off of cell tower triangulation (the large pulsing circle would appear around the blue location dot). The one very useful feature of this case that I found that helped with these issues is the fact that you don't need tools to open it. The two times I lost cell reception (inside an auditorium), I could just pop the case open and pull the phone out to make the calls I needed. And when I needed to just use the internet (inside the auditorium), just simply opening the front of the case, leaving the phone in the case (it's in there very tight, you can even turn it upside down with the front lid open and the phone won't fall out) worked to get 3G service back so that I could look something up really quickly. This same trick worked while traveling down the road when the GPS would lose location. Opening the front of the case for maybe 3 seconds tops would lock back on, catch up to my location, and I could shut the case again and it keep tracking me. So, there are some minor issues so far with the case and reception, but the fact that it's able to be opened without the tools needed for the other aluminum cases makes work arounds possible when reception issues arrive.
Wanted to update on the reception with this case. Used it exclusively going into metro Atlanta last night with some friends. In very low signal areas (2 bars or less), the case can cause the phone to drop signal or switch to EDGE. Also, using the GPS all the way there and back (to test it out, I knew where I was going!), I noticed that it would lose lock occasionally and just be locating off of cell tower triangulation (the large pulsing circle would appear around the blue location dot). The one very useful feature of this case that I found that helped with these issues is the fact that you don't need tools to open it. The two times I lost cell reception (inside an auditorium), I could just pop the case open and pull the phone out to make the calls I needed. And when I needed to just use the internet (inside the auditorium), just simply opening the front of the case, leaving the phone in the case (it's in there very tight, you can even turn it upside down with the front lid open and the phone won't fall out) worked to get 3G service back so that I could look something up really quickly. This same trick worked while traveling down the road when the GPS would lose location. Opening the front of the case for maybe 3 seconds tops would lock back on, catch up to my location, and I could shut the case again and it keep tracking me. So, there are some minor issues so far with the case and reception, but the fact that it's able to be opened without the tools needed for the other aluminum cases makes work arounds possible when reception issues arrive.
Hey Chris, Now after more time with it are you happy you bought it or are you keeping your eyes peeled for something else. Is there any case you have that you like better? If you are feeling any reservations I would love to know. When I spend this kind of money on an accessory it has to be the absolute bomb! You guys are killing me. I put an order in last night for the Black hinged version with engraving. $ 195 USD shipped. I know for myself that if I don't absolutly love something I won't use or keep it. I"M SUPER PICKEY
and hate,hate,hate cheap stuff. All the info I could find online talks quite a bit about how great the quality is and the fine workman ship. I'm a hugh steam punk fan and this is the closest case I can find in that theme. This would have been the preferred case in Rapture
Hey Chris, Now after more time with it are you happy you bought it or are you keeping your eyes peeled for something else. Is there any case you have that you like better? If you are feeling any reservations I would love to know. When I spend this kind of money on an accessory it has to be the absolute bomb! You guys are killing me. I put an order in last night for the Black hinged version with engraving. $ 195 USD shipped. I know for myself that if I don't absolutly love something I won't use or keep it. I"M SUPER PICKEY
All in all I'm still glad I have it. I won't send it back. It's different, eye-catching (had several people at the function I went to last night ask me about it), and I just love the quality of it. Yes, it's exhibited some reception issues, but I really don't see how an aluminum case is going to circumvent all those issues. I don't care how it's made, I honestly think they all will hurt signal in some degree, which will show up more in very weak signal areas. And as I mentioned, this case, unlike any of the other aluminum cases so far, seals with magnets, not screws. So if there's issues with it "out in the field", open the front door, or take it out all the way to use it while in a bad signal area. Much better than being screwed into a Vapor/Atomic/etc and be out and about and realize that your case is hurting your reception but can't get the case off the phone until you return home (or carry a damn tiny allen wrench with you all the time...just to lose).
Can't believe you went with the engraved model though. I don't like that design on it, and wish they had at least a few different patterns to go with. Plus, it's quite an upcharge for the engraving. And, as far as keeping my eyes open for any other cases.....ARE YOU SERIOUS??
Have you seen my case buying habits?? OF FREAKING COURSE I'M ALWAYS GOING TO LOOK FOR MORE CASES! I see nothing wrong with having a drawer full of my "favorite" cases (much better than the drawer full of "not so favorite" cases that I have now), and will always try anything that interests me. I change cases several times a week...hell...I order new cases before I've even received others that I've ordered! Pure madness. And of all people to ask me that...you, who suffers from the same disease! Next in my sights are the SwitchEasy Trim, SwitchEasy Capsule Rebel, Alumacase (if we can ever order the damn thing), and the Fusion Raw. Hopefully I'll have all of those in the next couple of weeks.
