Otterbox review by JohnnyB

Over the next several weeks you may see quite a few ‘Review’s’ for the Otterbox from us. No, we are not repeating the same post per se, but we will be posting each of our own personalized review and experience with using one.

Having seen an Otterbox that my MD brought back from WES for the Curve, I was impressed not only that there is a vendor producing ruggedized cases for BlackBerry phones, but also the manufacture quality of the Otterbox. I will admit that this was the first time I had ever heard of or even seen an Otterbox, but looking further at what they offer for varying device models and makes, notebooks, cameras, etc., I was even more impressed.

I am going to start by saying that the Otterbox may not necessarily be for everyone, but there will be a place and time where everyone would find using an Otterbox of great use.

My experience to date has been nothing but great. It started with awesome shipping turnaround time from the Colorado office all the way across the Big Pond to the southern part of Africa. Shipping was no more than seven days from putting in the order with them.

My personal device is an 8100 Pearl, so having the Otterbox Defender fitted does make it a little more chunky when using and navigating the keypad. Ergonomically, it rates quite high in my opinion, and with the use of the solid holster, which I am happy to have again (memories of my good ol’ faithful 7290), as a whole it travels well in the pocket and/or hip.

My only slight negative remark on the Otterbox is the inner membrane (required for tight fit in the plastic), the alignment of the keypad indentations and the trackball cut-out do not quite line up. I however have overcome this by aligning for the trackball as a primary, with the keypad indentations settling in with time and use. This may just be me only as the others in the BerryReview Team have had theirs fit 100%.

Now you may say that, with an inner membrane, this must make for trickier typing, which I actually felt when I first received it, but with a few days of having the Otterbox fitted, I was back to my speed typing. I do have moments when I found myself correcting typo’s due to it, but that is more from lack of concentration and typing faster than my thought process.

The only modification you may need to do to the membrane is punch a whole where the camera lens is, other than this the membrane is left as is and fitted according to the instructions. I used the corner of my Curve leather holster instead of a card to rub out the bubbles of the membrane, as this is softer and poses a smaller chance of cutting into the membrane.

So go out grab an Otterbox and keep it handy for the outdoor trips, working on the road, construction sites, etc.

For me, the Otterbox will be a feature purchase for future BlackBerry devices.

Big thanks to Kristin and her team for getting these out to us.