Price:	$99.95 RRP		Reviewed by:	Neil Brown
Supplied:	OtterBox		Review date:	18/02/2006
Pros:	Solid, rubberised frame Protects PDA from water, dust, damage Able to use touchscreen, but impact protection via plastic flap Secures shut easily Handgrip / belt loop supplied Accessories available Able to use connector / headset whilst device is in place Very reasonable price Able to use all wireless radios		Cons:	Bulky

Introduction   A PDA or smartphone is inherently a delicate object- unless you opt for a “ruggedised” model, the most that you could hope for a PDA to withstand is a short drop onto a forgiving surface. If your usage pattern includes water, then, for the most part, you are going to struggle to find a PDA for the job, which is unfortunate with many people enjoying adventurous pursuits such as skiing, canoeing and climbing, even hiking, all of which could include the use of a PDA (especially with GPS) facilities, but would tax a standard device. Ruggedised machines are generally expensive, and limited in terms of choice – especially when compared with the numerous options for non-ruggedised PDAs and smartphones available today. If you could take your pick of a PDA, based on the functionality you want, and then suitably ruggedise it, this would solve many of the above problems, allowing you to take your device into virtually any climate or environment. This is not an idle wish – it is perfectly possible, largely, if not solely, due to the efforts of one company: OtterBox. When you think about rugged cases which permit use of the device, OtterBox is really the only name which springs to mind – the company has been around for as long as I have been involved in the PDA sector, and, due to its relatively niche range of products, relies heavily on its reputation. Whilst I’d heard of OtterBox, and what other people have had to say, I had never actually seen one “for real”, so, when the opportunity arose to take an OtterBox case through its paces under my own supervision, I naturally jumped at it. Unlike leather and metal cases, where the design and implementation costs are relatively low, the cost of designing an OtterBox and testing it satisfactorily is comparatively high, and, coupled with the niche market sector, this means that there is quite a small range of cases- certainly not custom cases per devices, as is more common in the traditional case market. However, OtterBox have released some custom cases, notably for the Treo and BlackBerry devices, but, as I was intending to carry out my testing using my current machine of choice, the LOOX T830, I opted for their generic PDA case, the OtterBox 1900.   As far as I am aware, this is the first time that a review has been carried out looking in particular at the useability of the OtterBox 1900 with a smartphone device, and so, throughout the review, I will make particular reference to the communication capabilities of the case - the OtterBox 1900 was designed for a conventional PDA, so, neither OtterBox nor I knew how it would perform…   I want to stress at this point that all the tests performed here were done so with my own T830 in the OtterBox- what you see is a “real life” test. No matter how good a case it, it is frightening to commit your expensive electronics to the middle of a stream, but, that’s why you read a review before trying it for yourself!   The case itself   When unpacking the not-insubstantial box which arrived from OtterBox, it became clear that this case is considerably more complex than traditional cases- with no less than four solid clips, three separate components and a small pack of screws and a hex driver, I was concerned that, when I did get my T830 into the OtterBox, I would not be able to remove it again! But more about that in a moment.   The first thing which struck me about the OtterBox was its size- I was expecting it to be large, but not quite that large. For this particular style of case, size is not necessarily the problem that it would be if this were a case designed for use around the office, but, even so, I would struggle to have put this case into anything other than the most substantial of pockets. For a quick visual comparison, the image below shows the OtterBox 1900 next to the T830 which, in itself, is not a small handset. However, when you pick up the case and feel the weight (heavier than it looks), you realise that this is not made of lightweight plastic- the solid, dense, rubberised plastic which forms the majority of the body of the case, fused to what appears to be a polymer frame, is (in an unscientific test) well over half an inch thick in places. As you would expect, there is nothing flimsy at all about the OtterBox, nor any dainty or protruding parts- this case is built to last in an extreme environment.     The case splits into three components- a face plate, a back plate and a clear plastic top unit. The back plate and top unit attach to the face plate by two polymer clips, which lock firmly in place. For complete reassurance that the clips are not going to come undone accidentally, OtterBox supplies four grub screws and a hex key to screw the clips down. Obviously, if you need to remove your device from the case on a regular basis, using these screws would be problematic, but, prior to a day’s canoeing or similar activity, it is a small trade-off for peace of mind.     