Whenever a new top tier phone comes out, there are two cases we are almost guaranteed to take a look at first:  Ringke SLIM by RearthUSA and the Ultra Thin Air by Spigen. Since we already took a look at Spigen’s for the Galaxy S4, it’s time to turn our focus to the Ringke SLIM and do the same. While I wouldn’t doubt it if many of you already ordered this case, since it was on sale for $2.99 the other day through Amazon, we still thought we’d give you a fast review. 

Just like with past models, the Ringke SLIM sports a matte finish on one of the thinnest cases around. You’ll find all of the port cutouts you need to get by, along with enough protection to withstand some minor drops or scrapes here and there. In fact, the case wraps up around the front just enough to lift your phone’s display off of a surface should you choose to lay it face down. The case will add almost zero thickness, locks onto the phone incredibly well (watch the video to see how well), and potentially makes the phone look better than it does without a case. There is nothing like the look and feel of a soft matte finish on a phone.

I will say that matte finishes do tend to be somewhat slippery at times, unlike the glossy finish to the Spigen case we looked at the other day. But I also fully understand that many of you can’t stand the look of gloss and are willing to go slightly slippery over sticky and shiny. No matter what, you really can’t go wrong with this case.

The Ringke SLIM for the Galaxy S4 ranges in price from $7.99 to $9.99 and comes in four colors:  Mint, Pink, White, and Black.

Links:  Amazon | Rearth

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Video

Click here to view the embedded video.

Quick Look: Ringke SLIM Case for the Galaxy S4 is a post from: Droid Life

If you had plans of picking up a new Galaxy S4 from Samsung soon, now would be a good time to look into buying a “protection plan” for it in the form of a new case. We have always been a big fan of Ringke cases, especially for the Nexus 4. The Rearth Ringke Slim case is now on sale through Amazon, listed at just $3, a total of $20 less than the list price.

They also have their Fusion cases and regular hard cases on sale starting at $8, so definitely give it a peek if rolling around with a naked device isn’t how you roll.

Buy.

Cheers Aucencio!

Rearth Ringke Slim Case for the Samsung Galaxy S4 On Sale for $3 Through Amazon is a post from: Droid Life

Our hunt for the best Nexus 4 case continues today, as we take a look at Rearth’s Ringke Fusion. The Ringke Fusion combines both protection and a transparent back, so that you no longer have to hide the Crystal Reflection backside that the N4 is somewhat known for. I’m surprised it took accessory companies so long to come up with an option like this, so let’s see how Rearth did as the first to market. 

Materials and Protection

The Ringke Fusion is a mix of TPU and PC – TPU is the black part for bumper-style protection, PC is the clear back. The TPU portion has what feels like a soft, almost matte finish and does not give off the rubbery feel like other TPU cases. The PC see-through back piece has been given an anti-scratch coating to help with minor dings, but likely won’t withstand a full-on key scratch test. Overall, the materials combine well to give both a unique look and what should be ample protection from drops. It should also keep the glass backside of the Nexus 4 scratch free.

Fit and Feel

This case fits OK. It’s tight, yet can still be removed fairly easily if need be. I am having somewhat of an issue with the Power/Lock switch, which isn’t as easy to toggle with the case attached. It’s not impossible, but you definitely have to find the sweet spot or simply press it a few times to get it to react.

Outside of that, the case is minimal enough and doesn’t add much bulk. The TPU material is soft in hand and should help with grip so that you are less likely to drop it. I’m a fan of the clear back, as that is one of the design highlights of the device that most of us would hate to hide. In the short time with this case, I haven’t scratched it or anything, but I’m guessing over time it’ll see little scuffs here and there just like a normal screen protector would. Rearth also added little bumps on the back corners of the case so that it’s slightly lifted off of any surface when laying backside down. This should help to extend its scratch-free life.

Wireless charging still works with the Fusion, as well.

Overall

This is a great option for anyone looking for protection, but still wants to be able to show off or see the Crystal Reflection backside of the Nexus 4. Actually, it’s the only option I know of that combines a case with a clear protective back. It’s only $13.99 as well, which is less than some of the ultra slim cases available that hide one of the Nexus 4′s best features.

You can pre-order now. The cases should ship around February 20.

Amazon Link ($13.99)

Update:  Here is a quick video comparison of the Fusion to the Ringke Slim, Spigen Ultra Thin Air, and official Bumper.

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Quick Look: Ringke Fusion Nexus 4 Case, Clear Back Shows Your Sparkly Goodness is a post from: Droid Life

Last week, during a quest to find the best Nexus 4 case, I found an option from one of our favorite case companies, Rearth. Their Ringke SLIM for the Nexus 4 was available on Amazon for $9.99 in a variety of colors, so naturally, I jumped on it. Unfortunately, the original version of the SLIM had some fit issues near the volume rocker, making it a bit uncomfortable to use. But thankfully, Rearth didn’t waste time in releasing a revised version with optimal fit. This new version showed up in a set on my doorstep yesterday, so let’s talk about it. 

As you’ll see in the pictures below, nothing has changed at first glance. It’s still ultra-slim and adds almost no bulk, something I always look for in a case. The volume rocker fit issue has definitely been addressed, and the case fits perfectly. All ports are exposed and it has a soft finish, that can actually be a bit slippery at times. It’s about as minimal as it gets, with almost zero branding other than the “Ringke SLIM” mention at the bottom of the case. The case is easily applied, giving just enough protection to anyone who is worried about cracking their new Nexus 4. An added bonus comes in form of front protection. Each of the four corners of the case sticks up just enough so that you can lay the phone face down, yet keep the glass off of whatever surface it is laying on. The Ringke SLIM is also thin enough that wireless charging still works, something the Bumper case can’t say. (Update:  Wireless charging does still work with the Bumper on. Had issues last night, but works fine today.)

