Customer Reviews

Marware Sport Grip Case for iPhone 1G (Black)

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

*****
Get a Grip

Protection. Performance. Price. Marware's Sport Grip excels in all.

I was looking for a thin, protective, and inexpensive case for my iPhone knowing that most third party products are bulky, shabby, and overpriced. There are other cases that look better, but Marware's Sport Grip offers the best-looking protection and grip for the iPhone (which is a particularly dense, slick device; and therefore very easy to drop). While I am very impressed with the design and appearance of the Cozip case, I would still recommend the Marware Sport Grip because of its more industrial-strength grip and protection.

If protecting your iPhone from the hard knocks of life is your top priority, then this is the case for you. There are two caveats however that both relate to dust.

The first caveat is applying the clear screen protector without trapping air, lint, or dust below it. Eventually I got it perfectly, but you must be very careful and patient with this protector until it is properly applied. While the iPhone's screen is reputed to be extremely scratch resistant, I prefer the extra protection afforded by this clear protector.

Use the supplied microfiber cloth (and Dust-Off, if you have it) to clean your iPhone very thoroughly first. Apply the screen protector as instructed in a clean and well-lighted place. You will most likely have to make several attempts, but eventually it will work perfectly. I used a Swiss Army knife toothpick to lift the protector off the screen to reapply, but any sharp non-metal object should work as well.

If you do get lint below the screen protector (as I did), don't give up. Simply saturate a few cotton balls in pure rubbing alcohol (99%) and gently wipe the clinging side of the protector from edge to edge in one motion on a fresh sheet of office paper. Keep wiping until the entire protector surface is clean, then blot the alcohol off using another fresh sheet of office paper. Reapply the protector as instructed. It took me several attempts of cleaning and reapplying, but eventually it clung perfectly to the iPhone screen and disappeared almost entirely.

I know this sounds overly meticulous, but a little extra care while applying the screen protector will greatly enhance your experience with this product and your iPhone. Once the protector and skin are on, you will lose virtually none of the iPhone performance while gaining significantly enhanced grip and protection.

The second caveat is the amount of dust the high-friction silicone skin attracts. This sword cuts both ways. To me, this is a feature and not a bug as I prefer that my phone stay securely where I put it. Naturally, the silicone case clings to pockets while attracting lint, dust, etc. That's the point. Just about any other material slides around, which is exactly what I don't want.

For me, this is a small sacrifice when compared to the amount of sure grip and protection it affords. I also prefer that my iPhone not slide out of my coat pocket when I stoop down, but the tradeoff is that it doesn't slip into your pocket as easily and definitely attracts dust and lint. However, the skin itself is quite easy to remove from the iPhone to rinse off and blot-dry, so I don't see this as a huge disadvantage when compared to the enhanced grip and protection.

I would easily pay double the price for this product as it is the most protective, highest performance, and least obstructive iPhone case, but Marware's Sport Grip is a real bargain at around $10. At this price, I haven't found any other products that look as good while protecting so well.

I highly recommend this product to those who value protection and performance over appearance.

I bought several iPhone cases because I couldn't decide which to choose. Of the ones I bought this one was the best by far. It's not bulky at all, and the rubber protects it surprisingly well. The only suggestion I would make is that you mod it by taking an exacto knife and widening the hole for the switch and also trimming off some of the bottom edge of the screen hole so you can more easily hit the space bar. The key with widening the switch hole is to make the hole go around slightly to the bottom of the phone that way you can easily flip it without having to dig your nail in there -- even while it's in your pocket.

Pros
- Fits like a glove; it's the least cumbersome of the cases I tried.
- Isn't bulky.
- Rubbery texture means better grip not just in your hand, but helps prevent it from falling out of your pocket (a problem I had often prior to getting this case).
- Rubber seems sufficient to protect it from small falls, unlike the hard plastic alternatives I tried.

