MobileTechTalk Having tested out the Tech21 cases last year for my iPhone 8 Plus, I reached out to them again this year to see if I could get a new case for my iPhone XS Max.
- Great Durability
- Bold Colour
- Cut-outs around the bottom are too big
Tech21 or any other brands have had no influence in the outcome of this review but the case was received from Tech21 for the purpose of testing.
The case came in some new packaging compared to last year and I personally much preferred this one. The new colours and range of designs were quite interesting and the one I received was the Tech21 Evo Check in Neon Aqua.
The case comes with the obligatory Tech21 drop test results with a 3.6M drop test protection on consecutive drops, with the patented FlexShock technology making a comeback.
With the 2017 iPhone’s bringing wireless charging to the trio of iPhones (8, 8 Plus and X), the feature has also been brought to the iPhone XR, XS and XS Max. The website advertises that the case will support wireless charging flawlessly. I tested this out and didn’t have any issues with the wireless charging being blocked or negatively affected by the case.
The packaging showed that the product is called ‘New iPhone 6.5”’ which is representative of the fact that this was put into production at a point where nobody was 100% sure as to what the new iPhones would be called. But probably newer stock will label this correct this labelling the iPhone XS Max.
The back of the case is encrusted with X’s apart from the Tech21 logo at the bottom and the cut-out for the dual camera lenses with the quad LED flash in the centre. The bottom has individual cut-outs for the lightning port, speaker and microphone arrays. The left houses a cut-out for the mute switch and extenders for the volume rocker. The top is empty since the iPhone has been void of anything up top since the iPhone SE. Whilst on the right we have the protrusion for the power button.
Something that annoyed me on last year’s Evo Check for the iPhone 8 Plus was the huge cut-outs for the lightning port and the microphone speaker grills since it meant that huge amounts of dust could enter which would result in micro-abrasions across the glass and aluminium. With the stainless steel on the XS Max, it’s even more likely to get scratched so this is something that needs to be addressed since it seems so unnecessary.
The lip around the display is much appreciated as it will protect the display against direct contact with debris on a surface if the device is placed face down. The same also applies for the camera but the distance is smaller.
I would always advise using a tempered glass screen protector alongside a case for maximum protection since you are spending so much on a device, it’s always good to be safe than to be sorry since an out of warranty repair such as a screen replacement will be just under £330 whilst anything else such as a back-glass repair you are looking at just under £600.
Testing the drop protection, I had already dropped my iPhone XS Max a couple times by accident whilst using the Tech21 Evo Check and I didn’t find any damage to the phone or to the case. The Flex-Shock drop protection definitely lived up to its name.
The blue colour whilst vibrant is something that may be better suited to the white or space grey variants of the iPhone than my gold device. I prefer more muted colours for cases on the X series of iPhones due to the black bezel but every single other iPhone I have owned which has had a white bezel would look great with the vibrant blue. I didn’t have a white or space grey iPhone to test this with but I was provided with some sample images from Tech21 indicating that the 2 other colours look nicer.
Overall I have been just as satisfied with the Evo Check for my XS Max as I was for the 8 Plus last year but the cut-outs at the bottom were a gripe last year and have remained this year.
What is the case color in the pictures of your article