The grey color is probably my favorite, but it also comes in white, black, and blue. It’s not the fanciest case ever made, but it’s very minimal and well worth the price.

Oh, I also ditched my official Nexus 4 bumper already, as it added too much bulk for my liking. This is my case of choice.

Amazon Links:  White | Grey | Black | Blue

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Second Look: Ringke SLIM Nexus 4 Case [Revised Version] is a post from: Droid Life

After the back of my LG Nexus 4 cracked, prompting me to order another one, I decided to set out on a mission to find the best case for it. As you know, I have zero confidence in the glass backside, so even as someone who hasn’t used a case for more than a few hours at a time over the years, I am willing to give them a shot. If it takes covering up that pretty class backside to preserve it, then so be it. Today, we’re taking a look at the Ringke Slim case for the Nexus 4, a product made by RearthUSA.

I’ve been a fan of the Ringke Slim line in the past, so when I saw the posting for this at the ridiculously low price of $9.99, I jumped on three of them:  grey, black and white. 

The case itself, is very minimal. It’s a light piece of plastic that is made to barely fit over the backside and edges of the device. There are cutouts for the speaker, camera, lock switch, and volume rocker. And that’s pretty much it. The plastic has a soft matte finish to it, so it shouldn’t be all that slippery. Rearth claims that they’ve done some super secret grip stuff with “efficiency engineering.” I don’t know what that means, but I do know that it shapes very well to the Nexus 4 without adding bulk.

Overall, I’m a fan of these cases, however, they appear to be working through some issues and are planning to release a “revised” version by December 11. The current version, which happens to be the one I just purchased, doesn’t fit flush with the side that has the volume rocker and constantly does this clicking noise. The reviews on Amazon couldn’t be clearer that this is a pretty major issue. Hopefully, this gets fixed in the revised version, because this could be the perfect N4 case. Matte, minimal, slim, and clean, all things I look for in a case.

Amazon Links:  White | Grey | Black | Blue

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Quick Look: Ringke Slim Case for Nexus 4 in Black, White, and Grey is a post from: Droid Life

The folks over at RearthUSA were kind enough to send over their first set of Samsung Galaxy S3 cases, and since they created one of the better Galaxy Nexus cases of all time, we thought we’d give them a look. In our box of goodies was a Ringke Slim Lite case, Tridea Flip Case, and a Tridea Bumper. We slapped each of them on our white GS3, took some pics, and are ready to share some thoughts.

As a reminder, this is the beauty of the Galaxy S3 having one design and form factor across the globe. It doesn’t matter who is producing a case for this phone, it should fit. There aren’t slight thickness tweaks or screen adjustments or volume rocker changes – it’s the same exact phone no matter the carrier, it just runs on a different network. You may recall the painful accessory situation for the Galaxy Nexus and its LTE and GSM variants? That won’t be a problem here. 

Ringke Slim Lite Case

The Ringke Slim Lite case is my favorite of the 3 that we received. It’s ultra thin, adds very little bulk, and has a soft matte black finish that feels great in hand. The glossy backing of the Galaxy S3 can be semi-slippery at times, so something as minimal as this case isn’t a bad idea to have laying around. This case reminds me a lot of the G-Nex Ringke Slim that we fell in love with. At $13.99 for either the white or black versions, along with free shipping code “freeshipping,” this won’t break the bank. [Buy]

Tridea Flip Case

The Tridea Flip Case is a lot like the OEM Galaxy S3 case, but it has a magnetic latch to hold it closed and a card slot for business cards. It comes in white or black themes, has this mini mirror on the back for those post lunch teeth checks, and feels like it’s made with quality materials. I personally am not into flip cases, but I understand that they provide both screen protection along with a level of device drop security. At $39.99 though, it better pay for lunch too. [Buy]

Tridea Bumper

Ahh bumper cases. When was the last time you sported one of these? Tridea’s Bumper is pretty traditional in the fact that its made of rubber and should save your phone from a drop thanks to its squishyness. Other than that, you have to decide if you like rubber on your device, if pulling it in and out of your pocket is going to be easy or difficult, and whether or not baby blue is your color. It’s only $10.99. Hopefully they have more colors in the works.

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Contest

Let’s give all of these away, along with some screen protectors! We know that many of you pre-ordered the Galaxy S3 and are looking for some form of protection, so we thought we could help a few of you out by saving you some of that hard earned cash. Ready?

Rules:

1.  Leave a comment by telling us which Galaxy S3 you ordered (or will order) – carrier, color, and storage.
2.  Then tell us which of these cases or screen protector you would like. Your choices are:

*We have 1 black Slim Lite, 1 white Slim Lite, 1 white Flip Case, 1 black Flip Case, 1 blue Bumper, and a Ringbo Ultimate ClearPlus screen protector.

3.  Today at 4PM Pacific, we will choose our winners.

Update:  Winners:

We picked our winners! Be sure to check your inboxes to see if you won!

Good luck!

Quick Look: Ringke Slim Lite and Tridea Galaxy S3 Cases [Contest Too] (Updated) is a post from: Droid Life