iPhone 4/4S + otterbox case + screen protector = your view?


Recommended Posts

Has anyone put an otterbox case on their iPhone which already has a screen protector on it?

Just wondering if the protector bubbles due to it sitting right near the edges. The wife has a Galaxy S3 but her screen protector doesn't sit as close to the edges & as a result her otterbox case doesn't make the screen protector bubble.

Don't know anyone who has one for their iPhone though.

Has anyone put an otterbox case on their iPhone which already has a screen protector on it?

Just wondering if the protector bubbles due to it sitting right near the edges. The wife has a Galaxy S3 but her screen protector doesn't sit as close to the edges & as a result her otterbox case doesn't make the screen protector bubble.

Don't know anyone who has one for their iPhone though.

I had a SGP Ultra on, then an otter box defender. It didn't bother me at all. Though, since I had to get a refurb Iphone, I only have the otterbox display protector :-(.

Kinda doesn't help though. I like the 'flimsy' screen covers.

In the 2 years i owned my 3GS i always had one on. They fitted well - with no bubbles at all, which meant i didn't notice they were even on (so if i don't notice it then i can't not like it). When they got too scuffed or whatever, i'd change them.

So really need to know how they fair with the otterbox case on as well (ideally the commuter case), as i have until the weekend to switch my 4S for an S3, by which point i'm out of time & would have to stick with the 4S.

Got 3 Iphone 4's (one for wife, kid, myself) and 3 of the otterbox defenders. Daughter has wrecked the case and have replaced it once. Phone is pristine. Wife's phone got dropped down the stairs at the Disneyland parking structure and survived w/o any problems with the phone itself! Neither have had any issues with the screen protector. so A+ in my book!

The only issue it does have is the rubber tends to stick to my pockets a bit when so always having to tuck my pockets back in. Small annoyance.

I have purchased a couple defenders. 1 for each iPhone. 3GS, 4s, 5. On my 3GS, I had already purchased an invisishield before I bought the otterbox, and did not want to loose the protection the invisishield gave the phone, so I actually popped the screen protector that was on the otterbox off. Its actually just attached with a thin glue type substance, very easy to remove and clean. The only downfall I had, was the invisishield is kinda "rubbery" and with the otterbox fitting so tight on the 3GS it caused it to leave indention's in the screen protector on the 4 corners where the case and the screen meet. It did not scratch my screen at all or cut through the screen protector, but it left indention's in it. I have since gotten away from using invisishield because I just hate the way they feel.

As far as on the 4s and the 5. I kept the screen protector that came with the otterbox on and used that with no issues. I did however put a defender on my wifes 4 one time when she already had a screen protector on it and it looked horrible. It didnt bubble, but it had this layer of oil look. I cleaned the crap out of both screen protectors inside and out to see if it helped but it didn't.

So I would say. If you have a nice anti glare or expensive screen protector on your phone already. Leave it and pop out the otterbox screen protector. If not, then just take the screen protector off your device and use the otterbox one.

I don't buy expensive protectors. I bought a pack of 10 for my 3GS from eBay for ?1-?3. Nice & cheap but did the job.

Is the otterbox protector any different from these cheap screen protectors? For the record i don't buy the anti glare ones either. I had one of those once & thought it was horrible.

I also wont be buying the defender if that makes much/any difference? It'd be the less bulky commuter i'd be buying.

I don't buy expensive protectors. I bought a pack of 10 for my 3GS from eBay for ?1-?3. Nice & cheap but did the job.

Is the otterbox protector any different from these cheap screen protectors? For the record i don't buy the anti glare ones either. I had one of those once & thought it was horrible.

I also wont be buying the defender if that makes much/any difference? It'd be the less bulky commuter i'd be buying.

I bought my and my wife's iPhone 4s just before the 5 was released and got an Otterbox for each of them. I would have preferred to just get a screen protector because the Otterbox does bulk up the phone considerably imho. Sometimes it even makes it uncomfortable to hold. The reason for buying the Otterboxes though is because I have twin 3 (almost 4) year old boys that tend to find ways to get their hands on the phones. They aren't nearly as careful with them as my wife and I are. They have been great from the protection standpoint but the area around the font and back cameras get really dirty and require the occasional removal of the phone to clean up. In my situation I wouldn't trade them for anything else at the moment however as I said, I would much rather have just had a screen protector if not for the kids.

On another upside note the Otterbox does come with a click-in belt carrier that servers a dual purpose. The belt clip can act as a nice stand in different configurations if you leave you phone attached to it and can prop your phone at various viewing angles from both a portrait and landscape perspective. The clip can lock into the open position to further modify the viewing angles.

Overall it is a nice protective device for the money but that doesn't change my preference of the bare phone with just the screen/back protector on it.

Good luck on your decision.

I bought my and my wife's iPhone 4s just before the 5 was released and got an Otterbox for each of them. I would have preferred to just get a screen protector because the Otterbox does bulk up the phone considerably imho. Sometimes it even makes it uncomfortable to hold. The reason for buying the Otterboxes though is because I have twin 3 (almost 4) year old boys that tend to find ways to get their hands on the phones. They aren't nearly as careful with them as my wife and I are. They have been great from the protection standpoint but the area around the font and back cameras get really dirty and require the occasional removal of the phone to clean up. In my situation I wouldn't trade them for anything else at the moment however as I said, I would much rather have just had a screen protector if not for the kids.

