I only had the Pixel for a little over a week when I flew back to Chicago for 3 weeks to help my mother recover from her second knee replacement surgery in four months. LifeProof hadn’t yet come out with their phone case so I risked it and went without protection, relying on the water resistant rating and the 2.5D Corning® Gorilla® Glass 4 to protect the phone.
After a few days in the Duneland suburbs, I noted to Katie that paint chips were starting to flick off the edges of my Pixel. A couple days later, she surprised me by mailing me a Google Pixel Artworks Live Case phone case. She customized the look based on the business card designs she made for me.
It was only meant to be a placeholder case to tide us over until LifeProof came out with their cases, but when I told Katie my case cover was pixelated, she was furious.
Now, sure, it could have been a sharpness issue in her design.
Yes, that’s me ducking.
As Katie is quick to point out apparently it takes DSLR quality photos for the proof to not pixelate in the Google Pixel Artworks custom case maker. If so, it’s definitely information that the case maker page doesn’t make readily available. And, she pulled the image from a print-quality PSD and uploaded it. Who’s to say? Chalk it up to the risks of early adoption.
But those weren’t the issues I had with it.
I probably expect more from case covers than most, but all that gibberish on the Artworks page had us a bit “optimistic” about the case’s potential.
There was something before on the website promoting the Live Case’s durability, but upon first feel, it felt like just injection-molding plastic.
I’m sure it would get the job done, but with the way I treat my phone like a digital Swiss Army knife, I only feel safe with covers that can take a real hit and keep going. Like LifeProof: waterproof, durable, nice warranty – that I had to use on the one I have for the 5S…
Have?
I still haven’t turned in my iPhone 5S. Apparently, it was subconsciously still worth $200 to me to have it around, even though it’s the last model to not be able to switch networks and the network is on is still AT&T. So shit goes.
This is coming from someone who already cracked the Artworks Live Case in two months.
If you are pretty domestic with your cell phone use, then, sure, the Live Case will get the job done. Probably.
But, for those, like me, who use it as a step tracker, mp3 & video player, email and mobile writer, photo & video camera…then I’d shell out the extra money on something like Otter (Katie note: “Yeah, no”) or LifeProof. They’ll look a little bulkier but they’ll get extra life out of your phone. Preciously, durable life.
In the meantime.
I’ve had the LifeProof FRĒ for Google Pixel for two weeks. Ever since we put them on our phones, I’ve had peace of mind. I’m not egg-shelling my phone anymore. I’ll be able to take it hiking, to the gym, outdoors in general, and not feel concerned about what could happen to it.
Or, as my wife so eloquently posted to Instagram:
