D3O - Tag Archive

Reviewing Mobile Fun’s FlexiShield case for the S4 Mini

2 Replies Christopher Roberts

This is the second article in a series reviewing the Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini.

In this article I will be looking at a FlexiShield case for the Galaxy S4 Mini.

Which Case?

If you browse Mobile Fun’s site, you will see they have a huge range of cases for the S4 Mini, (at the time of writing, they had around 80) so choosing the right case can be a challenge. Different cases have different purposes, so in order to get the right case for you, you need to decide what you want to use it for.

Here are some of the different functions you might want from a case:

  • Protection – probably number one for most people
  • Design – a stylish case can add to the phones aesthetic appeal
  • Storage – some wallet style cases also allow you to store credit cards in the cover
  • Functionality – the Samsung official case lets you access some functions through the window in the screen cover, whilst saving power by not keeping the whole screen on

I want a case which protects my phone and also looks good. Protection is my top priority, as I don’t want to damage my phone, although if I can make it look better in the process, that’s a bonus.

Mobile Fun’s FlexiShield Case Review

The first of the two cases I have chosen to review is Mobile Fun’s own brand FlexiShield case.

Mobile Fun: Galaxy S4 Mini FlexiShield CaseI am going to be honest, I didn’t have high expectations of the FlexiShield case, as I had looked at reviews of a similar case for the S4 Mini’s big brother, (the S4) and they weren’t very positive. This meant that when I received the case and discovered how great it was, I was pleasantly surprised! 🙂

Price

One of the reasons for my initial doubt was the price. The case currently costs less than £10, which is one of the cheapest S4 Mini cases on the market. Samsung’s Official case (which offers very little protection in comparison) costs around £18, so in terms of protection, the FlexiShield one is very competitively priced.

Design

S4 Mini FlexiShield Case chargingThe FlexiShield case is surprisingly durable, as you would expect from the name, the case is quite flexible, yet when it is fitted on the phone it is very strong. The case fits the phone perfectly, and leaves all the vital ports and sensors accessible. The top ports are all perfectly aligned, however access to the camera and bottom microphone, whilst still accessible is slightly off-centre, which looks a little untidy.

My phone is the white version, so I chose the ‘Frost White’ version of the case, and it looks great! The phone is still visible, as the case is semi-transparent.

The power and volume buttons are covered by the case, so all you have to do to access them is push on the side of the case. Similar cases have recesses where the buttons are, making them hard to press, however this is not an issue with the FlexiShield for the S4 Mini.

At times my phone does appear to be overheating when in the case, however this is usually only when it isn’t in a well ventilated area. The phone is fine when I have it in my pocket, just don’t go and wrap it in a blanket!

Sometimes when GPS and mobile data are on and the phone is trying to process something (like mapping) I do notice the back getting hot, so I usually remove it from the case.

Protection
Whilst the FlexiShield can’t offer the same protection that a D3O case can, it does offer a reasonably high level. When fitted on the phone, the case covers all of the back and sides and has a lip which is elevated over the top of the phone, meaning that no matter how the phone falls (proving it is falling onto a flat surface, not a spike or something!) the case will take the impact, not the device itself.

Mobile Fun's Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini FlexiShield CaseRather by accident, I tested the true protection of the case by throwing my phone about a meter across the room, where it came to land on the floor. The thud when it hit the ground wasn’t reassuring, however the case had absorbed the impact, meaning my phone was intact. I wouldn’t advise you thrown it at the floor, however if you do drop/throw it, the case will provide some protection.

The case does a great job of protecting the phone from marks and stains. It is really easy to clean with a damp cloth, and keeps your phone safe from harm.

Rating

Mobile Fun’s own brand case is very competitively priced for what it offers: durable, well designed protection for the S4 Mini.

UPDATE: Having reviewed Tech21’s Impact Shield case I am downgrading this case from 4 star to 3 star.

I rate Mobile Fun’s S4 Mini FlexiShield case three star.Three Star

Next Week

In the next post in the series I will be reviewing Tech21’s Impact Shield case for the S4 Mini. See you then. 🙂

Are bionic suits a thing of fantasy or the future?

22 Replies Christopher Roberts

This is Technology Bloggers 100th article!
Well done and thank you to our 16 fantastic writers who have made this possible. Also thanks to all our readers and commenters for your support.
Lets aim for 1,000 now! 🙂

So, to the article! Everyone has heard of Iron Man – well I would think they have. The idea that such a suit could become a reality, is well… fiction. Until now!

A technology company called Raytheon has developed an exoskeleton, designed to effectively act as a bionic/robotic suit. The suit is designed to perfectly mimic and aid human actions, so the wearer can feel normal whilst performing tasks that they could never achieve without the aid of the suit.


One way of thinking about how it feels is to think of the power steering in a car. Without the power steering it can be really tough to turn the wheel, activate the power steering however and the car still feels normal and responds in the same way, the difference is, minimal effort is required to do a rather demanding task.

Doing press-ups in a bionic suit with ease

Performing everyday tasks is easy when wearing a bionic exoskeleton!

The suite has the potential to be fitted with some sort of amour plating, to protect the individual form attack – assuming it were to be used in a war-zone, and not in industry! D3O could actually make it a pretty invincible suit!

The suite can help the wearer lift up to 17 times what they could normally life, making tasks 17 times easier! A massive positive is that it doesn’t restrict the wearers range of motion, meaning that they can more freely and normally.

There is a problem though. The suit has to be attached to an external power source, as it guzzles power like crazy. Current batteries are either too weak, or too dangerous. For example, lithium-ion batteries can’t be strapped to a human, as they are prone to explosion if they get damaged!

A lack of power makes the suit extremely heavy, meaning that every movement becomes more difficult. This means that if there is a loss of power, the suit is hindering, rather than helping the occupant.

Aside from the lack of power, the main difference between the suit Raytheon have developed and Tony Stark’s suit is that Tony Stark’s can fly. Stark’s suit is also loaded with flairs, missiles and weapons galore, and has Stark’s supercomputer Jarvis running the interface. Raytheon’s suit is still in the early stages though, and no doubt will soon catch up 😉

Four Iron Man Suits

Tony Stark’s collection of Iron Man suits

If you want to know more about this super cool invention read CNN’s article about it.