to those asking about the rubber incase case in my pics:
the volume/sleep buttons work fine, the rubber that covers them is light and there is no problem pressing down on them. as for dust, it never collects so much that it's annoying, nothing a wipe every now and then won't solve.
i don't use a screen protector and i'm pretty careful with the phone anyway but i did drop my old blackberry a few times, and i don't want to risk it with the iphone as i've seen pics of people having completely shattered their iphones after a drop on concrete.