Just received the Poetic Illuminate aluminum bumper. Here are my impressions.
Pros:
-Impeccable fit and finish, build quality is vastly superior to the $16.95 I paid for it on Amazon.
-Fit to the device is spectacular.
-I am not experiencing any degradation of the cellular signal, see the photo below. Those bars were the same strength before I installed the case.
-I was able to use my Phantom Skinz Matte back without any issue.
-The front rises above the bezel enough to offer a lay on the table design but it's not excessive. It also reaches in towards the screen just enough to completely conceal the edges of my screen protector. With the edges not visible it makes for a very slick seamless look, as if there were no screen protector installed at all.
Cons:
-It bubbled my Phantom Skinz side skins to the point where I just removed them. It was possible to force the bumper on over the side skin but they bubbled so it looked bad and made removal of the bumper very difficult.
-That's it.
I'm not a huge fan of the silver band that surrounds the screen on the inner edge of the bumper. I knew it was there from seeing it in a YouTube review and that person actually loved that feature of the bumper. So this one is subjective and really doesn't deserve to be in the cons list above.
I also received the SGP Ultra Optics screen protector and installed it too. I have the same protector on my iPad 3 so I knew what I was getting and the iPhone 5 version does not disappoint. With an anti-glare protector you need to have reasonable expectations. They are always going to reduce fingerprints at the expense of screen quality. With that said the Ultra Optics comes closest to that ideal scenario of crystal clear screen quality while reducing fingerprints. Interestingly I am finding that the iPhone 5 version provides a bit sharper image than the iPad 3 version does. Maybe it's due to the smaller screen size?
Pros:
-Clarity is really excellent for an anti-fingerprint protector. I'm not saying its at crystal screen protector levels but it's close.
-Fingerprint and smudge resistance is fairly high. After a session of use there are visible smudges but it never becomes the greasy mess that a crystal protector inevitably does.
-As With all SGP products the fit on screen is impeccable.
-You get 2 in the package.
Cons:
-None for me.
-Some may object to the zipping noise your finger makes when sliding across the protector, to me it's a bonus, I like it.
Here are some more pics. In particular the first close up of the screen shows the clarity I am experiencing in person:
Pros:
-Impeccable fit and finish, build quality is vastly superior to the $16.95 I paid for it on Amazon.
-Fit to the device is spectacular.
-I am not experiencing any degradation of the cellular signal, see the photo below. Those bars were the same strength before I installed the case.
-I was able to use my Phantom Skinz Matte back without any issue.
-The front rises above the bezel enough to offer a lay on the table design but it's not excessive. It also reaches in towards the screen just enough to completely conceal the edges of my screen protector. With the edges not visible it makes for a very slick seamless look, as if there were no screen protector installed at all.
Cons:
-It bubbled my Phantom Skinz side skins to the point where I just removed them. It was possible to force the bumper on over the side skin but they bubbled so it looked bad and made removal of the bumper very difficult.
-That's it.
I'm not a huge fan of the silver band that surrounds the screen on the inner edge of the bumper. I knew it was there from seeing it in a YouTube review and that person actually loved that feature of the bumper. So this one is subjective and really doesn't deserve to be in the cons list above.
I also received the SGP Ultra Optics screen protector and installed it too. I have the same protector on my iPad 3 so I knew what I was getting and the iPhone 5 version does not disappoint. With an anti-glare protector you need to have reasonable expectations. They are always going to reduce fingerprints at the expense of screen quality. With that said the Ultra Optics comes closest to that ideal scenario of crystal clear screen quality while reducing fingerprints. Interestingly I am finding that the iPhone 5 version provides a bit sharper image than the iPad 3 version does. Maybe it's due to the smaller screen size?
Pros:
-Clarity is really excellent for an anti-fingerprint protector. I'm not saying its at crystal screen protector levels but it's close.
-Fingerprint and smudge resistance is fairly high. After a session of use there are visible smudges but it never becomes the greasy mess that a crystal protector inevitably does.
-As With all SGP products the fit on screen is impeccable.
-You get 2 in the package.
Cons:
-None for me.
-Some may object to the zipping noise your finger makes when sliding across the protector, to me it's a bonus, I like it.
Here are some more pics. In particular the first close up of the screen shows the clarity I am experiencing in person:
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