Ordering a case from Zazzle is much like ordering a Speck Fitted case (available for the 3GS or iPhone 4), except that you get to choose the image that shows up on the fabric backing.
ORDER
Designing my case was a real pleasure, and the interface on Zazzle.com for creating custom backings is surprisingly powerful. You can, of course, choose from a number of pre-designed themes, but I found it a lot more fun to upload a photo of my cat Emily (a.k.a. Mildobio) and make a grungy little case of my own.
It was really only when it came to actually ordering the case that I had any trouble. There were a few initial problems with getting my order to go through, and once it was placed in late November, it took about a month to arrive at my door here in Toronto.
SPECK FITTED
However, once I did finally get my hands on the case, I was quite surprised by the quality and design. The case comes in two pieces — a rubberized front plate and the fabric-coated back plate — and fits together beautifully. Installation is a simple matter of clicking all the pieces into place, although I did, admittedly, have to look up a YouTube video from Speck to figure out how to take the whole thing off (you should gently tug and lift one or both sides of the front plate until the whole thing pops off).
The case fits all of my third party docks, fits all of my earphones, shields the camera, covers the bezel completely, and simply feels great in the hand. The only possible negatives here are the fall protection and the durability of the fabric design. I’m not terribly sure of the security of the front plate in the case of a fall, but it should definitely take the first lick, and the back plate has mini clips to keep the iPhone in place (it isn’t just resting untethered between the two pieces).
THE ZAZZLE ELEMENT
The second bit I’m not terribly sure of is how long the lovely fabric design will last. I’ve been using the case for about two or three weeks now and haven’t had any major problems with the fabric fraying (just a loose thread here or there), but I am concerned about how dirty this thing has gotten over the last two weeks.
I think Zazzle did a lovely job with the colouring and re-creation of the image I uploaded (which was taken by my skilled sisterographer), and I am rather worried about losing the image to dirt and grime. The polyester helps me grip the case, but it also tends to make my palms a little sweaty, and I can’t imagine that’s doing much for the general cleanliness. I’ve tried some gentle scrubbing with a micro-fiber cloth, but haven’t really noticed any results. I’m hesitant to try anything more for fear of either loosening the fabric or erasing the colouring job.
CONCLUSION
I really am quite impressed with both the quality of the Speck Fitted case (although I see it more as scratch protection than drop protection) and Zazzle’s paint job, but the crux of the matter is really how long the design you’re paying for will last.
At $40, Zazzle cases tend to cost about $10 more than the equivalent Speck cases, and I would definitely appreciate any tips that either Zazzle or Speck might have for cleaning these designs to make sure the investment lasts for as long as possible.
However, if I could re-do my case, I definitely would have picked a darker design so that the effects of dirt wouldn’t be so obvious. So do think long and hard about the colours you’ll be using if you’re considering picking a Zazzle up for yourself.
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This Zazzle 3GS case was provided by Zazzle for review on iSource. For further information regarding our site’s review policies, please see the “About” page.
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