My LifeProof Fre (Banzai) for iPhone 6 Plus Review

[daniel.michael4724]

Good evening everyone! I just picked up a Lifeproof Fre for my 6 Plus yesterday from Best Buy. Best Buy has the Fre for the 6 Plus priced at $89.99 and I found it on Amazon for $61.99 and they did the price match guarantee for me. I love that policy when I'm shopping there lol. Moving on......... Let me back up to Saturday where this story started.........

This past Saturday I went to my local Best Buy and picked up a black Lifeproof Nuud for my 6+. I loved the look and feel of the case but in less than 24 hours the charging port door wouldn't stay closed because the "teeth" that help it latch had actually broken off, & the bottom two corners wouldn't stay snapped together. I disassembled the case, checked the O-ring to ensure there was no dust, foreign objects, etc, and that it was seated right. Put it back together and still was a no go. Sunday after church I took the Nuud back to Best Buy and exchanged it for another one thinking I just got a dud. By Monday morning I had the same exact problem again. Did some research online and discovered that this is a widespread and well known issue. I started doing research on the Fre series and there were numerous positive remarks so I figured I give it a shot.

I have to say that I am quite impressed with this case. It feels solid in the hand, and when putting it together it had a very definitive "snap" when the tabs were locking into place. The Touch ID sensor works flawlessly with the case. Even with the built in screen protector there isn't the gap that you sometimes get with cases like that. The screen protector on mine lays completely flat on the phones glass. The buttons are a little stiff but I know they'll loosen up over time. On the note of sound (incoming phone ringer, notifications, music, etc) everything is loud and clear. There is absolutely no muffled or distorted sound at all, and while talking to folks on the phone they tell me that I sound just like there's no case on it at all. I don't get the tunneling echo or voice distortion. One thing I was definitely happy to see is that the charger port opening was made bigger so I can use all my third party/aftermarket chargers and accessories. LifeProof really knocked this one out of the park. My only gripe with them is that they don't make a holster for the 6 Plus cases. A holster is a necessity for me because I hate having a phablet in my pocket. See my next paragraph for the solution I found............

I went on Amazon and searched "LifeProof Fre iPhone 6 Plus holster" and it came back with a holster made by Encased. It cost $16.99 and since I'm an Amazon Prime member I got free two day shipping. This holster is tough. It has a rubbery/grip type coating on it, the spring on the belt clip is good and stiff so it's not going to wear out. The inside of the holster is felt lined so it'll protect the case on your phone. It also has a spring loaded latch at the top of the holster that latches onto the top of the phone to hold it in the clip. The phone can go in face in or face out. This case will work with both the Nuud & Fre style cases. You can search Amazon for the clip. The part number on the sticker attached to the case packaging is X000Y73OV7.

Below are some pics of the Fre case and holster. Hope you guys enjoy, comments welcome, & if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask. Thanks for looking!!!

 

[dchandler]

Good write up

 

[daniel.michael4724]

Good write up

Thank you. I've seen some other write ups on the Fre series for iPhone but what prompted me to write this was in reading those threads several folks complained that they wish there was a holster made for the 6+ series Fre & Nuud cases. My thought was maybe someone who would like to have a clip/holster for their Fre or Nuud case knew there was an option out there even though it's not an OEM case from LifeProof. I've used several of Encased's products before and they've never disappointed me.

 

[Spencerdl]

Nice write up. Thanks for the "total package" Good Job

 

[daniel.michael4724]

Nice write up. Thanks for the "total package" Good Job

Absolutely! :yes:

 

[zocster]

Thanks for a thorough review!

 

[daniel.michael4724]

Thanks for a thorough review!

Absolutely! Glad you guys have enjoyed it

 

[Rockdog97]

can you use a glass screen protector with this case?

 

[Fit24]

Nice writeup! I have a Lifeproof Fre and holster.

 

[Fit24]

can you use a glass screen protector with this case?

You can use a glass screen protector if you want, but it isn't recommended. LifeProof says they're "not compatible."

