DRO Concepts recently sent me two of their carbon fiber iPhone cases to test. They ‘re both relatively simple designs, but it ‘s the materials they ‘re made out of that steal the show (and cause the purchase price to go up). The Guardian Slider ($93) case is a veritable exo-skeleton for your iPhone, while the carbon fiber Shield ($70) focuses on protecting the back of your device.
Guardian
The Guardian is probably the first slider case I ‘ve ever used with my 3GS, and it took me over a day to figure out how to get it on. That ‘s because I thought the case was broken when I first saw it: one of the plastic clips that holds the whole package together looks almost melted away, and the case requires you to push the bottom half inwards before everything clicks into place (although even then, the bottom doesn ‘t line up quite perfectly with the top). I ‘ve found these fitting issues to be a bit of a sore spot for me: the Guardian case isn ‘t cheap, and I ‘d have expected something this expensive to be near-perfect in terms of build quality.
My iPhone feels quite snug inside the Guardian, and the case is built like a tank, so it should offer significant impact protection in the case of a fall. Foam lining along the inside keeps the iPhone from bouncing around, and the carbon fiber protects every side of the device from impact. However, you can still enjoy full access to the earphone port, sleep and volume buttons, and mute switch. The charging port looks a little crowded, given the bulk of the case, but it still fits my iPWR back for on-the-go charging.
Carbon Fiber Shield
The Shield could be a very, very good product with a few design tweaks. Right now, it ‘s a simple, extremely rigid back plate that doesn ‘t quite fit right. Installing the Shield is just like snapping most any other back plate on, but it ‘s so tight that it scuffed the corners of my iPhone on the first install. I think it ‘s always an issue when a product that ‘s meant to protect your device actually ends up damaging it instead, and I grew wary of using the Shield after this happened.
The case features cut-outs for all of the buttons and switches on the iPhone, but it just barely allows earphones enough room to fit. Plugging any kind of jack into the 3.5mm plug is only possible after grating the metal of your receiver against the Shield. It ‘s usable, but, once again, this really should not be the case in a product of this caliber.
What does go above and beyond my expectations, however, is the finish on the Shield: it ‘s drop-dead gorgeous. It looks to be a lacquer that lets the carbon fiber glow when you look at it directly, but maintains an ultra glossy reflective surface at every other angle. It ‘s not for everyone, but I think it really brings out the beauty of this carbon fiber construction.
I find the Shield the more disappointing of the DRO Concepts products I was sent, because it ‘s *this* close to being an amazing case, but is held back by very simple fitting mistakes. I sent an e-mail to DRO about the problems I had with the Shield, and although they acknowledged the tight fit and the earphone problem, they ‘re working to fix the problem in future versions of the case. In the mean time (as far as I understand it), customers mayend up buying Carbon Fiber Shields that simply won ‘t fit properly.
Conclusion
These two carbon fiber cases are rock solid, but don ‘t seem manufactured well enough to justify the hefty price tags. Over the course of my tests, I found I wanted the easy, scuff-free install of the Guardian Slider on the Shield, but wanted the incredible finish of the Shield on the Guardian ” and neither product left me completely satisfied.
DRO Concepts may well refine their manufacturing process in the months to come, but for now, I ‘d be wary of the cases they’re producing right now (since you might just have to send them back in for replacements that fit better). They look amazing in pictures, but they don’t sit quite right on your iPhone once you have them in front of you.
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The Guardian is available for $92.99, while the Shield costs $69.99. Both cases are available directly from DRO Concepts.
Both cases were provided by DRO Concepts for review on Just Another iPhone Blog. For further information regarding our site’s review policies, please see the “About” page.
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