Now that Wifey has a kayak and we’ll be hitting the water as soon as time off, weather, and tides converge, I’d like to get a waterproof case for my iPhone. Sure, I could get a Pelican case; but I’d like to be able to use the camera/phone without exposing it to my wet hands. I found this one at REI:
It says it’s made of ‘touch-friendly’ material so that both cameras may be used – even up to a metre underwater. Buying from REI earns me about a 10% dividend at the end of the year, and we need to go to the store anyway for Wifey’s PFD. The reviews for this case are:
10
6
3
0
4
I discount one of the one-star reviews that says ‘This case was sold to me as a waterproof phone case but VERY SMALL PRINT said it was only waterproof to 3 feet for 30 minutes…it could easily ruin my phone if I went snorkeling &exceeded limits.’ Well, duh! Nobody should expect a ‘bag’ to do much more than keep the water out at the surface. The leakage reported by two other reviewers are more concerning. Also, one notes that photos taken through the case are poor (‘giving a hazy vaseline-on-lens effect’).
So now I’m not too sure.
Do any of you have recommendations for a waterproof iPhone case that is A) Really waterproof (no leaking); and B) Where the camera can be used to take good-quality photos without removing the phone from the case? REI is my go-to, but I’m not married to them.
I’d be cautious after reading the spec in that 1-star review. The reason a lot of watches are “water-proof to 10 meters” is not because people are going to go diving to that depth but rather to make them resistant to intrusion when swimming on the surface; moving water exerts a lot more pressure than static water.
Lying for a half-hour in a fish tank is a lot less dangerous than being smacked in the face by an errant wave when you’re taking a picture.
My wife and I both kayak and ride jet skis and I found these to be more than adequate for those purposes. We have never dropped them into the lake if that matters.
I think it’s probably helpful to get a bit of clarity on the usage though since as pointed out by @DesertDog, the ratings don’t cover all scenarios.
Are you looking to just use the phone with wet hands while out of the water? Then almost anything will do.
Are you looking to use the phone with wet hands while on the water? Then you probably want something with buoyancy (alternately depth), and maybe a lanyard.
Are you looking to take pictures with it either on/off the water? Then you want to look at transparency and ease of touchscreen/buttons. Same if you’re using it for an on-water navigation tool.
While the last gen iPhone isn’t super pricey, it might be worthwhile to grab an older smartphone (if you have one of course) out of the drawer and use it even in best case, because Murphy is a PITA at the best of times, and water based adventures always inspires him.
I have my old iPhone 6S in the drawer. It needs a new battery, but that’s a good idea.
That looks pretty good. I noted in the Q&A that the touch screen works for some people, and not for others when the phone is in the case. How did it work for you?
It’s not great, especially on a sunny day where it’s a little hard to see the screen let alone interact with it. You can always try it and send it back if you don’t like it for any reason. It’s inexpensive.
Now that we know more, I’d suggest this link to Tripsavvy, which includes a lot of features I laid out earlier, buoyancy and lanyards, and most of which are multi-phone compatible, so you could use your SE or older 6s (I endorse that again).
I’d then check the individual per item reviews on Amazon. I will say that it seems almost universal though that the better they protect at water, the worse they are to actually use while so protected. So you may get tradeoffs.
Oh, and I haven’t checked vis a vis the most recent updates, but you may want to consider this:
If the link doesn’t load, you can set up shortcuts via settings on an iPhone to have Siri, the voice assistant take the photo, so you can avoid awkward button presses while in bag/pouch/case.
Is it a second generation iPhone SE? Those are splash and water resistant with an IP67 rating. I mean, I wouldn’t dunk it under the water to take pictures too many times, but if using it with wet hands is all you’re worried about then you’re already pretty safe.
I have an old 6S in a drawer too. I’ll be following this thread.
For the water resistance standard does that include pressing the phone’s buttons? For my water resistant watch the manufacturer says to never press the crown when under water, or even simply when it is wet.
Starting with the iPhone 7 (different models and manufacturers are of course, different) they had various degrees of water resistance. Earlier models were not so rated. Specifically the 7 was the first model to remove the physical button for home (the circle) and replace it with a haptic-powered touch sensor of the same shape and location. Thus, it was not a point of leakage as it would be on yours or Johnny’s 6 series.
The 2nd gen SE above is largely a 7 physical clone so all but certain would be the same. However, the power and volume buttons do provide a point of failure and I don’t trust most splash-resistant ratings past the “dropped in toilet and immediately fished out”. And don’t get me started on the first gen “waterproof” Samsung models which required you to put in rubber plugs into the ports and speakers first…
I have used other NiteIze products & like them. It is possible that the one-star reviews that had water enter were due to operator error; make sure any seals/zippers are fully sealed/zipped…then check again. Any case like this has the potential to cause some hazing as you’re shooting thru a thick piece of plastic.
I was kayaking in the river last week; it was smooth so I took some pics; both from a real camera that was pulled out of a real drybag & from the phone that was pulled out of the phone dry pouch; wouldn’t have done that if it was rough. If it’s flat you don’t have to shoot thru the bag
My wife and I also do a lot of kayaking. I used to use ziplock baggies-- one for my phone and one for my wallet. I learned my lesson the hard way when when I capsized and…baggie with wallet bone dry, baggie with phone half full of water
I used to have a pouch like the one dolphinboy linked to. It worked well for awhile, and I was able to use the touchscreen without too much trouble. But it eventually became compromised and developed a small leak. The plastic clip at the top is a little tricky to open and close, and the way it closes and attaches to the pouch creates a potential failure point, I think. But if you want something you can take pics with in the pouch it’s probably the way to go. I’d just periodically test mine with a piece of wadded up paper towel, submerge in a bowl of water, gently squeeze to see if it released any air, and check the paper towel for dampness afterward.
Now I use a mini dry bag. It’s just big enough for my phone, keys and wallet. It has a separate phone compartment with a window that zips shut, and then the top folds over and clips closed on both sides like a conventional dry bag. Has a strap to hang around my neck. It works great and has been my go-to for a few seasons now. The only drawback is, it only has a window in front so you can work the phone screen, but can’t take any pics with it in the bag.
