Review on OtterBox SYMMETRY Case IPhone Pro Cell Phones & Accessories and Cases, Holsters & Clips by Mark Meyer

UPDATE 4/12/19: In answer to my own question, yes, after just 10 weeks of use, the clear case on the flexible top began to turn noticeably YELLOW, especially on the part where my fingers most often were touch. NOT IMPRESSED OTTERBOX! Lowering my rating to 1 star. --------------- I just purchased the OtterBox SYMMETRY CLEAR case for my new iPhone 11 Pro direct from the Otterbox website for $39.95 (excluding tax, free shipping). and a $10 discount for subscribing to their mailing list). That compares to the $36 I paid for the X/XS version of this Revain case two years ago (so the price has gone up significantly unless you take advantage of the $10 discount). The 11 Pro looks exactly like the X/XS, except the side buttons are noticeably easier to press (may or may not be) and the case feels MUCH harder to remove (thankfully the 11 Pro doesn't tend to bend). Based on my previous experiences detailed below, I cannot fully recommend Otterbox Symmetry Clear iPhone Cases at this time. Please note that this is specific to ***CLEAR*** models as opaque versions may not suffer from the same obviously defective materials. Granted, my X/XS case did a great job of protecting the edges, as well as the front and back glass. my iPhone X and iPhone XS while displaying a rather attractive low profile. On both the 11 Pro and X/XS cases, the tactile top half of the case's edge also goes a long way towards preventing accidental drops, although the flat plastic back itself is a bit slippery. Note: The phone's front glass is not covered with a protective film, but the edges of the case are raised 1-2 millimeters above the glass, so the screen is protected if dropped on an PLANE, but not necessarily uneven surfaces. directly affecting the screen. The same applies to the camera hump on the back. However, the rear window is completely closed, except for the camera hump. I've used a case I bought first for the iPhone X and then for the iPhone XS (each for a year) and they didn't have a single scratch or dent when sold, although admittedly I'm not very prone to falls and keep My phones separate in my front pocket with no keys etc. I've seen a few tiny micro-cracks developing in the bottom of the X/XS hard plastic case, but nothing that would clearly affect case function. So far I see no reason why the new 11 Pro case shouldn't work just as well. But the real reason we want a clear case is to enjoy the beauty of our new device. Unfortunately, these cases fall short on two fronts: 1) The more trivial reason is that you just have to admit that even clear cases don't really show off the iPhone's beauty. You'll see a transparent case with a slightly blurry phone print behind it. So honestly, you might as well get a case that's beautiful on its own because who knows what phone model it's actually hiding. You can see the Apple logo fairly clearly, and presumably the color is visible (I always choose dark gray or black models, so I have no experience with more exotic phone colors). But that beautiful frosted glass back is lost behind the transparent body. 2) More importantly, and the main reason I temporarily gave this 11 Pro case an average score of 3, is that over the 3-4 months of using the previous X/XS I found that the top, more flexible half of the plastic material (from the side of the phone screen) began to turn noticeably YELLOW and eventually TAN (as you can see in my photo of a 2 year old). The X/XS case is to the left of my new 11 Pro case). There's either something wrong with that soft plastic layer that's gradually changing color, or exposure to the oils secreted by your fingers is causing it to turn yellow. You will see many other reviews of the X/XS version saying the same thing (some of the most recent ones in August and September 2019) so it's not just me. In fact, by my count, 59 of the 178 reviews published for the X/XS case in 2019 mention yellowing. That's 33%! And no, I didn't try to get a refund. If the whole reason you want to buy a clear case is to show off the beauty of your new phone, case yellowing after just a few months of use is a big problem. even worse (especially in this price range). It remains to be seen if the Pro 11 suffers from the same defect, but as said, it looks identical. I'm giving Otterbox another chance in the hope that they've finally fixed this shortcoming and I'll update my review in 3-4 months. This time I expect a refund from Otterbox if it turns out you haven't learned anything from all the negative reviews and refund requests! After 4 days, my 11 Pro case is still scratch-free, but from my X/XS experience, these cases also have slight scratches on the back, which I didn't find particularly noticeable or annoying. Also, I eventually noticed subtle micro-cracks around the edges of the hard case, presumably due to the phone's pressure on the case (it's pretty tight) or accidentally dropping it. Dust also collects on the back, presumably through the openings for the speakers and the Lightning port. By the way, you can save $10 by signing up for the newsletter on their website and buying it there.