Get ready to take your iPhone 4S with you on your next underwater or winter adventure. The Dri Cat waterproof iPhone 4S case is a great solution for protecting your iPhone 4S. Use it while at the beach, snorkeling, kayaking, river rafting or other water activity.
I found the Dri Cat to be a fairly capable at protecting an iPhone 4S from water and minor impacts. The manufacturer rates it down to 6 Meters (about 20 feet). I tested it to about 10 feet and it worked flawlessly. I even took it off the diving board a few times without incident. The latching and locking mechanisms seem to be fairly well designed to prevent accidental opening, which is quite important while underwater. Audio quality was more than acceptable both above and below water during my tests. It’s always a blast to listen to your favorite music at the bottom of a pool.
Included with the case is a neck lanyard that has a quick release clip. This is a major advantage over most waterproof iPhone 4S cases since they typically don’t come with a lanyard, and if they do come with one, it’s usually only a wimpy wrist lanyard. It not only comes with a neck lanyard, but this neck lanyard is much thicker and sturdier than the usual thin cheapo lanyards most manufacturers include.
There are some drawbacks to this case that you should know about, however. The power button, volume up/down, silent/ringer switch, headphone jack, and the charge/sync port are all completely unusable while your phone is in this case. I wish there was at least access to the power button because I like to be able to power down my iPhone 4S between uses. Plus there are apps out there that bypass the auto sleep mode (that shuts off the phone after a minute or two to save the battery). If you happen to use such an app with this case, you could quickly kill your iPhone 4S battery if you forget to quit that app.
There are several other manufacturers of waterproof cases that allow you to open up a port in the case, which allows you to charge the phone or plug in headphones while your iPhone 4S is still in the case. Having these options can be both a blessing and a curse. You could, for instance, forget to seal the port/plug back up before taking it in the water. Furthermore, any button or plug that allows access to the phone is one more moving part that needs an O-ring/seal. These seals will eventually fail due to normal wear and tear. So, in some ways, the fact that the Dri Cat doesn’t have all those “features” could be an advantage in the long-term survival of your iPhone 4S in watery conditions.
Unfortunately, there is a drawback with this case that doesn’t have a silver lining. When the iPhone 4S is inserted to the case the power button has a tendency to get held down by the case, which after a couple seconds brings up the swipe menu to fully shutdown the iPhone 4S. When this happens, the user has to hit the cancel button so the iPhone 4S does not fully shut down. I also noticed that my phone was sporadically taking screen shots while in this case. Screen shots are taken when both the power button and home button are pushed at the same time. Considering the case housing pushes the power button, it makes sense that this would happen from time to time while using the Dri Cat.
The screen protection for this waterproof case is different from any I have seen or heard of. Most consist of a clear plastic material. This case has a rubber material for the screen protector. The rubber does make swiping and scrolling on the iPhone 4S a little less smooth. However, I personally like the rubber screen protector because it seems to be thicker than the average screen protector. I also like it because the rubber is less likely to be damaged when your iPhone 4S is not in the case. For example, when you throw the case into your pack for a trip. Without an iPhone 4S in this case, you can push your finger down on the rubber screen protector until you touch the inside back of the case and zero damage to the case will have taken place. Try doing that with any other competing waterproof iPhone 4S case on the market, and I guarantee you will have destroyed it.
The Dri Cat has another feature that nearly all the competing waterproof iPhone 4S cases don’t have. You can put your iPhone 4S in the case two different ways, either with the lanyard at the top of the phone or at the bottom. This is useful for users who like to have options in how they use the products they buy. The case also has two recessed camera lens ports, one for each orientation. They are recessed to prevent the plastic lens area for the camera from getting scratched.
To sum things up, this case is designed and built quite well. I felt very safe using my iPhone 4S in this case underwater, and it’s rated to operate deeper than many of the competition out there.
Made in USA
Amazon Price: $30-$60
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