Review: Speck CandyShell for iPhone 4

As of June 25 — one day after the iPhone 4 launch day — there still didn’t seem to be many choices for protection of the sleek Apple phone. Personally, I’m a big believer in procuring a good case for my gadgets, especially if they’re valuable and frequently used. A good case is like insurance — not really required but often useful during an accident!

Since the Apple Store has sold out of its Bumper cases when I was there on launch day to get my reserved iPhone, I figured a non-Apple store would be my best bet to find a case. Besides, the Apple Store will likely still be mobbed by iPhone fanboys for the days (weeks?) to come… So I ventured out with a friend to a local AT&T retail store in search of a good case to protect my spankin’ new iPhone 4.

The good news? The AT&T store had some iPhone 4 cases. The bad news? The selection wasn’t great at all. There were probably only a handful of choices. In the end I decided on the more expensive ($34.99) Speck CandyShell in purple (yes, purple!), mainly for the degree of protection it offers.

Hard Shell, Soft Center

The CandyShell is a one-piece case for the iPhone 4. It is constructed in an interesting way with a hard plastic exterior and rubberized interior (and button covers). The fit is very snug and some may even find it difficult to put the phone into the CandyShell (as well as taking it out). According to Speck, the proper way to do it is:

Slide left (button) side of your iPhone 4 into the CandyShell case first, then gently snap the other edges of the case around the edge of the screen. To remove the CandyShell iPhone 4 case, place your thumbs in the center of the back of the case, gently press while pulling and bending the top corners of the case off. Bend the case, not your phone! Once the top corners are off, your phone will slide out of the bottom of the case.

The button covers for the power switch and volume up/down are well designed, and the holes for the side vibrate switch, top earphone plug, rear camera (and LED), and bottom speakers/mic/dock connector are precise. There is no blockage whatsoever. I’ve had no problems plugging in the earphone and using the speaker/mic during phone calls. The case needs not to be removed or tweaked in any way when attaching the dock connector.

The rubberized interior against the iPhone’s back glass is uniform and does not create unwanted bulges or stress to the fitting. It should offer some additional shock protection to the glass back when dropped.

Keep in mind that there is no front cover or screen protector. However, the case has a raised rubber bezel to protect the phone face from surface scratches. Personally I don’t consider this adequate protection for the glass face of the iPhone 4, so I still used a screen protector film.

Drawbacks

The biggest drawback I find with the CandyShell is that it adds a significant thickness to the sleek iPhone 4 while offering the protection. Be assured that the iPhone 4′s outer beauty will not show through this case. But that is what you get for better shock protection, I suppose.

Also, if you have larger fingers then you’ll find the vibrate switch somewhat difficult to access because the case makes it recessed. I don’t have big fingers and I still need to use my fingernail to flip that switch.

RATING: ga-ga-ga-ga-gadget (that’s 4 out of 5 stutters)

COMPANY: Speck Products

MODEL: CandyShell

PRICE: $34.99 (from AT&T)

COMPATIBILITY: iPhone 4

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Tagged as: Apple, AT&T, Case, iPhone, Speck