Case-Mate Tank Case. Sharkeye case2

[awayman]

I was looking into a Sharkeye case about a month ago and live in the city where the company resides. The guy I spoke with told me to wait until the end of October and they have collaborated with Case-Mate on a new design. It supposedly addresses some of the old issues with the Sharkeye case such as widening the view so you can more easily touch the sides of the screen. The sharkeye site redirects to case-mates site now.

Already ordered mine. I will post my opinions when it arrives.

If anyone else decides to jump on it there is a promo code FBLIKE20 that got me 20% off

 

[arctictwist]

ill be awaiting your review, already have been searching for a review. trying to find a suitable replacement for this god awful otterbox. Im really disappointing in them with the I4 defender. Let us know asap! Thanks!

 

[tritan]

ill be awaiting your review, already have been searching for a review. trying to find a suitable replacement for this god awful otterbox. Im really disappointing in them with the I4 defender. Let us know asap! Thanks!

otterbox redesigned the defender. wider optic for the camera , using TPU more ridge silicion.It will slide in and out of the pocket now , no lint issues, flaps stay closed finally. I am ordering a replacement skin. Front camera area redesigned for the sensors.

 

[arctictwist]

otterbox redesigned the defender. wider optic for the camera , using TPU more ridge silicion.It will slide in and out of the pocket now , no lint issues, flaps stay closed finally. I am ordering a replacement skin. Front camera area redesigned for the sensors.

aside from the silicone issues, my big issue is with the flimsy plastic. Opening and closing the charging port actually cracked thin bar of plastic on the back of the case. Then one of the spots that the belt clip latches into broke just from pulling it in and out of the clip. They sent me a replacement, which is one thing i will always praise them about (customer service), but it was the same crap. this was only a month ago.

 

[awayman]

The case arrived today. Pretty fast for free shipping.

Case Impressions:
The texture on the outside is nice. It's almost not there at all. Just enough to not be slippery. The phone pulled in and out of my pocket just fine. I really don't have another case to base the size off of except my droid incredible in a Seidio convert Case. They are roughly the same size. The Tank is about a quarter inch wider while the Seido is thicker. Installation is pretty straight forward you just have to make sure when sliding it together the locking tabs on the back stay on top of the sliding screen. Now one issue I had with my installation was my screen protector. The case is a tight fit. I had to remove my front and back protector. I cannot recall the protector I had but it claimed it was the thickest on the market and covered every side of the iPhone. I tried just removing the back one first and when i slide the phone into the case it peeled off the top one as well. I believe you can get a thinner screen protector and just cut it to cover the screen portion only. It fit to tight above the screen in the case. The buttons worked well. I'm impressed by the headphone cover it is thick and pulls out easily. The charging cover is thick as well and the rubber that would act as the hing on it is as wide as the charging port so is doesn't get smaller allowing the rubber to twist and tear. I have seen other flaps on other cases get smaller where it connects.

Screen/ Camera Functionality:
The case does create a edge around the screen I tested it with a few games that I knew had controls on the edge of the screen and didn't have a problem playing. I actually enjoyed the size increase of the phone while gaming. I took a few photos with flash and test the front camera as well and noticed no issues.

Holster impressions:
I'm not a fan of the holster. I probably wont use it anyways but the quality of my old sedio holster is for sure nicer. The holster is pretty much a piece of plastic and a rotating clip on the back. A good holster would have the latch at the top separate on a spring loaded mechanism. The Tank's latch is all one piece and you just flex it to remove the phone. I'm sure others are like that its just my opinion. The plastic seems pretty sturdy. The belt clip is pretty stiff rotating. It uses a curved metal clip for its resistance instead of a spring load. Its hard to see how this is actually secured to the holster. I would prefer the spring design more.

Let me know if you have any questions or if you want any certain photos. I would take some but its hard to manage all this when a 5 month old and demanding your attention.

 

[arctictwist]

Does the case seem thin and flimsy? or is the plastic thicker and durable?

 

[awayman]

When the case is on the phone it feels very solid. Now when it's off you can Disassemble it to three pieces. It is actually kind of hard taking the case back off. The buttons are hard to press. There is some flex in it to allow the parts to lock together but I don't see it breaking from anything normal. There is actually a review on YouTube now. He really doesn't review it that well ( more just punished it) but the case did crack around the top edge of the screen after he ran it over in his car on a rocky road. The iPhone was fine though

 

[RC28]

I got this case yesterday and it is going back asap. It ruined my screen protector just trying to put it on. It is very hard to put the case on correctly. I was unable to get it on without forcing it, and I won't use any case I have to force. I got a Seidio surface case stuck on my phone once and had to go to the Apple store to get it off.

I think there is something wrong with the one I have. The rubber inner lining on the bottom inside part sticks out funny. I am glad you like the case but I had a very different experience. Since I intend to use it only when I need extra protection, I can't ruin an expensive screen protector each time I use it.

Unless someone wants to put this case on and keep it on, assuming you can get it on, this case is a fail imho.

 

[arctictwist]

From what i read, you really cant use any screen protector with the cases that provide all the extra protection.