iPhone 4 Case Review: BubbleSlider by Hard Candy Cases

Kevin PurcellJuly 1, 2010

If you are one of the lucky 2 million people to have already gotten ahold of an iPhone 4, or you plan to get one soon, then you are likely looking for a case. It seems that there are some really good reasons to get a case for the iPhone 4. Like the need to protect the glass backing and to keep your hands from reducing the signal quality of your phone. There are many iPhone 4 cases, but I want to recommend one; the iPhone 4 Bubble Slider from Hard Candy Cases.

Hard Candy Cases specializes in making hard cases to protect your electronics. They have cases for the iPad and even notebook computers. Now they are making cases for the iPhone 4 and they sent us a Bubble Slider to check out.

Here is my video review of the iPhone 4 Bubble Slider. More pictures and all the pros and cons are below the video.

As you can see from the video, I really like this case. I’ve struggled to find a solution for other gadgets, but this is my case for my iPhone 4.

I like the way it looks and feels in my hand. Hard Candy paid attention to the details of leaving enough room to get at most of the buttons and ports parts of the iPhone 4. My only complaints are that the edge around the front of the iPhone is raised a little too much. I wish it was almost flush with the front of the phone and getting at the power button on the top is not as easy as it could be. Also the glossy finish collects finger prints. But the pattern does mask that problem more than if it was a flat surface.

Other than that, I like it a lot and it feels like it will really protect the phone. There are two rubber strips in the back of the inside of the case to protect the glass backing from scratching inside the case. It is also a little challenging to get the case to slide onto the phone. It usually snags on the mute switch and volume buttons. But that is a minor problem since you won’t likely be removing the case very often once it is installed.

This case offers full protection of the sides, front edges and back of the case. I think that is necessary. Apple has their “Bumper” which isn’t really a case but just a rubber trim to protect the edges. Some think the primary purpose of the Bumper is to keep your hands from causing the signal degradation issue. The Bubble Slider does that too and doesn’t seem to hinder my iPhone’s signal at all. I think it is a superior case to the Apple Bumper which I got a look at when I played with it on my friend’s iPhone. As you can see in the two images below, the Apple Bumper only protects the edges of the iPhone.

Hard Candy has a number of colors to choose from. Here is a sampling:

The model I reviewed is the Chromeâ€ case. I said it is a fake metal look that is plastic, but it is actually a polycarbonate material. Of course that’s a nice way of saying plastic. But it doesn’t feel cheap to me.

The Bubble Slider iPhone 4 cases are $34.95 and available now. Hard Candy also has some other styles if you don’t care for the Bubble Slider.

Pros: