The Pelican Marine is the case you need if you need a bit protection from the elements
Pelican Marine Review – The best, all-round weather case for the iPhone 6
The Pelican Marine is a fully waterproof and drop-rated iPhone case. We like how solid it feels but after reviewing a dozen waterproof cases for the 6, the Marine doesn’t stand out, but that isn’t a bad thing if you’re looking for a solid case.
For our Pelican Marine review, we’ve given this case a score of 3.8 Eh’s out of 5. It is the highest rated waterproof case that has a screen protector and is drop-rated to 6.6 ft and 2m. The only cases that are higher are the Nuud which doesn’t have a built-in screen protector and the Ghostek Atomic, which is waterproof only to 1 m. If you want to see how the Pelican Marine compares against other waterproof iPhone 6 cases, check this post out. If you want to see all the waterproof iPhone cases, check out the comparison tool here.
If you’re looking for a case to take on a water-based vacation, we’d suggest that you take a look at the HitCase Pro, Optrix XD6 or ProShot case. We’ll call these “vacation” cases as they’re well-suited to providing extreme protection for your iPhone (each case is waterproof to at least 33 ft) whereas every LifeProof case and the Pelican Marine is only waterproof to 6.6 ft/2m.
Design – Not much different about this case
Thickness of the Marine…thick or slim?
We’ve seen the general design of the Pelican Marine before. You have two pieces that snap together and an o-ring in one of the pieces. Taking the case apart is very familiar as well as you find the corner that has the cutout and pull apart. The Marine is a little thicker than the LifeProof Fre and Dog and Bone Wetsuit Impact. Oddly enough, the case doesn’t feel that thick as the edges taper in on both the front and back which helps maintain the thinness of the iPhone.
The front of the case has a nice rubbery texture, and the back is completely slick which means you can easily pass your iPhone to your friend by sliding it across a relatively smooth surface.
The build quality of the case is quite nice which is something we expect from any Pelican product. The case itself has a great warranty on it as Pelican will replace the case is the Marine gets damaged (they won’t replace the iPhone that breaks in the case, just the case.) The Marine doesn’t feel flimsy like the Fre and after a date with a rock, the case still looked pretty good.
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Protection – Waterproof protection like every other case out there
Looks familiar doesn’t it?
When it comes to protecting your iPhone, the Marine is going to provide excellent protection for somebody who needs a bit of water protection and drop protection. If you’re out in the elements a lot, consider getting this case. If you’re looking for something to go on vacation, get a holiday case like the HitCase Pro or ProShot. For a regular office worker, I think this protection is overkill.
From a drop perspective, Aaron dropped the Pelican Marine on the only hard thing in his campsite. A giant rock. The iPhone and case didn’t suffer any damage.
The case is waterproof to 6.6 ft or 2m. We did the initial water test for both cases and didn’t have any issues with water. We tried to take the Marine swimming in one of our lake outings, but that didn’t work out. With that being said, we’re pretty confident that the design of the Marine is going to keep your iPhone safe from water.
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Functionality – Sound is an oddity with this Pelican case
Front edge is nice…the back is a little slick
When it comes to accessing your iPhone, the Marine is average with one exception. Taking calls on the iPhone through the Marine is quite bearable (which is not the case for most waterproof cases). We didn’t notice too many instances where voice calls seemed muted. This is odd to us since the entire ear piece speaker is covered up and doesn’t come with a special cloth or cover.
On the flip side, the sound coming from the bottom speaker is quite muted. And we did have a small issue with the mic being turned off during our Sleep Cycle sessions, but any other recording features seemed to be ok with the case.
The buttons on the case are quite stiff and smaller than other cases and the threaded plug that covers the headphone jack is painful to use. It does get better over time, but it will take a bit of effort to unscrew.
The Lightning cable port is large enough for big cables like the Amazon basics cable but the headphone jack only fits heads that are the same size as the stock Apple EarPods. The camera cutouts are large enough that flash photography isn’t impacted.
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Steve D
June 7, 2017 at 4:50 am
Trying to decide between Pelican Marine and Lifeproof Fre for my iPhone 6s. Reviews are pretty similar from the dozen+ sites I’ve looked at and just as many YouTube videos. Ok fact it’s kind of been an obsession the last 2 days lol. Anyway I’m 99% sure I’m getting one of these and the only thing holding me back is I don’t know anywhere to check out a pelican case in store. Lifeproof is readily available at multiple stores so I’m leaning towards that for convenience but I feel like the pelican may be a touch better. Your thoughts on it? Or know any store that sells pelican for me to see in person before purchase? Thanks
Aaron Ho
June 7, 2017 at 9:56 pm
For all my Pelican stuff, I goto a local Pelican reseller. Hope that helps.
Bean
September 12, 2017 at 3:32 am
I found a slight hitch with this case, it’s waterproof yes but it’s also sound proof? Calls voice incoming and outgoing are a bare whisper even on maximum volume and the headset jack worked 50% of the time… Very frustrating, would not buy again.
Aaron Ho
September 13, 2017 at 2:19 pm
Thx for the comment.