First, to address issues other people have brought up for this AMAZING case:
- It seems to me that a LOT of the negative reviews of this case were written shortly after the buyers got their hands on it for the first time -- and to be honest, I was also extremely doubtful about how well it could protect the phone. It DOES seem like just a sheet of plastic, after all. However, I've had it for six months now, and I'm pretty sure the case is made out of some type of space-age material developed in a secret underground lab specifically to provide protection for some intense dropping impacts. This case is basically just like Iron Man... but if he looked like Audrey Hepburn.
- As far as it being slippery, it has a high-gloss finish, but I definitely don't find it harder to hold on to than a naked iPhone. Maybe my hands are just unusually sticky (ew?), but I haven't had problems with the finish at all. I suppose if you live on a boat, a phone with a gloss finish like this might not be your best bet since it doesn't protect against water... in the event that the case DOES randomly slip out of your hands.
- Maybe the mold seam on the sides could vary from case to case due to the manufacturing process, but I don't notice it at all on mine. If anything, it's just enough of a bump under the finish to actually help you grip the phone a little better. It's definitely not uncomfortable/sharp/irritating, and that's if it's even noticeable at all.
- This case protects the back and the side of the phone and doesn't have a lip that pops over the screen itself -- the lip of this case actually sits quite snugly into the front bezel of the phone. I actually think that's an ingenious design since it doesn't cover any part of the front surface of the phone, so swiping interactions are noticeably easier than they'd be if the cover came over the front of the device.
- And yes, the case DOES fit both the iPhone 4 and 4S, and it doesn't just slide off or anything -- but I can't come up with a real reason you'd want a case to come off your phone really easily, anyway. It's not glued on there, it just hugs the phone like a clingy ex-boyfriend (which, in this context, is awesome).
- That said, BUY A STANDARD SCREEN PROTECTOR if you don't want scratches on your screen when you use this case. In my mind, that's something that everyone should have anyway... but since this case wasn't designed to protect the front of the phone, any random screen protector will be all you need to prevent scratches on the face of the phone. (And yes, there is a clear protector included with this case that covers the logo on the back; you just stick it on before you pop the case on the phone)
So, since I have the coordination of a drunken newborn giraffe with an inner ear infection who just got off a tilt-a-whirl, I knew I'd have to have a perfect case for my 4S before I even unboxed the phone. I tried out some hardcore monstrosities that could probably have guaranteed the phone's safety in case I dropped it off the Empire State Building, but my mind was completely blown when I found this case: elegant, attractive, functional, cost-effective, AND incredibly resilient.
When I say "I'm clumsy" or "I drop my phone a lot," I really mean "I somehow manage to drop my (very expensive) lifeline to the outside world from great heights on to very hard surfaces with alarming frequency." Even with the best intentions of being very cautious and gentle when handling anything that cost me more than $2, I'm almost certainly going to break it somehow.
As a designer myself, it made my soul weep to think I would need to basically wrap my iPhone in some bulletproof acrylic monstrosity that would probably have to be padded with 30 sheets of bubble wrap. I tried many of those cases -- and even if they weren't hideous, there was always some other problem with them (really expensive, not entirely functional, stupid bulky, etc).
I dropped my phone on to an asphalt parking lot (from about 5 ft) within two hours of installing this case, and I thought I was dreaming when I picked it up and discovered that the phone was completely unscathed. The case had a minuscule and well-earned battle scar on the bottom corner (the smallest chip you can imagine), but it took me quite a while to even notice that. I was pretty convinced the case was magic. Actually, I'm still fairly sure it's magic.
My phone is honestly still in mint condition after finding its way into incredibly perilous situations on a daily basis for half a year. The case itself has also held up incredibly well: just some extremely small chips on the corners and edges that are barely even visible -- and all of those only resulted from really major impacts with hard and rough surfaces. The only part that's ever actually "broken" is the thin strip of the case located between the edge of the phone's screen and volume controls... but that broke off ONLY because I kept mindlessly snapping it on and off the phone for no reason whatsoever. So, that was actually all my own fault.
Other than that, the case is just as beautiful, smooth, and complementary to Apple's original product design as the day I got it. I *still* get compliments on how great it looks. I'm ordering a second one only because it makes me sad (on a personal level) to see that one small piece of the case broken off, but this time I'm going to try to pick up some other insignificantly destructive habit.
For what it's worth, the color happens to be quite lovely -- sort of a Tiffany Blue, but a bit more saturated and with a touch of mint green. Keep in mind that your computer monitor usually doesn't display colors as they appear in real life, but I found the color to be exactly as expected (ie, the product photo does it justice).
Also, as stated in the product description, this thing is slim. It's very smooth and probably less bulky than just wrapping the phone with a couple layers of business cards.
TL;DR: It's gorgeous, may very well make your phone invincible to (dry) trauma, any damage to the case ends up barely visible to the naked eye, ships at the speed of light, and HOLY CRAP WHY HAVE YOU NOT BOUGHT THIS YET?