iSkin has been my favorite case maker for longer than I can remember. I’ve bought their cases for iPhones and iPods. I liked some of those cases and others I didn’t like at all. Some of them were just okay, but in the end I always used one of iSkin’s cases on my iDevices.
I had to experiment with them, because the cases were like a good pair of shoes. You need to try them on and decide what’s best for you. I hope that this review will help you to make the right choice when choosing an iSkin case for your iPhone 4.
iSkin Solo
The iSkin Solo ($29.99 not for iPhone 4 on Verizon) is a minimalist case for the discerning iPhone 4 user that isn’t prone to dropping things. Although it does have some impact resistance I’m not sure if I would trust it as much as I would a Ballistic HC. It offers full access to the front of the iPhone 4 and it doesn’t suck up a lot of lint. It comes with a microfiber cloth, anti-static wipe, and an iSkin sticker for your school notebook or car.
The only problem I encountered with the Solo was the fact that it doesn’t work with all dock connector cables. If the cable has one of the unusually large dock connectors it won’t work with this case. That’s a big negative if you frequently sync your iPhone 4, because you’ll have to pull the case off every time until you replace that cable.
[xrr rating=3.5/5]
iSkin Duet
The iSkin Duet packages the Solo with a belt holster ($39.99 not for iPhone 4 on Verizon) that has a rotary clip. Although I like the case the holster was another matter altogether. It’s awful and I’d avoid it. The Solo doesn’t fit well into the holster. Pulling it out of the holster or putting it back in isn’t very easy to do and the feeling it gives you doesn’t leave you with thoughts of good quality.
I don’t know why iSkin went with this design. The best case and holster design they’ve ever produced was the Revo case and holster that shipped for the iPhone 3GS. I really loved that case and holster combo. I’m not sure what happened, but iSkin needs to bring that back for the iPhone 5.
[xrr rating=2.0/5]
iSkin Revo4
The iSkin Revo4 ($44.99 not for iPhone 4 on Verizon) was my most favorite case out of all three. It is the one that I use every day. My only misgiving about this case is that it doesn’t have a holster accessory. It does have the plastic screen cover, but I left that in the box. I never used it on earlier versions of this case either. Especially since the iPhone 3GS model had a nice holster that could put the iPhone into with the face of the phone facing inwards. Plus, the plastic cover would not allow you to touch the display and in order to touch the display you had to remove it. That was awkward.
Although I did not get one of these to test (I have the original version of the Revo4) iSkin just released a new version of the Revo4 with a screen shield that appears to at least allow you to answer your phone and it works with the iPhone 4 from AT&T and Verizon. However, if you lock your iPhone the “innovative touch-friendly zone” doesn’t sound very friendly at all. The zone only allows access to the slider. That doesn’t do you any good if you need to enter your Passcode to unlock the iPhone. The bottom line is that either of these shields will probably end up in my parts box.
The Revo4 offers more protection than the Solo, but still not as much as the Ballistic HC. I keep it and hence my iPhone 4 in my pocket. It collects some lint, but not as much as you would expect. Overall I liked it a whole lot, but I still finding myself wishing for a good holster to use with it.
It also suffered some problems with cables staying flush, especially the 30-pin dock connector, but that seems to be pretty typical of nearly all case makers. They are targeting the dock connector size now shipping with iPods and the iPhone — a little smaller, narrower, and thinner.
[xrr rating=4.0/5]
Conclusion
It is a bit late in the iPhone production cycle to be looking for a case, since the iPhone 5 is allegedly just around the corner. However, if you have to pick a case out of these three I would choose the iSkin Revo4.
