When it comes to mobile phone cases, OtterBox is one of the top brands in the market, and for good reason. Not only do they provide some of the best protection for either your smartphone or tablet, but they’re often the first to market with things no other competitor has come out with before. So when OtterBox Philippines recently launched their new Lifestyle Series in the country, I was pretty happy that I got to take home one of their new MySymmetry cases for the wife’s iPhone.
Up until recently, she had been protecting her iPhone 5S with a Php20 case from CDR-King. As you can imagine, the protection that can be had from such a case is fine if it’s just laying around most of the time, but it took a nasty tumble once or twice and no longer looks fresh out of the box. Still, it’s better late than never and with the OtterBox MySymmetry, she’s still getting reasonably good protection without the bulk.
Design
The OtterBox MySymmetry is essentially a bumper case with clear backing. The clear backing allows you to use the case with swappable inserts that you can actually design yourself. Of course, MySymmetry cases already come with an insert provided so you don’t necessarily have to start designing your own right away.
You can use the case with or without the insert. Without it, you can proudly display the Apple logo on the back.
Of course, the point of having swappable inserts is to show off your personality and creativity, so why not?
Protection
The MySymmetry case wraps around the iPhone quite nicely and is able to accommodate it even if you’ve already installed protective film on both the front and back.
Although much of the protection focuses on the edges, it does protect the front and back of the device as well. See how much the edges are raised, leaving a few millimeters of allowance between the phone and whatever surface it might be resting on. Whether the phone is dropped on its edges or on a flat surface, it still benefits from a good amount of protection.
Flip it on its back and you’ll see that the camera benefits from being recessed well into the case. It would take something close to a freak accident to damage it with the MySymmetry protecting your phone.
Of course, you’re not going to want to drop the phone face down or face up on an irregular surface as this is when the MySymmetry case will likely fail you. The back has at least some protection, but the front has none at all. Hopefully, you’ll have invested in a good screen protector.
Accessibility
As much protection as a case can provide, it’s more cumbersome than convenient if it actually hinders access to things like the ports, buttons and the camera. Thankfully, that’s not the case with the OtterBox MySymmetry. The power/lock button and volume rocker are a bit stiff but well defined. It only takes a little more effort to control the volume and you can easily locate the buttons even without looking. The power/lock button is a little stiffer though, so it’s a good thing this is used less frequently, at least for me.
So Should You Buy the OtterBox MySymmetry?
I’m a huge fan of protecting your phone with the best case you can afford, but I also hate how cumbersome a phone can get the more protection it offers. The OtterBox MySymmetry is a beautiful compromise that even lends some character to your phone thanks to the swappable inserts. Tired of the one that came with your case? Just head over to the official website of OtterBox Philippines where you can download the template and make your own!
Interested in picking one up? The OtterBox MySymmetry for the iPhone 5 and 5S is just Php1,750 and you can also get it for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus for the same price.