All in all I'm still glad I have it. I won't send it back.
Can't believe you went with the engraved model though. I don't like that design on it, and wish they had at least a few different patterns to go with. Plus, it's quite an upcharge for the engraving. And, as far as keeping my eyes open for any other cases.....ARE YOU SERIOUS??
Haha. Yeah I know. I would just love to find something that makes everything else look like dirt in comparison. Part of the fun is looking for better stuff, researching it and placing an order. My problem is I have interest in so many electronics and buy sooooo much stuff that I am constantly selling stuff because I hate good products lying around not being used. I had to order the engraved. I would choose a different pattern as well but when I put them side by side I just found that it did look better. At first I had no intension of doing that but I like how it adds to the style of this high end case. Plus if it ends up on Ebay it should fetch more dough. There is only one Exo5 on Ebay right now and it's the silver model. The Black looks 1000 times better, IMHO. I've read that the brass totally messes up reception. Exovault mentions it on their website but they soften it up. I have the Exovault on order, 2 Vapors extremes ordered and paid for. ( 2 vapors already bought and 1 sold from July )Full Innocase rugged kit combo and my new Exogear battery case. ( Not super impressed with the Battery case by the way )
My HD pixel skin ( I don't use that one ) And fully intend to pick up a black Alumacase and a Fusion Raw with no back. ( maybe 2 of each ) I have no interest in the Atomic ,Karas , Factus or heavy metal cases. Not my bag.
I've made my $500.00 back on my SGP / Luck labs installs so everything else I install is profit. I should make about $650.00 over and above the $500.00 invested. I ordered enough stuff to do 28 full installs and have 15 kits left.
My Iphone 4 cost me $800.00 and I've spent 2 x's that in Iphone 4 accessories. I really need to start an Iphone accessory support thread.
We could call it IAA.
Haha. Yeah I know. I would just love to find something that makes everything else look like dirt in comparison. Part of the fun is looking for better stuff, researching it and placing an order. My problem is I have interest in so many electronics and buy sooooo much stuff that I am constantly selling stuff because I hate good products lying around not being used. I had to order the engraved. I would choose a different pattern as well but when I put them side by side I just found that it did look better. At first I had no intension of doing that but I like how it adds to the style of this high end case. Plus if it ends up on Ebay it should fetch more dough. There is only one Exo5 on Ebay right now and it's the silver model. The Black looks 1000 times better, IMHO. I've read that the brass totally messes up reception. Exovault mentions it on their website but they soften it up. I have the Exovault on order, 2 Vapors extremes ordered and paid for. ( 2 vapors already bought and 1 sold from July )Full Innocase rugged kit combo and my new Exogear battery case. ( Not super impressed with the Battery case by the way )
My HD pixel skin ( I don't use that one ) And fully intend to pick up a black Alumacase and a Fusion Raw with no back. ( maybe 2 of each ) I have no interest in the Atomic ,Karas , Factus or heavy metal cases. Not my bag.
I've made my $500.00 back on my SGP / Luck labs installs so everything else I install is profit. I should make about $650.00 over and above the $500.00 invested. I ordered enough stuff to do 28 full installs and have 15 kits left.
My Iphone 4 cost me $800.00 and I've spent 2 x's that in Iphone 4 accessories. I really need to start an Iphone accessory support thread.
We could call it IAA.
Ha ha! That's my boy! But...2 of each of the Raw and Alumacase? Why that? Reselling? And I haven't really thought about eBaying the EXO5, but the fact that I've got the only forest green one in existence (other than any others they have laying around the shop at Exovault) should really help the resale value if I ever do decide to sell it.
I'm thinking with the hot price on release and the sure to follow limited supply problems that we keep seeing that I can buy 4, sell 2 and have mine for free.
that's why i ordered 2 more Vapors. One for me and one for a luck customer : )
Provided I get them. With Element you can't be sure. I just love the looks of the Frost. I like matte finishes. Not crazy about super shiny unless it's silver. Now if we could get 10 more Aluminum case companies on the go I could drive myself off the deep end.
I take one of each.....heeeeeeeeelp!
Hey Swoods,
Please post some pics and your impressions of your Exovult when you get it. The pics on their website were taken in low light and it's hard to really see the black finish. I ordered the same with the engraving.
Rhino,
I most certainly will post pics and my review. I got the engraved as well. I personally like the engraving, looks slick. I got the screw shut however because of the screen protrector issue Chris encountered. According to Daniel at Exovault the screw shut accomodates the screnn protectors much better.