Expert’s Rating
Our Verdict
This silicone polymer suit is highlighted by a typical tire tread pattern on its back .
iPhone 4 owners with an eye toward the automotive may treasure the look and feel ofCase - mate’sVroom case for Apple ’s smartphone . The black silicone case features a tyre tread - style pattern on its back . But if you ’re looking for more secure protective cover for your iPhone 4 , you may want to give some other eccentric a drive .
The Vroom case wraps around your iPhone 4 , with a ridge of silicone hugging the front screen and preventing the phone ’s display from coming into liaison with any surfaces . ( character - mate also add a protective film with instructions on how to give it to your iPhone ’s screen . ) An curtain raising on the bottom permit approach to the dock - connector port and verbaliser , while a like slit on the side let you manoeuver the ring / silent switch . There ’s an opening at the top for the headphone jack ; it ’s a rather tight tantrum with the earbuds Apple supplying , so some third - party headphone may be in for a tight squeeze . The rear - facing camera gets its own gap as well .
The sleep / wake release at the top and the volume ensure on the side are address by the Vroom , though you may operated them via raise coverings on the example . In the case of the volume buttons , the raised grooves are more or less toilsome to spot — you may find yourself fumbling to conform the volume on a phone encased within the Vroom .
The tire stride convention is surely typical , but I ’m not sure it has a practical use . On its Website , typesetter’s case - mate allege the shape “ absorbs shocks and impacts , ” though I do n’t see that it ’s particularly more shock - absorbant than a run - of - the mill silicone polymer wrap . The tread formula certainly does n’t make the phone any easier to fascinate .
More worrisome , though , is how slackly the Vroom seems to fit around the iPhone 4 . On the mannikin I essay , the bottom of the case slip off the telephone set rather well ; I could see how this might evidence to be an vexation whenever inserting a Vroom - covered earpiece into a scoop . My font also had a lax train of thought of silicone dangling over the left-hand speaker ; I was able to displume it off without any job , but it did n’t make me feel any better about the Vroom .
To accommodate the slight divergence in iPhone 4 models , event - Mate offers Vroom cases for both theVerizonandAT&Tmodels of the smartphone . ( That say , I steal one example over both types of iPhone 4 , and it easily fit either version . ) At $ 15 , it ’s a rather inexpensive path to leave your smartphone with some simple , distinctive - reckon protection . But a classifiable look is about all you should carry from this pillow slip — the similarly designed Treadz from iFrogz ply more protection and a better grip , even if that type features a less - than - perfect fit for your iPhone .
[ Philip Michaels is executive editor in chief of Macworld.com . ]
