Capsule Rebel Arctic - What Next?

[Dembo]

Hi all,

I got an Capsule Rebel Arctic for my black iPhone pretty much on the day ilounge reviewed them. Definitely a nice case (no sagging whatsoever), great protection but on a black iPhone... I don't know, looks okayish at best, downright ugly might be a better description.

So I see three alternatives in the give-the-iphone-a-chance-to-survive-a-drop category:

1. Black Capsule Rebel - obvious, should've started out with one, slightly nervous about the sagging bottom issue.
2. Neo - looks nice but seems a little bit too much - do I really need so much bulk? Probably not.
3. Incase Slider - seems to be the least bulk for the protection, but: pricey for a piece of plastic and should I be scared with regards to the peeling-issue?

If any of you guys has an additional suggestion I'd be happy to hear it. Or give me a recommendation where to go from my fugly Arctic.

Cheers,
Dembo

 

[randymac88]

I have the Black Rebel and i like it, although you do run the risk of a saggy bottom. Regardless, I also have the NEO and it does not add more bulk than the Rebel, if anything it's less. I would recommend that one.

Also love my slider, so any of those three I'm sure you're fine with. I'm going with the NEO for a while.

 

[Dembo]

I have the Black Rebel and i like it, although you do run the risk of a saggy bottom. Regardless, I also have the NEO and it does not add more bulk than the Rebel, if anything it's less.

Thanks randymac88 - sounds interesting. Do you have somebody with an iPhone at hand so you can take pictures of a rebeled and a neoed iPhone next to each other? I think many people would appreciate some kind of "dead match" between the top two or three cases.

In addition since you happen to have a slider as well: What I dislike most about the Rebel is the "lip" around the screen - I know this is to protect it but it does take away some of the looks. From the pictures I've seen the bump around the screen is a little bit more subtle with the slider. Can you confirm this?

Cheers,
Dembo

 

[hazza.jockel]

I have a black rebel and love it. The first one i got had a saggy bottom but i was sent out a replacement soon enough. The lip around is a screen saver. I dropped my phone and it landed on top of a sharp tin. The lip then sliced off a bit. With out the lip my screen probably would have been sliced. Whilst the rebel is bulky it still has the same curve of the naked iphone and feels good in the hand. i havnt seen the neo in real life so i can't really compare them like the previous poster though.

 

[bmwpowere36m3]

I have the black rebel and think it's great... looks cool, offers great protection, and minimal bulk

 

[Ferris23]

I have a black Rebel and a black Neo and can't pick a favorite. Obviously the Rebel wins hands down for ease and quickness of install. The Neo is not fun to assemble. The black rebel I just got yesterday has no sag at all and I think I may like it more than my Neo. They really are both extremely cool cases.

 

[Ferris23]

The Neo and Rebel fit exactly the same in my leather holster case. They are the same size. The Incase Slider is slightly smaller than both, but not by much.

 

[Dembo]

Hmmm, thanks fpr input(s) guys - especially the black Rebel pictures.

If I find some time I'll post some pictures of my Arctic Rebel (not beautiful). After all the negative buzz regarding the Sliders I might actually just order another black Rebel to replace my Arctic...

Cheers,
Dembo

 

[Ferris23]

Well my black Rebel starting sagging after a day of use. This case is really nice but that bottom piece, even when it doesn't sag, is too loose for my liking.

For that reason I am going back to my black neo for good! They need a Rebel Rev. 2 now dammit.

 

[cgentry]

My Rebel Arctic let dust/dirt between the case and the phone. Because of this, I was left with crappy hairline scratches all over the back of the phone. Luckily (kind of?), my phone has the white "scratch" line defect and I'll be getting a new one tomorrow. I won't be putting it back in the Rebel case; it was safer just in my pocket.

 

[Dembo]

Hmmm, strange - I keep rechecking my Arctic every day, no sagging whatsoever, so I am tempted by the black Rebel as a replacement.

I might give the Neo a try but the Slider is still tempting me too, I kinda like the minimalistic design of it. I am not looking forward to a peeling case though.

Damn, still undecided...

 

[Ferris23]

The decision should be easy man. The slider is a peeling defective case that allows massive amounts of dust and debris into it and on the phone. It also scratches the bezel around the dock area if you do move that off alot.

The black rebel is prone to sag, here is the email Zolton of Switcheasy wrote me regarding the problem:

The fault is with the material. We have one mold for all color. Only the black case suffers from it . We are adding less and less silica to the compound so there is no way of knowing if we fix it or just delayed the sagging deffect.

Sorry

Zoltan

That leaves the Neo, which is an amazing case. It locks the phone up tight to prevent dust and scratches, has no sagging issues and looks cool as hell. The slider is not that much smaller than the Neo, only slightly.

 

[Dembo]

@Ferris23:

I was about to pull the trigger on the Slider (over here (.de) only avaiable via the Apple Store), however, the total cost including shipping came to € 46, that's roughly US$ 65 - for a case? No *ing way.

Neo's price is reasonable and so Neo it (most likely) is. Since I never used the screen protectors that came with the Rebel and don't plan on using the two shipping with the Neo (Brando Ultraclear all the way) I am now having a nice stack of screen protectors...

I'll let you know once I pulled the trigger still not 100% sure, don't really know why.

 

[Dembo]

Done - just ordered a black Neo from Switcheasy's European site - looks very 90ish...

Let's hope they'll ship till Saturday, unlikely but you never know.

 

[Ferris23]

I hear ya, there are a lot of options out there. But I really think the Neo is where it's at. Let us know what you choose.

 

[Dembo]

So the black Neo arrived today and just got installed. Result: Lovin' it. Absolutely.

I never had a problem with my Capsule Rebel Arctic (no sagging whatsoever) except the horrible looks on a black iPhone (including "watermarks", see first attached pic). The Neo's design is much closer to the industrial design look of the iPhone - it might even be a tad bit less bulky than the Capsule Rebel.

I think most "switcher" from a Rebel assume - like I did - that the Neo's inner silcone/rubber layer is a thick as the Rebel's. It is not, it is very thin, think paper thin. In addition the "lip" around the screen seems to be less obvious compared to the Rebel, but this might be due to the color.

Installation is tricky just take your time. I don't see any reason to take it off so that's not a big issue.

So far the only negative I've found is that the H-shaped piece attracts grease like the iPhone did - no biggy. Don't mind the logo issue and the fact the had to get an adapter for my Shures.

I gave the Rebel an 8/10, the Neo is getting a 9/10 and the case hunt is over as of now. I'll skip on Incase's Slider.

Cheers,
Dembo