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I’ve shown off many a case here on Phandroid, highlighting the best the interwebs has to offer in keeping your device safe and blemish free from life’s mishaps. Today’s case “review” is a little bit different in that I have officially found my first case I am not only unhappy with — I feel the need to warn others who might be enticed by its low $5 price tag.
The brand is Poetic and the product is their Palette case for the HTC Droid DNA (my latest Android daily driver). You may have seen this brand before thanks to their super cheap $5 Nexus 4 case found on Amazon. Reading positive reviews on that case, I was optimistic about their case for the DNA.
Taking a look at the case in-box, everything checked out. The box itself was of nice quality (featuring nice little knife accents along the front and back). Even after inspecting the case after removing it from the box everything checked out. The case is made of a simple piece of plastic, coated in a nice soft touch finish. What could possibly go wrong? Sure there were some blemishes along the edge but let’s remember — this is a $5 case. I can’t even buy #5 combo at McDonald’s for that price.
Finally, I slipped my phone into the case and lo and behold… the damn thing doesn’t fit. Well, let me rephrase that — the phone fits into the case just fine, it’s the case doesn’t really fit the phone very well. The case has the grip of a 6 month old baby and there’s a noticeable amount of “give” when pressing the phone into the case. It’s almost as if this case was made for a slightly thicker HTC DNA or one already wearing a case (double case protection?).
In any case, I am disappoint and I felt the need to share with everyone here so that they wont be duped by the same case. Again, I hear good things about their bumper case for the Nexus 4 and maybe I just received a bad batch. Had the case fit my DNA properly, I’d be raving about it. Especially for only $5. I’ve reached out to Poetic to see if mine was simply a defective unit. Will update this post once I hear more.
Why didn’t you get the white one(Butterfly)? Just looks better to me. So you’re back with Sense. It’s weird because I really used to like Sense. Not even a little now. It has nice features though. So when the M7, S4, or next big thing comes out will you sale this or another current device?
I purchases a “feather” case from Amazon that fits amazingly. Its slim so it keeps the thin feel. Just search feather case for the droid dna in amazon it should come right up. There’s a few colors to chose from. The asking price is around 20 $ with shipping and tax. Its a bit steep in price but its worth it if you compare it to all the bulky cases around the same price.
The Incipio feather cases are nice, I have one on my S3. Usually run about 15.00 on Amazon.
The phone is a joke anyways. No micro SD slot. And only 11gb of memory by the time you get your hands on it. Nice hardware. But no external memory is a epic failure
While I would love to have 32 gigs of memory on a phone… it’s not something that some consumers need. 11 GB of storage suits some people just fine.
I bought a combo kit by Bemz. There isn’t a hole for the back LED, but it fits nicely and reminds me of the T-Mo HTC myTouch4G case http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AEIOMNY/ref=cm_sw_r_an_am_ap_am_us?ie=UTF8.
You think thats bad? Check out this case for the note 2. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Red-new-X-Line-Curve-TPU-Gel-Cover-Case-For-Samsung-Galaxy-Note-II-2-N7100-/300839520854?pt=PDA_Accessories&hash=item460b6eca56
Wouldn’t it have been a better idea to check with them first to see if you had gotten a defective unit before posting this? Its harder to take something back than it is to just be sure in the first place. I’m not trying to be “that guy”, but I really think you should have gave them a chance before throwing this out there.
On another note… for my last 3 phones, I’ve bought <$5 cases for all of them and they all fit great!
The customer service experience would have been an interesting addition to the article, but at least it will make for an interesting follow-up.
Yeah, I agree. I just feel like it would have been nice to give them a chance before putting this up. Some people will probably never see the (a) “sorry it was defective, here’s a replacement” article.
I think their quality control should have caught that kind of issue before sending the product to the customer. They only have to test 1 or 2 cases from each batch to catch something like this. How many customers are going to hassle with calling customer service over a $5 product? I know many folks who just write something like this off. Their time and return shipping are worth more than $5.
I may be wrong bit isn’t the j butterfly slightly thicker than the DNA? That could account for the extra “wiggle room”
It is longer too. There is a thread on XDA that has side-by-side pictures.
We only get one shot at most things in life. Make your first impression, your best impression.
I got the Poetic Atmosphere for the DNA and after a week the TPU bumper section started separating from the plastic back. Looked great and the fit was decent, but the quality was awful.
I got the Tri Shield case on Amazon for mine. Not exactly a $5 case but worth the extra cash. It fits perfectly, comes in green (a big plus for me), good protection and a pretty decent kickstand that sits perfectly flush when closed. $18.99, a lot cheaper than it’s competitors for equal protection and that kickstand really makes the difference.
try diztronic – midwest engineering – great prices and awesome fit. Currently using one im my evo 4g lte and am very very pleased with the tolerances on it. Please check them out Diztronic
Just received mine. It fits perfectly. There is no play when I press down on the phone.