Review: Hitcase Pro iPhone Case

I’ve been spending a lot of time at the beach this summer and one of my most important summer accessories I’ve been using is my iPhone5 LifeProof case. It’s my need-to-have accessory since it allows me to use my iPhone on the beach or in the sea and not worry about sand or water ruining my phone. The size is perfect and so far I haven’t had a leak but the case does have its shortcomings. Firstly the case doesn’t have a wrist strap nor a place to connect one. When I went paragliding I was worried I would drop my phone so didn’t take any risky shots, if I had a wrist strap I would have taken a lot more interesting photos. A wrist strap is really a must on a take everywhere case and it sucks the LifeProof doesn’t have it. The other issue I have with the LifeProof is the fact they recommend submersing it to a maximum of 2 meters for 30 minutes. This means I can’t keep my phone in my back pocket the whole time I’m in the water since I’m usually in the water for a lot longer than 30 minutes. Finally, even though I’ve never had a leak I’m always worried I will since the case is pretty thin and the only thing that’s stopping the water from getting into the case is a flimsy o-ring which seems to always get loose when I open the case.

The Hitcase Pro wasn’t available back when I purchased the LifeProof case and I didn’t even know they released an iPhone5 version until the local dealer contacted me asking if I would be interested in reviewing it. I quickly checked the specs of the case online and emailed the dealer back with a big yes and to send me the case before the weekend so I could try it out. That was three weeks ago and since then I’ve used the case a number of times and it has now officially replaced my LifeProof. I love it.

I don’t know where to begin this review since there a bunch of cool things about the Hitcase Pro. I’ll start with the case answering the shortfalls of the LifeProof. The Hitcase Pro comes with a wrist strap, that alone would have convinced me to jump ship even if it didn’t have any other advantages but it does. The Hitcase Pro can be submersed down to 10 meters so it can basically stay in my back pocket all day under the water and I won’t be worried about it leaking. The Hitcase Pro also feels and looks heavy duty so when I put the phone inside it and close it I don’t have any of the confidence issues of the LifeProof. So already without going any further the case has already solved all of my issues with the LifeProof and there are two more additional features that were interesting to me.

The Hitcase Pro has a built in wide angle lens for the iPhone camera. This was a bonus feature I didn’t think would make a big difference to my shots but it has. Other than the fact I could fit more scenery and people into my shots, the wide angle lens has made selfies a lot easier to take and the very slight fisheye look has made the shots a lot more interesting looking. The other cool feature of the Hitcase Pro is the fact it turns your iPhone into an action camera. The case allows you to use GoPro mounts or mounts that use the tripod socket. This means all my Contour+ mounts now work with my iPhone case so I could mount the camera on a jetski, a car or my bicycle. I’ve actually decided to sell my Contour+ now since I wasn’t using it much and if I do need an action camera I can just use my iPhone 5 now.

The Hitcase Pro does have two shortfalls though when compared to my LifeProof case. The Hitcase Pro is a lot more bulkier than the LifeProof case which doesn’t make it practical to use as a day to day iPhone case. I only use my LifeProof at the beach but I know a couple of people who use it as their everyday case. The second issue is you can’t charge the phone without removing it from the case. With the LifeProof there was a little latch at the bottom which when opened allowed me to access the Thunderbolt lightning connector. I don’t usually charge my iPhone while at the beach but I do connect it to my Bang & Olufsen portable speaker. None of these issues are major though and I’m willing to sacrifice them for all the other advantages the case provides.

The Hitcase Pro costs KD39 which is the same price as Amazon and is available to purchase online from [Blink] and [uBuy]. According to the dealer it will also be available soon at GoSport, Extreme Sports and Explorer’s Base.