On another upside note the Otterbox does come with a click-in belt carrier that servers a dual purpose. The belt clip can act as a nice stand in different configurations if you leave you phone attached to it and can prop your phone at various viewing angles from both a portrait and landscape perspective. The clip can lock into the open position to further modify the viewing angles.

Overall it is a nice protective device for the money but that doesn't change my preference of the bare phone with just the screen/back protector on it.

Good luck on your decision.

Sorry, I should have mentioned that I did buy the Defender cases. I'm sure they are thicker than the Commuter but I'm not sure if they provide the same level of protection. It also doesn't appear that the Commuter comes with the belt clip so sorry to have included that tidbit.

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • XBOX is at the end of its generational life cycle and wasn't selling much anyway. They need to figure out the pricing for XBOX Helios. However, I'm not buying the DRAM shortage with AI preferring HBM. I think it's industry gouging.
    • Amazon Prime Day 2026: Best Dolby soundbar deals from Sony, Samsung, JBL, Polk, and more by Sayan Sen Yesterday we covered the JBL BAR 800 which is a 5.1.2 Dolby Atmos/Vision soundbar. The unit is on sale for its lowest ever price of just $800 making it a solid offer. However, there are many more options to choose from and in this article, we have made a compilation of the best deals including from Sony, Polk, Yamaha, Denon, Samsung and more. Sony's BAR models are currently at their lowest prices which makes them solid offerings. The company's BRAVIA Theatre Bar lineup is designed to suit different home cinema needs. The Bar 5 is an entry-level 3.1-channel soundbar with a wireless subwoofer, supporting Dolby Atmos®, DTS:X, S-Force PRO Front Surround, and Vertical Surround Engine for immersive audio with clear dialogue. The Bar 6 upgrades to a 3.1.2-channel configuration by adding dedicated up-firing speakers for more convincing overhead Atmos effects while retaining the wireless subwoofer. At the premium end, the Bar 7, Bar 8, and flagship Bar 9 are single-soundbar solutions featuring Sony’s 360 Spatial Sound Mapping technology, which creates phantom speakers for a wider surround field. Bar 7 includes nine speaker units, Bar 8 increases this to eleven, and Bar 9 offers thirteen speaker driver units promising the most expansive soundstage and acoustic performance. All models should integrate seamlessly with compatible BRAVIA TVs and support the BRAVIA Connect app for setup and control. Get them at the links below: Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 9 Soundbar (HT-A9000): $998.00 (Amazon US) (Was: $1498) Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 8 Soundbar (HT-A9000): $798.00 (Amazon US) (Was: $998) Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 7 Soundbar (HT-A7100): $618.00 (Amazon US) (Was: $768) Sony BRAVIA Theater System 6: $548.00 | Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 6: $448.00 Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 5 (HT-B500): $278.00 (Amazon US) (Was: $348) Sony HT-S400 2.1 soundbar: $198.00 (Amazon US) (Was: $248) Aside from those, we also have more discounts including from Samsung, Polk Audio, and more: Samsung Q-Series Soundbar HW-QS90H 7.1.2: $797.99 (Amazon US) (Was: $998) Polk Audio Signa S4: $336.00 (Amazon US) (Was: $449) Hisense AX3120Q: $229.00 (Amazon US) (Was: $259) Check out more soundbar deals that you may like at this link. Good to know This Amazon deal is U.S. specific, and not available in other regions unless specified. We only use first-party seller links (at the time of article publishing); ensure that you purchase from a first-party seller link only. Check out Today's Deals on Amazon | or our recent tech deals. Become a Prime member (for Students or SNAP) via Neowin Get Prime Access - Prime for half price (for qualifying Medicaid, EBT, SNAP) Subscribe to Prime Video, Audible Plus, Music Unlimited or Kindle Unlimited via Neowin As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
    • Stellarium 26.2 by Razvan Serea Stellarium is a free open source planetarium for your computer. It shows a realistic sky in 3D, just like what you see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope. It is being used in planetarium projectors. Just set your coordinates and go. Stellarium key features: Realistic simulation of the sky, sunrise and sunset Default catalogue of over 600,000 stars Downloadable additional catalogues for up to 210 million stars Catalog data for all New General Catalogue (NGC) objects Images of almost all Messier objects and the Milky Way Artistic illustrations for all 88 modern constellations More than a dozen different cultures with their constellations Solar and lunar eclipse simulation Photorealistic landscapes (more are available on the website) Scripting support with ECMAScript (a few demo scripts are included) Extendable with plug-ins: 8 plug-ins installed by default, including: artificial satellites plug-in (updated from an on-line TLE database) ocular simulation plug-in (shows how objects look like in a given ocular) Solar System editor plug-in (imports comet and asteroid data from the MPC) telescope control plug-in (Meade LX200 and Celestron NexStar compatible) The major changes of this version: Added new sky culture Added new plugin: Planes Many improvements in plugins Many improvements in Core and GUI Many updates in sky cultures. [full release notes] Download: Stellarium 26.2 (64-bit) | 456.0 MB (Open Source) View: Stellarium Home Page | Other Operating Systems | Screenshot Get alerted to all of our Software updates on Twitter at @NeowinSoftware
  • Recent Achievements

    • Conversation Starter
      Admir earned a badge
      Conversation Starter
    • First Post
      The_Focal_Point earned a badge
      First Post
    • Apprentice
      daryld went up a rank
      Apprentice
    • Contributor
      Carltonbar went up a rank
      Contributor
    • One Month Later
      The_Focal_Point earned a badge
      One Month Later
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      418
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      170
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      130
    4. 4
      Xenon
      69
    5. 5
      neufuse
      69
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!