Author: Alan

The Ballistic SG ($20) is a thick, protection-focused case for the iPhone 4 that combines hard-plastic and silicone rubber in a bulky profile. With its dual-layers and extra-padded corners, it goes farther than most iPhone cases in providing shock absorption for your iPhone. We found it a well-designed case and one of the better overall choices available for iPhone 4—that is, if you don’t mind a little extra bulk. The Ballistic SG is currently only available for AT&T iPhones, but a Verizon version will be available soon.

The Ballistic SG is a composed of two sections of material that you wrap around the iPhone, one by one, to form the case. The first layer to go on is a silicone rubber sleeve that wraps snugly around the iPhone. Over that goes a hard-plastic exterior that provides rigidity, strength, and shape. By themselves, the layers are not very thick, but together they create a form bulkier than the average case and thus with excellent protective qualities. The four corners of the case are heavily padded with silicone and protrude out from the rest of the case. These corners create impact areas designed to take on the brunt of the force from accidental drops. All things considered, the Ballistic SG offers premium protection for your iPhone 4.
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The Scosche Kickback case for the iPhone 4 ($25) is a combination hard-plastic and silicone-rubber case with a built-in stand capable of holding up the iPhone in landscape orientation. While not the thickest dual-layer case we’ve seen (the silicone rubber layer is very thin), the Kickstand still manages to offer above average protection in a slim, pocketable shape. Overall, the Kickback is a well-designed, functional case, with our only complaint being the single angle provided by the stand. The case is compatible with both the Verizon (CDMA) and AT&T (GSM) iPhone 4.

We’ve reviewed several iPhone cases with built-in stands, and the added functionality of a stand can come in handy more than you think. But it’s important that the stand offer a variety of angles for a variety of situations (see the ZeroChroma Teatro as a good example). Unfortunately, the Kickback’s stand only offers one viewing angle, which is in landscape. Attempts to use the stand in portrait caused the iPhone to wobble and fall over. One positive characteristic of the stand is that it lays flat and out of the way when not in use.

Cases that combine hard-plastic with silicone rubber are designed to mine the best qualities of both materials. We wouldn’t consider the Kickback a true combo case, as it’s almost all hard plastic. The case has only the thinnest layer of silicone rubber lining inside. The rubber keeps the case from scratching up the iPhone, but the small quantity means the Kickback is not as strong as we’d like in the area of shock absorption. But that’s not to say the case lacks any protection—we rate it as above average. It’s just not on par with protection-focused cases like those from Otterbox.

The exterior of the case is a high-quality, glossy hard-plastic. Our Kickback was white trimmed with gray, but it’s also available in black and gray versions. Aesthetically, we found the glossy exterior to be modern and attractive, providing a surface similar to the previous generation iPhones (the 3G and 3GS) while maintaining the iPhone 4′s new contours.

To help provide better grip, the Kickback has four triangular strips of silicone near the four corners of the case. When held in one hand, the rubber comes in contact with your fingers and helps prevent the otherwise slick plastic from slipping in sweaty hands. It’s not the most comfortable case we’ve reviewed, but it is generally pleasant to hold.

The case does a good job of staying out of the way of using the iPhone. There is a single wide cutout area for the iPhone’s ringer mute switch and volume buttons. This wide area makes the case compatible with both CDMA and GSM versions of the iPhone 4 (Verizon and AT&T iPhones in the US). For the iPhone’s sleep button, the case covers it with a raised area of silicone rubber that simulates a button. The button works accurately when pressed, but doesn’t feel quite as tactile as the normal button.

Conclusion

The Scosche Kickback ($25) is a good-looking dual-layer case with a built-in stand. Well-designed and offering above-average protection, the case has few faults. Our only complaint is the single angle provided by the stand. We rate the case an 8.0 out of 10, highly recommended.

The iChair for the iPhone 4 ($30) is a slim, hard-plastic slider case that comes with a built-in, flip-out stand capable of holding up the iPhone in both portrait and landscape orientations. The iChair offers surprisingly good protection for a slim case and is a highly functional case with only a few minor flaws. It’s compatible with the CDMA (Verizon) and GSM (AT&T) iPhone 4.

The manufacturer describes the iChair as a dual-layer case—it has an inner TPU layer (polyurethane) and an outer polycarbonate layer. But for our purposes, we wouldn’t describe it as a true dual-layer. The two layers feel like just like every other hard plastic case we’ve reviewed, and we see little benefit from the combination. More useful are dual-layer cases that combine hard plastic with silicone rubber to offer the best of both worlds.

The iChair is composed of two sections that slide together over the iPhone. In a unique twist, there are two top halves included in the packaging—one in black and one in white (or blue, if you choose). The extra top half is purely for aesthetics, and we didn’t the look of the mismatched halves, but each to his own.

The case comes with a built-in integrated stand that, thanks to it triangular-shaped tip, can hold the iPhone up in both landscape and portrait. When not in use, the stand lays perfectly flat inside the back of the case, so the iPhone won’t wobble when resting on tables (a problem with seen with other case/stand combos). The stand works well, holding the iPhone up firmly so you can tap away with worry of tipping. But we do have one gripe. The iChair only supports 1 angle for both portrait and landscape orientations (see our review for the ZeroChroma Teatro case for an example of a case/stand that supports several angles). This can limit the utility of the stand somewhat.

The iChair offers excellent protection, something rare in slim hard-plastic cases. The plastic is thickest in the corners and around the sides where the iPhone’s impact points are located. The case also has a nice high rim around the screen in case you accidentally drop it on that side. While its shock absorption is still not quite on par with rubber or dual-layer cases, the protection is nevertheless better than the majority of hard-plastic cases out there. And the iChair will protect against the regular everyday wear-and-tear from sliding around in bags and rubbing against keys in pockets.

The sleep button is hard to press in the case.

The case offers excellent accessibility to the iPhone’s ports and buttons with the exception of the sleep button. The cutout area around the sleep button is not quite wide enough for thicker fingers to access easily. It’s not quite as bad as we’ve seen in some cases, but still annoying nonetheless. The case uses a single large cutout for the iPhone’s volume buttons and ringer switch, making them easily accessible as well as compatible with both the Verizon and AT&T iPhone 4. While you can’t use the iPhone in a dock while the case is on, you can slide off the bottom half, then dock it, although we found that the iChair’s design does not make this process quite as easy as with other slider cases.

Included with the iChair are two clear plastic screen protectors with a squegee board for application, a small dust cloth, and the extra white top.

Conclusion

The iChair for iPhone 4 ($30) is an all-around well-designed, functional, and attractive case. It does have a few minor flaws in the form of a hard-to-press sleep button and limited angles for the stand, but overall, we enjoyed using the iChair in our week-long testing, and assign it a rating of 8.0 out of 10, highly recommended.