Cons
- To dock it you have to pull the cover up slightly, or remove it all together. For charging though you can just plug directly into it. This is a problem with all covers/cases though so if you're looking for one you should already be aware of that.
- Switch hole isn't quite big enough, but that's easily remedied with 2 minutes and an exacto knife.
- Bottom edge of the screen hole feels awkward when pressing the space bar, this is also fixed with an exacto knife.
- The design seems to be a slight Alienware ripoff. This isn't really a con, since it looks very good, but some techie people might be annoyed.

----------------------------------------

~~~ UPDATE ~~~

I'm updating this review to say that I recently upgraded to an iPhone 3GS and this case doesn't work for it. They added an extra proximity sensor in the 3GS which is covered by the case causing the screen to arbitrarily turn on and off repeatedly while calling someone. This appears to be a problem for almost all first gen iPhone cases, and it makes sense as they couldn't possibly have anticipated Apple adding extra sensors.

They've released an updated version of the case for the 3GS which I'm going to purchase immediately. Hopefully they took some of my previous tweaks and implemented them in the new product.

Just to be clear: if you you own a first generation iPhone then I still highly recommend this product.

I agree with everything iLounge wrote about it:

"the case comes with a clear film static cling screen protector that covers iPhone's entire face save for the Home button and ear speaker, and a gray cleaning cloth. There are seven grip ribs on each side; SportGrip covers the top and side buttons, leaving only the proximity sensor, headphone port, camera, side ringer switch, face and bottom speakers, mic, and Dock Connector port open. Since the film covers the whole face, you do better with Marware's combination of film and silicone than with most iPhone cases.

From a protectiveness standpoint, SportGrip is impressive. It covers the top Sleep/Wake switch and side Volume buttons while making them easy to depress, and has only one flaw: the iPhone's chrome bezel shows through the sides next to the screen. and a little bit near the proximity sensor. As its name hints, however, it has a considerable amount of rubber on its back, shaped to make the encased iPhone fit comfortably in your hand. There's no belt clip or other frills here."

If you are looking for a quality iPhone case for protection, at this price, you won't be disappointed. It is a bonus it includes a screen protector!

I was pretty much amazed with reviews written for this product before I bought this. It's not a bad piece. Rubber case looks fine and gives you a firm grip to hold it but the worst thing about that is, it attracts dust. No matter where you place it, it's gonna attract dust or other particles. We can't clean the case with a paper or soft cloth. If overall looks are important for a person, please don't go for this.

This is my 3rd skin for my Iphone. My 1st was a Belkin clear plastic (1 drop equals broken plastic case) and 2nd a CoZip (slim and light but no protection from drops at all). Those were awful. This is finally the one I've been looking for because it fulfills 4 of my 5 requirements.

My 5 requirements for a perfect skin:
1. Skin that will minimize breakage/scratches from drops.
2. Skin must allow full access to all buttons and connection.
3. A slim skin that would still be comfortable to put in my hand/pocket.
4. Skin must be sleek and cool looking.
5. Skin must not add too much weight.

My top 4 requirements were fulfilled completely. It was completely protected in all 4 corners and the touchpad was protected with a quality clear screen that's included (side note: tricky to apply these screens, use Windex on Iphone before applying and use tweezers for bubble/lint free bond, fingers traps oils and dirt under the clear screen). The rubber around all corners made me confident if I had dropped it, the phone would survive and work. For button access and connections, all were accessible. For size, it was slim enough where it kept the phone small enough to hold comfortably. And finally, I personally thought it looked cool because it was black, slim, and form fitting. It's like a wet suit for your Iphone made out of rubber.

The only negative was it added a little more weight than all the other skins I've looked and tried. I would give this a perfect rating if the weight was reduced. I personally thought the back of the phone had a little more rubber than necessary and the majority of the weight seems to be concentrated there.

Pros:
-Best drop/scratch protection by shock absorbing rubber.
-Comes with a quality clear screen film. (costs over $10 at some sites)
-Full access to all buttons/connections.
-Form fitting skin keeps Iphone slim.
-Sleek and fits flawlessly, like a glove.

Cons:
-Heavier than the average skin.

In summary, this could be one of the best skins out there. For less than $20, it offered excellent drop/scratch protection and as a bonus, it comes with a clear protection screen for a complete all-in-1 solution.

This case looked good from the internet but when I got it, I was disappointed. It collects dust bad in your pocket too easily. However, the real problem is that after using the case a little while, it seems to stretch and because the top does not fully cover the phone, it falls off too easily. The screen protector it good, but be sure to clean the screen well before, and also follow the directions and have patience with it.

This case is simple, "grippy" and is just what you need for protection.

Here are the pros:

1). Rubberized protection will ensure your Iphone will be safe from scratches, dents and other potential damage, now don't go dropping your phone from astronomical heights, that's just "ignant". The protector has a solid feel and grip.

2). Form factor is nearly perfect. The only parts fully exposed are: the ports the light sensor and the ear port. The buttons are fully encased and easy to push. No dust and particles in the crevasses of the buttons is a major plus. Now don't get me wrong, nothing is truly perfect but the case fits like a glove and is easy to put on and take off. One of the reviewers said that he needed to use an exact-o knife to shave some of the portions off. I didn't see a need to do this at all. I also wouldn't have regardless. With any rubberized product this would compromise the integrity of the case and could cause tears and white blotches near the points of knife contact. It would have been nice for there to have been slopped inner edges so finger tapping, near the edges, is more comfortable, but all in all, it's still a top notch form factor because it protects even the centimeter thin sliver of silver on the screens facade.

3). The screen cover is an added bonus. Unlike most covers this one is made of a thin semi flexible plastic. The touch sensitivity is not compromised at all. The only caveat is that it does get a little smudgy. But for the price you can't go wrong compared to other shields which equal the price of this case and shield combo. When I first bought my Iphone I kept the original plastic production shield on until I got this shield cover, so setting the cover, with minimal dust, was simple and fast. A nice trick to ensure a semi dust free area is to go into your bathroom, run the shower on super hot, letting the room fill with steam. This will cause dust particles to either rise, fall and stick to other objects. Give it a few minutes for the dust to dissipate, then go in and place the shield on.
~~~~~~~~~~

