SwitchEasy Melt Case for iPhone 4S Review
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Slider style iPhone cases (most known to have started by Incase) have seen many different types of changes throughout recent years, but let SwitchEasy take a stab at creating its very first slider case and the end result is out of this world. SwitchEasy is notoriously known for its innovative, out-of-the-box way of thinking when it comes to iPhone cases such as the CapsuleRebel series. This time we've got our hands on the latest, and it's called the Melt case. A dripping, melting, visually catching case that won't cause a mess on the carpet. We've got all the melting colors and can't wait to show them to you so jump past the break for the full review of the Melt case!
We're beginning to see a trend here with SwitchEasy and its fetish of combining odd colors together to form a two-tone color scheme with its recent case releases. Most are put off by the elaborate color combinations that scream out attention, and for those of you who like to keep it on the lowdown, the Melt comes in calmer colors like black and white. On the other hand, the Melt case is best served with extremely contrasty colors to show off its true design that makes this case worth looking at in the first place. You can pick from 5 different colors including a limited edition red/white Melt specially made for the winter holiday season.
The Melt case is compatible with all iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S models, and it'll cost you $34.99. A bit on the pricy side considering most of SwitchEasy's cases are quite affordable and include many extras. Out of the box, the Melt does indeed come with everything you'd expect like color matched port plugs for keeping your ports clean, two dock adapters so you could use your iPhone without taking off the Melt using compatible docks, a video stand for landscape viewing as well as two decent crystal clear screen protectors. It's always nice to see SwitchEasy include these extras with its cases.
As we've established beforehand, the Melt case has a slider style design which typically means there are two parts to the case in which results in sliding your iPhone into one piece while the bottom half is secured on for a quick and easy installation. Looking at the inside of the case we can see something that sort of looks like cork but is only some form of a felt pad that is slightly raised and should help slide the iPhone in more easily as well as reduce friction of the back glass from rubbing against the plastic surface of the case. It works well I'll give it that. As for shock absorption, the melt case isn't the ideal case for the job but will keep your iPhone protected with its tough, hard polycarbonate shell.
The two parts come together seamlessly without any gaps between each other. Part of the melting texture was designed to slide above the bottom part of the case to form a very distinctive and almost realistic look of the color dripping down. There are also no obtrusive logos that take away from the unique design of the Melt other than a small, minimalist side logo at the bottom of the case.
The Melt is entriely made out of hard polycarbonate with a scratch-resistand coating to help keep those colors looking as vibrant. After having spent enough time using the Melt as a daily case with my iPhone 4S, I must say that I'm really impressed by how perfect the finish has sestained itself from getting scratches and scruff marks. That's typically the case with such plastic cases getting scuff marks all over the place very quickly.
There's more than just paint dripping or plastic melting or what ever you think the Melt case looks like. Two different types of finishes are found on every Melt cases with the top most dominate side of the design having a glossy finish that really brings out the dripping paint texture and all of its three-dimensional surface to life while the bottom half of the case is finished with a matte and grainy texture. And I think both of these different elements are what make the Melt one of the more unique plastic cases we've ever reviewed. The Melt case actually fells very good in the hand and surprisingly not slippery as you would have thought mostly due to the bottom half. Even with the protruding texture on the back, the Melt isn't a bulky case to use.
The Melt surprises us with eve more awesomeness when looking at where most of us look at 99% of the time, the front of the iPhone is complete with the Melt's signature touch unlike other boring cases that all look pretty much the same when looking the front of the iPhone. Don't worry about the front of your screen getting scratched though because the dripping textures barely touches the glass and will not lift or bubble up your screen protected either. Come to think of it, it now looks like a little monster's mouth. Speaking of imagination, as you can see when you've got at least two Melt cases at your fingertips, the customization begins instantaneously. I don't dig the current colors all that much, but creating my own mix and match combos can really get expensive but look stunning at the same time.
Now on to the bad news, and no, SwitchEasy has finally fixed the flash issues using magical spells. None of the Melt colors tested have impacted the photos using the flash at night. However, the Melt does seem to suffer a slight creaking issue when held tight. The two part might give off some creaking sounds if you grasp your iPhone tightly. Is it an issue? Not so much but if you get annoyed by a bit of creaking noises then you might want to hold off. But that's not nearly as upsetting as it is to press the volume buttons with this case on. It's very hard to do and thankfully the sleep/wake button is easy to press. Cutout for the headphone port is enough to fit only slim plugs while you'll be able to fit slightly larger charge and sync dock connector cables at the bottom. SwitchEasy manages to fix one thing only to mess up another.
After all that was said, the Melt is one awesome case to own. If you've been looking to attract attention, this is the case to get. The Melt is one of the most interesting slider case you can put your hands on at $34.99.