The face plate features a membrane behind a plastic flap, which allows you to use the touchscreen or keyboard functionality of your device whilst it is in the case, even underwater, but protects from impact once the plastic flap is lowered and clipped into place. The device itself is secured and pushed up to the face plate by means of a thick Velcro strap, which is adjustable to accept and support a wide range of devices. There is a rubber stylus silo to the right of the plastic covering (because the T830’s stylus is flat, rather than rounded, it did not fit the silo), but, it would be a useful addition, in my opinion, to include a solid stylus (after all, the size does not really matter in this context), which could be attached by means of a rubberised cord to the body of the case.     The clear plastic top unit has a hole, with a rubber plug, to allow a user to attach wired earphones or headphones to the device, although, of course, the case is no longer waterproof if this is used. The top unit can be rotated 180 degrees, so that the plug is over the left or the right of unit, depending on where your device’s headset socket is located. For those devices which house the headset socket is not on the top, you are likely to struggle in connecting it whilst in the OtterBox. If your device has the memory card slot on the top, the removable top unit may give you access to this, allowing you to change cards without needing to remove the device from the case.     The back plate features a neoprene strap, which is secured by two loops solidly attached through the body of the plate. At the bottom of the back plate is a slot for attaching connectors to the device, although, as with the earphone jack, doing so obviously negates the waterproofing. If you do not wish to use a connector, there is a solid rubber plug which, usefully, is particularly hard to remove – there is little chance of this falling out accidentally. There is a speaker port in the centre of the rear of the back plate, which is waterproofed with an internal membrane- in practice, this means that it is possible to hear alarms and reminders through the case.     Despite its complicated appearance, it’s really quite easy to fit your device into the case and secure it shut properly, although, of course, if you are planning on taking your PDA on an adventure, it’s worth taking the time to make sure that you have closed it properly. The LOOX T830 appears to be the maximum height possible to fit into the case, and I wondered at first whether it would actually fit or not, but, after a little repositioning, everything snapped neatly into place.     Testing the case   I subject the case to three main tests: pressure / weight, water and communications ability.   Pressure / weight   This test came in two parts – adding weight to the OtterBox, and falling heavily on the case. As the image below shows, the case had no problems at all taking the weight of three standard household bricks, and, as expected, my T830 suffered absolutely no ill effects- in fact, because of the distribution of pressure to the rubberised frame, I do not believe that the contents of the case would have been subject to any increased pressure at all.     The second “test” consisted of me falling heavily onto the case – placing the case on my belt, I cycled through the muddiest area of ground which I could find, in the knowledge that, at some point, I was bound to fall off… I fell from a standard sitting position on a bike, landing heavily on the case. As I was unable to get a photo of the falling itself, I’ve included a photo of the conditions in which it was enacted. The ground was so muddy that I was not going particularly fast at the time, for which I was grateful-  after the impact, the case was entirely undamaged, which is more than I can say for my hip – the OtterBox is remarkably solid when you land on it, and rather painful. In all seriousness, I think that it is more likely that you would cause injury to yourself than to the OtterBox, so, this is something to bear in mind when you are siting the case as part of your packing.     As a semi-test, after recovering from the small, I spent some time burying the OtterBox in a pile of leaves, debris, wood and mud, to see whether any dust got in the gaps and into the body of the case, but, despite my best efforts, the inside was completely clean once I disassembled the case at home. If you work in a particularly dusty climate, or, indeed, any area with a large amount of small particles (on the beach, for example, or a workshop), you may not require the impact-protection given by the OtterBox, but the resistance to dust may well extend the life of your mobile device.     Overall, in the course of even the most adventurous activities, I’d struggle to see how you could tax the OtterBox. Unless you were to run it over, or drop it down a cliff, my feeling is that your device would emerge unhurt whatever you threw at it – and, even if you did run over it, it (or its contents) may well survive (http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/laptops/running-over-the-otterbox-laptop-case-181666.php/).   Water   Water is the natural enemy of electronic devices, and so adequate protection is fundamental-. I’m an avid fan of watersports, and also skiing, so felt that nothing but complete submersion would be suitable as a test, and so I dropped the OtterBox, complete with T830 test subject, into a stream. I was confident about the waterproof abilities of the case, but, as you can see form the image, less so of my abilities to recover it successfully, hence the string.     After leaving the case in the stream for a number of minutes, I removed it, and examined it for any signs of its experience. With the exception of some water retained in the area between the membrane and the cover on the face plate (not a problem in any way), and some silt on the strap on the back, there was no indication at all of what had happened.   