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Speck iPhone 4 Cases: Pixelskin, Candyshell and Fitted

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Reviewed December 2010 by Tom Slayton

Speck Pixelskin

The Speck Pixelskin is a silicone cover that provides substantial protection for your iPhone 4. It’s unique “5 DPI” texture feels good in your hand and gives you a solid grip on your phone. The touch-through buttons and cutouts are perfectly placed to give you full access to the camera, flash, and all controls & ports.

Size and Fit

The Pixelskin fits the iPhone 4 perfectly. Due to the thick silicone texture, it adds significantly to the size of your phone so if you like the svelte look; look elsewhere. For the rest of us, however, this cover does an excellent job of walking the line between protection and style. The cutouts are nicely placed, as expected. In particular, I spent some time with the iPhone 4’s LED camera flash and found that it does not interfere at all. This was a relief, as some other makers of silicone covers didn’t have the same attention to detail.

Features and Quality

The Pixelskin feels extremely substantial and well-made. There are no visible seams or weak spots, and they sure didn’t skimp on the silicone. This baby is THICK, which, in my book is a very good thing. Very few silicone covers offer any protection against drops but this one looks like it might actually bounce. Seeing as there are only two types of iPhone 4 owners (those who have dropped their phones, and those who will), at some point, everybody who buys one of these is going to be glad he/she did.

Style

The Pixelskin is available in three colors: black, pink, and purple; although the texture is the same for all models. If you’re a “form over substance” kind of person, you may want something a bit more elegant. However, for the rest of us, “rugged” IS a style, and this cover qualifies nicely. 

Conclusion

The Pixelskin cover for iPhone 4 is the latest in a long line of excellent iPhone products by Speck. It fits perfectly and provides great protection. Its rugged, pixilated texture makes it easy to grip, and the variety of colors means there is something for everybody. Previous Speck offerings have included a holster, and due to my line of work, I was a bit disappointed to see it did not come with one. However, I suspect that this issue is not a significant one for most people. All-in-all, if you’re looking for a durable and stylish silicone cover for your iPhone 4, this is the one to beat.

What’s Hot: Heavy duty silicone cover provides substantial protection from bumps, scratches, scrapes, and possibly even drops. Provides full access to controls and camera via touch-through buttons and cutouts. Available in 3 colors (black, pink, and purple). Delightfully chunky texture.

What’s Not: If you fancy yourself elegant and refined, this case is not for you. Does not come with a holster like some of Speck’s previous offerings.

Price: $24.99

Candyshell by Speck

The Candyshell is a one-piece hardshell case with a rubberized interior. As with other Speck products, it fits the phone perfectly, giving full access to buttons and switches. The Candyshell case, however, goes that extra mile by building volume and standby buttons into the case. This design provides substantially better protection than cutouts for these high-traffic areas, especially from moisture and finger grime.

The case's true claim to fame, however, is its style. With available colors such as IndiWhoa Blue and LoveHate Pink, it's fairly obvious that most of these cases are not for the faint of heart. Although, if you tend toward the understated, rest assured that nowhere on the case do you see the word: Candyshell, and that the BatWing Black version would be right at home in the board room.

$34.95

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Fitted by Speck

The Fitted Case is a form-fitting hardshell case with a fabric back. Access to buttons, ports, and switches is made available via cutouts. While the sides and front bezel are an understated matte black, the back fabric is available in an amazing 12 different styles, ranging from Argyle to Tartan Plaid, to King Death to Eyeballz. As you may have guessed by the names, some of these designs are not simply fabric patterns but full-color pictures. If you're looking for a way for your iPhone to share your identity, this is undeniably the way to go. That is, as long as your tastes run to fabric patterns and heavy metal images because there doesn't seem to be anything in between.

$15-$29.95

Web site: www.speckproducts.com