There are positives and negatives to owning a bleeding-edge phone. Positives include the inclusion into an “elite” group of owners, and the turning of heads whenever you pull the phone out. Lots of people have a Note 4 – not very many have a Note with a curved edge, right?
However, one of the biggest negatives of owning any new phone not named “iPhone” is the lack of available accessories. The Galaxy Note Edge is no exception in this department. When I purchased mine at the Verizon store back in early February, there were not very many quality options on the shelf. That night I bought a bulky case to protect the phone until I could look online and find a more sporty or fashionable design.
Fortunately there are many online case retailers and so I’ve had a decent case on my Edge for the last few months. This week the opportunity arose for me to use a gift card and pick up the Seidio Surface Case/Holster Combo. I have been purchasing Seidio cases for as long as I can remember, going all the way back to the early 2000’s and my days of the Palm Treo line. The “soft touch” design of their cases has always soothed my sensory issues, and I’ve never been disappointed in their quality.
One of my concerns with cases for the Note Edge has been if the edges of the case will interfere with the Edge functions. In the past I’ve used heavy duty protective cases on other phones where the edges were so high that they impeded any touch interaction with the edges of the screen. The Seidio Surface was not disappointing in this regard. The side edges of the case offer a little bit of “lip” to protect the screen if the phone is laid down on the screen, but not so much that you can’t swipe through the different Edge screens. The edges also do not interfere with typing either.
The case goes on easy enough. It consists of two pieces that slide together and snap shut. Once snapped together, it becomes rather tricky to get off. I haven’t decided if this is a positive or a negative. If you’re like me and have a spare battery that you like to swap out instead of being stuck to a charger, it could prove to be quite a chore to get the case off. This may become easier with time and repeated removal, but I think the idea is to leave the case on. All of the openings for charging ports, headphone jack, power button and the S-Pen line up properly and have just the right amount of space to function.
A nice feature included in the Surface case is the built-in kickstand. This allows for hands-free viewing of videos, picture slideshows, or my personal favorite, Netflix. The Surface kickstand only holds the phone up in landscape mode, not portrait.
The designers of the case had the foresight to place the kickstand so that the curved Edge screen would be at the top when the kickstand is being used. You would think that would be a given. However I have had phones where the USB charging port was on the left side of the phone, and an OEM-manufactured kickstand case (not Seidio) left that port on the bottom, thereby rendering it unable to charge when watching a video.
I opted for the belt holster that goes with the case. I’ve never had any phobias about wearing my phones on my belt, I’d rather not have sagging pockets. The holster is lined with felt to protect your screen, and the belt clip rotates and locks to several different positions.
In my opinion, the only downside to Seidio cases is that they are on the pricey side. The case all by itself runs $34.95 on Seidio’s website, and the case/holster combo is $54.95. However, I’ve never let that hold me back when wanting good protection for my devices. I know from experience the kind of quality I will be getting for my money. Of course the Surface case won’t protect your Note Edge from water damage, but will definitely protect the edges and back in a drop. I wasn’t brave enough to perform any drop tests.
In short, the Seidio Surface case for the Galaxy Note Edge is a great case, albeit on the expensive side, but you definitely get your money’s worth.
[rwp-review id=”0″]*We reviewed a retail unit of the Seidio Surface case that was purchased by the reviewer.
Last Updated on November 27, 2018.
