I Caved
Before I switched to using an iPhone I never really cared about phone cases. I used Blackberry before and those felt fine and came with a belt holster, that I used. However, when I switched to iPhone things changed. The iPhone felt expensive...and fragile. There was also no shortage of cases. Thus began my desire to keep buying cases and trying to find that elusive "perfect" case. Over the years I kept seeing people talk about the Thanotech K11 bumper. I finally caved in, I bought one, and it's not what I expected. Well, it is a bumper as expected but that's where expectation ended. For starters, the K11 is touted as an aluminum bumper. Sure it has aluminum in it, but just enough to say it's an aluminum bumper as there is still a good deal of flex with it. There's also no aluminum at all where it would be useful, right at the bottom by the charging port. Instead, it's just TPU and it sags enough to leave a gap between the phone and the bumper. I still can't get over how many case manufacturers can't figure that out.
I digress, you won't notice the aluminum as much as you would think since the aluminum is encased in TPU. This helps with the grip and added drop protection. Other than that, you only get small portions with extra TPU for gripping surfaces which I find a little disappointing. The mute switch cutout would be large enough if it aligned better with the mute switch, but nope, the mute switch sits right on the edge of the cutout which makes it more difficult than it should be to access it. The buttons are a little stiff but not terribly so, they are still quite usable. On a brighter note, the lightning port cutout is large enough to allow most third-party cables. Thanotech rates the K11 for nine-foot drops and I'm not sure I want to put that to the test. The biggest issue I have with the K11 though is the ergonomics. It's very square and that makes it a little uncomfortable to hold. Overall, it's a pretty solid bumper.
The Good
Nine-foot drop protection
Shows off your phone
Decently grippy
The Bad
A little expensive
Almost too uncomfortably square
Mute switch is difficult to access
Conclusion
While the Thanotech K11 is a pretty solid bumper, I have a hard time recommending it over other similarly priced bumpers. Before I forget to mention, Thanotech is nice enough to include a plastic protector for the back of your phone with the K11. I'm still not sure it justifies the $30 price tag though. So it really comes down to personal preference so check out the K11 here.
Before I switched to using an iPhone I never really cared about phone cases. I used Blackberry before and those felt fine and came with a belt holster, that I used. However, when I switched to iPhone things changed. The iPhone felt expensive...and fragile. There was also no shortage of cases. Thus began my desire to keep buying cases and trying to find that elusive "perfect" case. Over the years I kept seeing people talk about the Thanotech K11 bumper. I finally caved in, I bought one, and it's not what I expected. Well, it is a bumper as expected but that's where expectation ended. For starters, the K11 is touted as an aluminum bumper. Sure it has aluminum in it, but just enough to say it's an aluminum bumper as there is still a good deal of flex with it. There's also no aluminum at all where it would be useful, right at the bottom by the charging port. Instead, it's just TPU and it sags enough to leave a gap between the phone and the bumper. I still can't get over how many case manufacturers can't figure that out.
I digress, you won't notice the aluminum as much as you would think since the aluminum is encased in TPU. This helps with the grip and added drop protection. Other than that, you only get small portions with extra TPU for gripping surfaces which I find a little disappointing. The mute switch cutout would be large enough if it aligned better with the mute switch, but nope, the mute switch sits right on the edge of the cutout which makes it more difficult than it should be to access it. The buttons are a little stiff but not terribly so, they are still quite usable. On a brighter note, the lightning port cutout is large enough to allow most third-party cables. Thanotech rates the K11 for nine-foot drops and I'm not sure I want to put that to the test. The biggest issue I have with the K11 though is the ergonomics. It's very square and that makes it a little uncomfortable to hold. Overall, it's a pretty solid bumper.
The Good
Nine-foot drop protection
Shows off your phone
Decently grippy
The Bad
A little expensive
Almost too uncomfortably square
Mute switch is difficult to access
Conclusion
While the Thanotech K11 is a pretty solid bumper, I have a hard time recommending it over other similarly priced bumpers. Before I forget to mention, Thanotech is nice enough to include a plastic protector for the back of your phone with the K11. I'm still not sure it justifies the $30 price tag though. So it really comes down to personal preference so check out the K11 here.
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