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Ballistic HC vs OtterBox for IPhone 4

Otterbox for Iphone 4 = Cheesy made in China junk

After reading this forum i decided to buy the Otterbox for my Iphone BIG MISTAKE
The Otterbox with a $50 price tag is a cheesy pathetic piece of made in China trash that offers no protection, i should have picked it up from THE DOLLAR STORE. Honestly, when i opened the package i was afraid i was going to break the plastic innercover just getting it apart to put my phone in. Don't take this wrong Otter lovers, I owned the Otterbox for my Iphone 3g, it was worth every penny. Up here in Alaska i need something that will protect my phone from the elements, i now own the Ballistic, it offers an inner cover that is lined with rubber inside and out to obsorb shock and an additional outer rubber cover for added protection.
 
akmountainman said:
After reading this forum i decided to buy the Otterbox for my Iphone BIG MISTAKE
The Otterbox with a $50 price tag is a cheesy pathetic piece of made in China trash that offers no protection, i should have picked it up from THE DOLLAR STORE. Honestly, when i opened the package i was afraid i was going to break the plastic innercover just getting it apart to put my phone in. Don't take this wrong Otter lovers, I owned the Otterbox for my Iphone 3g, it was worth every penny. Up here in Alaska i need something that will protect my phone from the elements, i now own the Ballistic, it offers an inner cover that is lined with rubber inside and out to obsorb shock and an additional outer rubber cover for added protection.
Click to expand...

what the heck? The Otterbox Defender is definitely protective and good quality. I have no idea what you're talking about. And almost EVERYONE on here will agree that the OtterBox is worlds better than the Ballistic.
 
It's true JoshwithNOchance

The Otterbox has Minimium protection.The perfect gift for an OFFICE BOY! once again MADE IN CHINA!!!
 
immaturity

akmountainman said:
The Otterbox has Minimium protection.The perfect gift for an OFFICE BOY! once again MADE IN CHINA!!!
Click to expand...

will get you nowhere in life.

99% of us with Defenders love them, so don't not recommend a product with immature responses. they make you seem like a troll.
 
Yikes. The ballistic case actually manages to make the otterbox look halfway decent in comparison, which is not an easy task!

Both are the epitome of overkill mixed with ugliness.
 
Got a Otterbox for my iPhone 4. It's a bit too bulky for me, but I feel like it will do its job very well.
 
Good god. I have the otterbox and I highly suggest it over the HC. It feels secure, has great protection, the screen cover doesn't bubble, and keeps your phone shielded from anything other than a fire or water damage.
 
Otterbox Lowers Quality

Otterbox for Iphone 3g was the best!
Otterbox for Iphone 4 is NOT!
Ballistic HC protects better.

I wish Otterbox would have made the Iphone 4 case with the same quality as the 3g case
 
akmountainman said:
The Otterbox has Minimium protection.The perfect gift for an OFFICE BOY! once again MADE IN CHINA!!!
Click to expand...

Ugh...and because it is made in the US it is automatically fantabulous? I never released your plastic had magical powers, sorry for my ignorance.

I hated my Ballistic and changed to an Otterbox right away. What can I say, the Chinese know how to make plastic goods!

Just a matter of opinion I guess...and how big your cubicle is.
 
I have both, the Otterbox and the Ballistic HC. I tend to use the Ballistic HC more often than the Otterbox when I want serious protection! It's a personal preference, the only way to tell is to try them both. I agree, the Otterbox for the 3GS was a lot better than the one built for the iPhone 4. It seems as though Otterbox's quality and design has went down hill :eek: AGAIN, it's a personal preference :)
 
Explain yourself Vendertramp

To be helpful for the next person that reads this forum please Vandertramp, (great name for you btw) why did you "hate the ballistic" ?
 
You know, I actually have both the Otterbox AND the HC, and I was going to type up a whole review listing the good and bad points of both of them. I think they both try to do the same job in different ways. I think, in general, they both do a good job of protecting the phone. The Otterbox retains a little more of the iPhone design sensibility, and adds less overall bulk to the phone, and has the bonus of a screen protector that works well and doesn't oil slick. However, the HC I feel offers more protection against serious impact than the Otterbox. I confess I haven't put this to an actual physical test. The screen protector on the HC oilslicks pretty bad without the baby powder "fix" and that can be problematic to do correctly without getting visible flecks of baby powder inside the screen cover. I DO like the HC's ability to add on the rubber out layer for some serious rough-and-tumble protection, yet still function as a fully working case with the outer layer removed, and compatible with the holster with the outer layer on or off. If you pull off the outer layer of the Otterbox, what's left isn't something you'd use as a standalone case. HOWEVER, the fully protected Otterbox isn't much larger than the inner HC case, and is MUCH smaller than the fully layered HC.