Of course, I did not want to leave the strap covered in mud, so I did what anyone would have done when their PDA got in a mess- placed it under a tap. With the plastic cover shut, there was no noticeable effect; with the cover open and the device switched on, the force of the water was sufficient to launch an application- clearly, because the membrane is thin enough to allow you to use the touchscreen, it does not protect the screen from pressure, and so care should be taken in this respect.     In any event, I would be more than happy to take the OtterBox with me on the water, or even under the water, and feel confident that my device would emerge in pristine condition. It is worth noting that OtterBox states that the case is not intended for underwater use, so any activities in this area are solely at your risk and responsibility- my experiences were positive, but, you would have to make up your own mind.   Communications capabilities   The OtterBox 1900 was designed for a conventional, non-connected PDA- as such, when I mooted the idea of testing the case with a smartphone, we were breaking new ground- how would the OtterBox manage with the communications side of a 21st century device? Surprisingly well, it turns out…   Bluetooth: absolutely no problem at all – I was able to use my standard mono Bluetooth headset and my Plantronics Pulsar 590A A2DP headphones with no discernable loss of range.   Wi-Fi: likewise, no problem, and no discernable loss of range. Because of the ability to use the touchscreen and keyboard, it was possible to connect to an access point, configure the WPA key and check my email without removing the T830.   GPS: this was to be an interesting test, as I was almost 100% convinced that it would not be possible acquire a signal whilst inside the case. But I was wrong – in a little of 3 minutes, TomTom Navigator 5 showed me exactly where I was, and, albeit at a considerably reduced volume, I was able to hear navigation instructions through the case. When moving at 70 mph, time to fix was less positive- sometimes it would acquire before the timeout period, whereas other times it failed to acquire. I am not at all surprised at this, as there is a considerable amount of material between the T830 and the sky, and fix time is generally increased when moving anyway.   Telephony: overall, bearing in mind that thickness of the case, I was impressed with the telephony experience. Making a phone call with the plastic front shut meant that call volume with the recipient was approximately 1/3 of normal, according to Shaun who was at the other end of the line, and, whilst it would be far from ideal for a conference call or in-depth conversation, it was fine for a quick message (for example, letting someone know where you are when skiing, or calling the emergency services). With the flap open, call volume and quality was slightly improved, but, still not sufficiently to make it a desirable option.   When used with a Bluetooth headset, call quality was on par with the device outside the case- the OtterBox made no discernible difference. Of course, if you were on the water, it would not be practical to have Bluetooth headset in place, but, if you kept the headset in a small zip-lock bag, it would be very easy to take it out when you need to make a call, and connect it to your safely-waterproofed phone. Impressively, we continued our conversation whilst the OtterBox was undergoing the water testing above, again with no loss of quality. Of course, if you were in the middle of the ocean, you are going to be more worried about signal levels than call quality, but, from the tests I carried out, there was no discernible difference here either. Equally, the tests were only in a maximum of two inches of water- the greater the depth of water, the lower the signal penetration, although, if you were underwater yourself, the chances of making a phone call are really rather low – SMS etc remains useable.   Conclusion   The OtterBox 1900 is the most rugged and solid case for a PDA / smartphone I have ever had the opportunity to test. Without a doubt, if I were looking to use my device in a hostile climate, especially where there was any risk of a significant impact or immersion, it would be OtterBox to whom I would trust the protection of my device. It sailed through everything I threw at it, and still looks like the day it came out of the box. With the current exchange rate, the $99.95 price tag looks perfectly reasonable, and, indeed, tempting – for the protection it offers, especially bearing in mind the costs of a replacement device, I think that this is a bargain for what amounts to niche equipment.   The one issue to bear in mind is the size- it is a substantial unit. If the benefits of the superior protection justify the volume, then, it is a remarkable case, but, if the most active pursuit you undertake is running for the bus occasionally, you are undoubtedly better looking elsewhere. The versatility of the case means that it should be suitable for many PDAs or smartphones on the market, although, of course, it would be worth checking the specifications and measurements of your device before parting with cash. If you happen to have one of the devices for which there is a custom case available, it would be worth investigating those options also. There is a wide range of accessories also, allowing you to increase the height of the case to take CF GPS units, add a belt-clip option etc.