iPhone 3G cases, accessories, news and forums at EverythingiCafe

This could be the greatest iphone case ever but the echo problem is really bad. The case really protects the phone and all of the features are easily accessible. However unless I can get it to stop echoing (is that a word?) I will stop using it. It also needs a belt clip on the back instead of a stupid window to see the Apple logo.

First off, I have no agenda here other than to warn iPhone owners of the problem I have with my OtterBox.

There are many positives to the case, including the snug fit, water-resistance and overall look of the OtterBox. I have received numerous compliments on how "cool" the black and yellow case looks. I have no problems operating the touch-screen through the cover and, after reading the instructions, I don't have any bubbles on the screen either. I thought I had the perfect case.

The only problem I ran across was a big one. I began to have people tell me that they heard an annoying echo when I was talking to them on my iPhone. They said it would come and go, though, so I figured it was the network. Then I spoke with my father, who said he couldn't concentrate because he kept hearing an echo of himself everytime he said something. I realized it was the first time I had spoken with him when I wasn't using my bluetooth. I switched my bluetooth on and, sure enough, the echo went away. Then I gave my wife my iPhone and called her from our home phone. It was the most annoying echo I had ever heard. Every word I said was repeated back to me at the same volume I spoke it. I removed the iPhone from the OtterBox and the echo was gone. Without hanging up, I replaced the iPhone in the Otterbox and the echo immediately returned.

If you only talk using a bluetooth or you don't care how annoyed the people on the other end get, then this is the case for you. Once again, everything sounds great on my end. The problem is that the sound is partially trapped by the watertight casing and travels down to the microphone, where it heads back to the caller. I only wish I would have figured it out before I did a full restore and switched out my sim card. I have since e-mailed OtterBox regarding this issue, as did my friend who purchased one after seeing mine and is having the same issue.

Well I got this case about a month ago and decided to give it a try before I gave any opinions. Finding instructions and information on YouTube, and this site made the task of installing this case a piece of cake. I had no bubbles on the screen like other people had. (I did follow the directions of wiping your hand on the screen prior to installing the case. That could be why I had no bubbles, because I intentionally tried to get bubbles and didn't.) This case is like 2 or 3 separate accessories. First it has covers for the touch screen, the camera lens, the light sensor, and the apple logo. The screen cover works well as the touch screen has only suffered a tiny bit of "sense loss". In my case it made my iPhone use better because my "less deliberate" touches are not sensed. I have noticed no difference in the pictures I take using the case, so the camera lens cover also works well. The apple logo cover piece is the same piece of material as the camera lens cover, so your precious logo will remain unscratched. However, the material that covers the screen, lens, and logo, is not scratch resistant. In the month that I have been using this, the screen cover has been scratched a bit. Minor scratches but scratches none-the-less. Since the purpose of this material is to keep the screen from being scratched and to keep dust out, it has done well. (If the cover becomes so scratched I can't use it, I will remove it and still be better off than some of the other cases.) The second "accessory" to this case is the hard plastic case that snaps together, in which all of the clear covers are attached. It is a hard plastic material that is fit well to the phone, so the phone does not seem to "move about" in the case. (A previous case I had was not fit well to the phone and it scratched up my phone terribly.) This case has kept my phone in good condition, and has not scratched the chrome bezel. (My previous iPhone had a scratched bezel from a clear case I was using. Very irritating!) The hard plastic has covered openings for the camera, the apple logo, the light sensor above the screen, the screen itself, it also has a fabric type cover for the earpiece, the microphone, and the speaker. This fabric cuts into volume a bit, and that gets worse when you have it in the holster, which has no openings for sound to escape. It has uncovered openings for the headphone jack, power button, the volume button, the home button, and the charging/syncing jack. These openings are covered up by the third "accessory", the softer "rubber" cover. This component will keep your phone from sliding from your hand or sliding around inside your vehicle. It covers the buttons but everything works through the case except for the silence switch. You would have to remove the case to switch it. This case also has a holster with a swivel belt clip, which when used would completely cover the screen adding another layer of protection. So far I have been very pleased with this case. I was worried about getting it before-hand because of all the negative things I heard about it. I am glad I got it though because all of the negative things I had heard must have been about "the first phase" mentioned in this thread. The only negative things about this case are the silence switch covered up, and the screen cover scratching. But since other cases don't even have a screen cover, this case is still a step ahead. This case is a little more expensive than average cases, but it is not your average case. Well worth the money!!