HTC One X Cases: Taking Protection into HTC's Hands
by Anand Lal Shimpi on April 20, 2012 5:37 PM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- HTC
- Mobile
- HTC One
With the One lineup (particuarly the One X and One S), HTC really ratched up its focus on design. The One X is easily one of the best looking Android smartphones on the market today. The problem is that the majority of consumers prefer to use cases on their phones, which ultimately hides a lot of the design work that HTC and other companies put into their devices. There's also the problem of determining what color to launch with a device. You can't have an infinite number of colors and the trend lately has been towards putting out fairly conservative colors. This further amplifies the customer use of cases, which once again hides a lot of the design work that HTC and others put into their devices.
Apple took matters into its own hands with the bumpers for the iPhone 4 - providing some protection while not obscuring too much of the design. Nokia is similarly well known for doing this with its phones for a while now. HTC is following suit and will be shipping its own minimalist cases for the One X.
These things don't offer any protection for the screen, but they snap on the back of the One X while still allowing some of the design to shine through. The cases will be available a variety of colors and designs, but we got some hands on time with an orange and blue case. No word on pricing or availability.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
21 Comments
View All Comments
nbrenner - Friday, April 20, 2012 - link
Will those cases work on Sprint's special edition phone? Will the kickstand have to squeeze between the slits?tipoo - Friday, April 20, 2012 - link
Isn't the One Ss micro-arc oxidation created chassis supposed to be super strong or something? These don't have the edge to edge glass of iphones either. I'd be pretty comfortable without a case on these (even the X with polycarbonate instead), then again I don't use one on my Nexus S either.usama_ah - Friday, April 20, 2012 - link
hear hear, I never had a case on my Nexus S and dropped it SOOO many times (pavement, hospital floors where I work, at home) -- plastic corners had very tiny chips but fine aside from that -- https://picasaweb.google.com/117746494404318586664...Impulses - Friday, April 20, 2012 - link
Meh, I still roll with thin TPU cases for several reasons...A) Allows me to put the phone face down almost anywhere without worry... Good for privacy and/or speakerphone use, specially with HTC phones which automatically mute the ringer when turned face down or activate the speakerphone if you're on a call.
B) Impact protection, it doesn't seem like TPU or silicon would help much but they really do absorb quite a bit of force when the phone is dropped. Silicon sucks tho, they get much floppier than TPU and it's a lint magnet.
C) Extra protection for the camera lens so I don't have to worry about where I set it down, the extra millimeters the case adds are enough to raise the lens off any surface.
You can get a transparent or smoke colored one which still showcases the phone's design...
usama_ah - Friday, April 20, 2012 - link
and I've since sold that Nexus S and roll with a Galaxy Nexus, and this one has a TPU case (mainly because I really love the phone, but also because of all the reasons you mentioned minus the HTC automatically muting thing)tipoo - Saturday, April 21, 2012 - link
Yeah, my Nexus S has survived so many bad drops its crazy. The plastic doesn't feel the best, but its durable as heck.dogteal - Saturday, April 21, 2012 - link
How about making the case just the same color as the phone and leaving a cutout for the HTC logo, or will apple sue them cause it is such a straight forward idea?masterkui - Saturday, April 21, 2012 - link
I have always used cases on my phone, especially high end phones, I am careful with my phones but accidents happen and having a good case on it sets my mind at ease a little. i have always preferred the gel cases and experience shows that they can certainly take a knock.Olimars - Saturday, April 21, 2012 - link
A lot of people will want to protect their new investment from damage/wear & tear and things like "trendy" cases improve the overall attractiveness of the HTC brand. Not everyone will like all of them but I think HTC are on the right lines with this.htconeclub - Sunday, April 22, 2012 - link
check out http://www.htconeclub.com - let me know