Also, and I admit this is more paranoid than the previous points, I like that the HC covers the Apple logo. Neither case is all that pocket friendly, (except for the inner HC) and if I'm going to be wearing it on a holster, I feel safer knowing the HC does a decent job of making it look less like an iPhone, lest anyone get tempted to swipe it off my belt. It's not a MAJOR concern, but for those living in higher crime areas it might be.

As for me, I generally have my iPhone in the Otterbox for day-to-day use, but I pop it into the HC whenever I go camping/hiking up in the mountains, or anywhere else I have a higher change of dropping it where it could take some serious abuse.
 
akmountainman said:
To be helpful for the next person that reads this forum please Vandertramp, (great name for you btw) why did you "hate the ballistic" ?
Click to expand...

The main reason was the screen protector. I dislike screen protectors in the first place but still feel like I need one. The Otterbox screen protector was easier to scroll through. The bumps on the side where also annoying and made the phone uncomfortable to hold. These somewhat small quirks made me strongly dislike the entire product.

I also LOVE how you picked on my personally and not everyone else that just said they hated the Ballistic. :rolleyes:

and whatever you meant be my name I have no idea...I have problems remembering french verbs? Thats all I can think of..
 
akmountainman said:
Otterbox for Iphone 3g was the best!
Otterbox for Iphone 4 is NOT!
Ballistic HC protects better.

I wish Otterbox would have made the Iphone 4 case with the same quality as the 3g case
Click to expand...

I couldn't agree more! I absolutely loved the Otterbox Defender for iphone 3. But when I changed to iphone 4, I ended up returning the Defender because I felt like it was too flimsy and not the same protection as for the iphone 3 - not as tight and secure.
 
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I just ordered the otterbox defender cause i dont really drop my iphone but if i do, i would use the defender as insurance! It was only $27 on amazon with free shipping. I dont know why its that cheap though and im not that interested in the bulk of the case but based on all those good reviews about it i just had to try it.
 
Otterbox

I just got me new Otterbox Defender case today, and I am a bit disappointed.

First of all upon handling it out of the box it was much flimsier than I had expected for such an expensive case, but when put together I can imagine that it would be able to protect against waist level drops. When the interior case is separate the ability to easily bend the corners of the case was very upsetting. After I put it all together I decided to try out the belt clip/holster, and much to my dismay it rattles while inside. I would expect it to be fitted nicely to eliminate this. I find it gives it a feel of cheap production. I also find that it is easily removed by just a slight 'tap' of the lever which makes me want to attach a leash to my phone so I don't know it out of the case while walking through a crowd.

Now if I have a faulty device, please let me know.

My other option, as per most other iPhone 4 users, was the Ballistic HC series case. Now I understand it is quite large, but if I had the option to switch or just test it out I would take it.
 
I just ordered the Ballistic HC for my verizon iphone though I do not plan on using the outside rubber because its sticks the the inside of your jeans!
 
This thread is old. But I'll throw my 2 cents in. My coworker has the Ballistic, I have the Defender. Coworker runs his without the outer silicone layer, so no port covers, the built in screen protector watermarks and scratches easy.
Defender screen protector, no watermarking, no scratches so far (the cases are roughly the same age). For me the Defender just feels better in the hand.
 
I just bought both and I have to say that after a week with each on my phone I have to go with the Defender. I am an athletic trainer and am frequently outside in all of the elements. I also use my phone as my primary means of communication on and off the field and in and out of the hospital.

The Defender feels better in your hand and protects great from drops, light water (rain/sweat), dirt, and temperature extremes. The Ballistic felt way too clunky and the screen protector kept fogging and scratched fairly early into it's use.

I don't like having such a big protective cover on my phone but if I had to go with one or the other I'm Defender all the way.
 
I have both and both are pretty similar IMO. The OB is cleaner looking and feels more sturdier than the Ballistic. The belt clip for it is huge and feels like you could beat someone to death with it. My real issue with this is the silicon outer case as it deforms pretty quickly and starts to sag. I change up cases quite a bit so that's the reason for the sagging part.

The Ballistic is equally nice however the screen protector on it could be a lot better. It feels cheaper in quality but I'm pretty sure (protection wise) it's on par with the OB Defender.

I'd say either or is okay but, overall, I'd probably stick with the Defender.
 
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