The Ballistic Every1 case for iPhone 5 is an average case. The Eh? Rating score for this case is 3.25 Eh?’s out of 5. This case is definitely better than the current king of fail cases, the Otterbox Armor and at cost of approx. $60, not a bad case for the person on a tight budget.
For a detailed overview of the the Eh? Rating Score Click here.
ABOUT THE CASE MANUFACTURER
Ballistic makes many mobile cases for a variety of different devices. For the iPhone 5, they have 6 iPhone cases with the Ballistic Every1 case for iPhone 5, being the third highest case in terms of protection (I know the video stated there was only 5 cases but we forgot to count their new waterproof offering, the Hydra).
PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES
The Ballistic Every1 case for iPhone 5 comes in nine different colour combinations. The case has two textures, the rubbery parts and the hard plastic parts and it is installed by using Active Latches that act as extra cushioning for the case corners. Ballistic company claims that “Design to Survive Life”. Well… let’s see… shall we.
In the Design category, we gave the Ballistic Every1 case for the iPhone 5, an Eh? Rating score of 3.5 Eh’s out of 5. The only redeeming quality about the design case is the ease of installation and the lightness of the case (without the belt holster).
This case is a bit deceiving given that if you were to compare a similar sized case to the Ballistic Every1 case for iPhone 5, you’d think it should weight more. A good portion of the space that the case takes up is filled with air since the iPhone 5 basically sits on many little plastic nubs. With all things considered, this case adds little in terms of bulk and weight.
Installation of the case is incredibly simple. One of the features of this case (according to Ballistic) are the “Active Latches” which are basically plastic buttons that secure the screen protector to the back panel of the case. Push the four nubs from the “Active Latch” into the holes in the back panel and you’ve just installed the Ballistic Every1 case for iPhone 5.
The Build Quality of the case isn’t great. Out of the box, we noticed that the case still had small plastic bits from the moulding process which made the case look a little sloppy. Sloppy is about the best word we can use since we can’t think of a better way to describe how the port covers look like with the rest of the case. The section where the belt holster attaches to the iPhone began to show a bit of wear after using the belt holster only a couple of times.
The Every1 is designed to Military Specifications. We’re not sure what that means or if that’s a misprint on the packaging, since its obvious that Ballistic uses the same packaging boxes for other cases. As mentioned above, the website provides no additional information to the level of military specification that the Every1 is designed for. As an example the the Ballistic Hydra case for iPhone 5 specifies on the packaging that the Military Specification meets IP-68 requirements.
The packaging itself is a bit misleading. There is a drawing of a scale that says its droppable from 5-15ft. Initially, we thought this was the greatest droppable case ever until Agata looked closer to the case and realized that there was a faint white arrow that referenced a point between 5 and 15. We were immediately disappointed. This arrow does not point to a specific number of feet. If extrapolate the number ourselves, the drop height should be ~11 feet. Is that true? We are not sure, it is very vague.
We filmed the Drop Tests and the Every1 did fail but it comes with a caveat. We’ve dropped this case a dozen times off-screen and the case didn’t come apart. The only time that we put it higher then any other drops , ~8 feet, the case fails since it came apart. Therefore we’re a little torn between giving it the score it deserves for the dozen of 5ft drops or the one failed 8ft drop?
We gave it the lower score since the packaging clearly shows that the arrow is closer to 15ft than 5ft so the 8ft drop should not have failed.
The Every1 provides military level protection for the iPhone 5. How much do you ask? We have no idea since it’s not referenced anywhere on their website but we can definitely tell you that its not waterproof and its barely water resistant.
During the week of usage, we had several days of heavy showers and we noticed that water definitely gets into the case from the giant hole in the screen protector. After one of the downpours, Aaron had to take the case apart and wipe off the iPhone since the water was trapped between the device and the screen protector.
Subsequently, the giant hole in the screen protector also lets in a bit of dust so over time, you’ll notice that your black phone is starting to change colour due to all the particles trapped.
The screen protector generally worked with an average amount of finger prints/smears being left on the case. We did notice several small scratches during our usage period but nothing out of the ordinary.
With that being said, the score is a bit lower since dust/small particles managed to get between the screen protector and iPhone and it actually ended up scratching the face of the iPhone. Now we can’t say where the small piece of dust came from but we could theorize that it entered into the case from giant hole in the screen protector or along the edges of the case.
Generally, the Every1 case doesn’t hinder your ability to use the iPhone.
It handles well and the interaction between the screen is not diminished much. The glare coming off the screen protector is substantial but not unbearable (and generally after a while, you just get use to the glare). The case enhancements that were integrated with the Ballistic Every1 case for iPhone 5, are responsible for bring down the Eh? Rating score in this category.
The Ballistic Every1 case for iPhone 5, handles quite well. Taking into account the weight/bulk and the build quality, the Every1 case is almost a joy to use on a daily basis. It maintains the general lightness of the iPhone 5 while giving you enough texture to ensure that you don’t accidentally drop the case (and if it does fall, it will generally be protected).
Access to the touch screen worked well with the Every1 case. The corners of the case were easily accessible and the edges of the case didn’t protrude too far out to hinder the use of the keyboard while in portrait mode. Sliding fingers across the screen was nice given that the screen protector had a matte-like texture to it.
The glare on the screen is quite significant when compared to the naked device but glare is a relative thing. If you had a naked device beside a device with the Every1, you’d notice how awful the glare is but on its own, its usable.
The screen diffuses the retina screen a bit (diffusion makes it look like you can see the individual pixels of the screen) but like the glare, you get use to the mild diffusion.
The Ballistic Every1 case for iPhone 5 gets destroyed in this category. Case Enhancements are an optional score for rugged cases and are only applied when case makers decide to include additional functionality outside (or integrated into) the case.
For the Every1 case, Ballistic has included a kickstand and a belt holster for the case and both are pretty useless. The case would definitely score higher if it wasn’t for these relatively useless and annoying enhancements.
The kickstand of the case is integrated into the back panel. Its a thin piece of plastic with a plastic end that exhibits the same level of sloppy build quality described in the Design category. Setting up your iPhone with the kickstand can take a couple of tries (in portrait mode). When used in portrait mode, lightly tapping the top of the phone (i.e. Getting to your notifications) will tip the phone over and it will and flat on its back. Not a problem since you’re using a rugged case but still, the futile effort of trying to set up the kickstand but to have it topple at the slightest breeze is frustrating.
The belt holster is a good idea in general. The execution of this holster is poor at best. We have two complaints about the belt holster: 1) the inability to use headphones while the case is in the holster and 2) it takes several attempts to put the case into the holster while its on a belt.
Most of us like listening to music and with this belt holster, we thought it would be a great feature for instances where you don’t really have a pocket to put your phone in so you could clip into the holster and have it attached to a bag. But since the opening at the bottom isn’t large enough to pry open the bottom flap to access the headphone jack, you’re out of luck.
Ballistic Every1 Case for iPhone 5
The Eh? Rating score for this case is 3.25 Eh?’s out of 5. The Ballistic Every1, considering it a rugged case, provides a decent overall protection for your iPhone 5 at a lower cost of ~$50 CAN. We would recommend to clean the case and our iPhone 5 regularly as the case tends to store dust and debris.
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iPhone 5 / iPhone 5S Case Suggestions:
Otterbox Defender Case for the iPhone 5 – this case is very similar through the following features:
– not waterproof
– provides protection from everyday drops
– contains a screen protector
– easy access to all iPhone 5 ports
The Otterbox Defender is compatible with the iPhone 5S Touch ID feature.