Ok now for the cons

1). The case does a lot of dust and particles that are semi hard to get off. Rest assured that it's nothing a wet finger/hand **smile** can't handle. I haven't tried just running it under luke warm water but I have a feeling that it isn't a good idea to saturate the case with water.

2). The case does detract from the over-all beauty of the Iphone design. This in my opinion is not an issue; I look at it in two ways. First, my Iphone is now fully protected and practically ensures that a year from now, the phone will be as pristine as it was when I first bought it. The resale value will be higher than ones with small scratches and dents. Two, thieves won't see that I even have an Iphone. Yes I could still be robbed, but having a thief not noticing I have an expensive gadget, far outweighs, in my opinion, the "look at me I have an Iphone" factor.

3). Because the case adds a few centimeters to the overall size of the Iphone; the case cause the inability to fit most Iphone cases. You'll want to make sure you buy a case that has some cushion room. I haven't found one that I like yet, but they are out there.
~~~~~~~~~

So in summary, I will recommend this protection case 100x over. If your thinking about buying it, think no more. Also make sure you take the cover off when charging.

I read a lot of reviews before purchasing a cover for my FAVORITE Christmas present. The Marware cover is inexpensive and protects my iphone well. The one annoying aspect is the stickiness of the rubber. I have trouble getting it in and out of my pocket, my purse and my backpack. It took about one day to become covered in lint and dust. So - it looks a bit grubby. I will eventually replace it with something else.

This iPhone case is actually better that I thought it would be. It only has two drawbacks, and I expected at least one of them. When the case is in place, it makes it harder to slip the iPhone into my pocket or the pocket of my purse. The rubber really grips. Also, it tends to get dirty quick and makes some of the parts of the iPhone more difficult to use (I.e. the silence switch and the applications which are in the dock).

I'm still using an old Marware grip case because an alternative product was sent by company from which I ordered. I kept it, but can't use it because it falls out of the holster which holds Marware securely. Will send alternate item for free to anyone who wants it.