 

[Spencerdl]

You can use a glass screen protector if you want, but it isn't recommended. LifeProof says they're "not compatible."

Wow, I didn't know it would fit. I thought the case was to tight.

 

[w00cash1020]

Stop making me buy another caseeeeeeeeeeeeehfewbgwbegjkblkgn.....

 

[john_v]

Any sound issues on phone calls? On previous generations (5, 5s) I've heard some people complain about the other party not being able to hear them, but that's doesn't seem to be a consistent complaint.

Been looking at getting one of these for my 6S, great idea on the Best Buy price match. Might have to go try that at lunch.

 

[Sherry_B]

My fiance's stepdad had one on his iPhone 6 and he absolutely hated it. Even I had issues with that built in screen protector... his did not lay flat on the glass at all. Even with his tiny slender fingers he had problems with the touch id on the home button. He groused enough to the point where I made him take it off and put the previous case (soft TPU case) back on. I bought him a Spigen Tough Armor case, and hopefully when he gets that in the mail he will like it a lot better. For a dentist he's terribly accident prone, so he needs a decent case for his phone lol.

 

[Rockdog97]

yeah, I had one for my 4s and really disliked it. I think I only really used it twice; once to take a picture in a pond of some huge Koi, and the other on a cruise to Mexico and snorkeling.

I've been reluctant to consider one for my 6s due to the past... my biggest complaint was sound quality and the touchscreen sensitivity. hated both.

 

[Spencerdl]

yeah, I had one for my 4s and really disliked it. I think I only really used it twice; once to take a picture in a pond of some huge Koi, and the other on a cruise to Mexico and snorkeling.

I've been reluctant to consider one for my 6s due to the past... my biggest complaint was sound quality and the touchscreen sensitivity. hated both.

A LifeProof representative said that they have improved the design of the Fre and Nuud for the 6/6s and 6plus/6splus. I hope they made improvements since the iPhone 4 series. I'm still on the fence about getting one though. Not sure it would get that much use.

 

[Spencerdl]

I like her reviews. Video on the bottom.

http://tech-reviewer.com/2016/03/11/loving-lifeproof-fre-excellent-waterproof-case-iphone-6s-plus/

 

[Garz]

Do you lose much screen quality with the built in screen protector like in years past?

 

[eve6er69]

I use the fre on my 6s and the drop in screen quality is very unnoticeable. Very little rainbow effect on the screen. My gripe is call quality. I usually throw it on for a few days and when I'm not attached to my cars Bluetooth people either complain that they can't understand or hear me. In a quiet atmosphere like a car it's not bad. As soon as I step outside or a wind gust happens or people talking in the background then BAM! People don't hear me. The impressive part of the case is the screen tapping is almost no extra effort unlike my 4s one. It's the call quality that kills me ok this case and it's he reason it's sitting on a shelf instead of on my phone. So now I rock a spigen

 

[daniel.michael4724]

Hey guys,
Sorry I've been sick so I've not been on. Thanks for all the replies. As far as a glass screen protector I wouldn't see the need for it since it has a built in screen protector, which on the one I have lays completely flat against the front glass. On the sound issues I've not had any issues at all. I had one for my iPhone 4 as well and took it back after 1 day because of the sound problems. This one I've not noticed any degradation in sound quality, and everyone I've talked to says that I come through loud and clear with no distortion or muting in my voice. I think they've really gotten past the issues they had previously. Also I've not had any issues with screen quality either. Everything still looks great, and the like I said above it lays completely flat on the glass so you don't get the "air gap" between the plastic and phone. When you touch it you don't get the "resistive" feeling of having to push down to make contact. At least on mine I don't. I suppose there could be some out there with some manufacturing issues, but I really think they've gotten past a lot of them since the days of the 4 series case. And I'll be honest, I was very hesitant on buying another LifeProof case simply because of problems with the 4 series but I have no regrets. And I didn't see it asked but I've not had any issues with the Touch ID operation either. It has worked 100%.