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Speck cases for iPhone 6: Review and giveaway

Speck iPhone 6 Cases


Lucky you! You're going to see a pile of reviews of new iPhone 6 and 6 Plus accessories over the next couple of months. One of the more respected names in the accessory business for Mac and iOS devices is Speck, and the company sent along four of their new cases for the iPhone 6. We're going to take a quick look at them here, and then you've got an opportunity to win one of these cases from Speck and TUAW.

CandyShell Card

This is one of the most useful cases I've seen for the iPhone 6 so far. The CandyShell Card (US$39.95) comes in three different color combos -- black and slate gray, Overcast Blue and Wisteria Purple, and Beaming Orchid Purple and Deep Sea Blue. As you'd expect from the name, it has a built-in slot for carrying three credit or ID cards on the back of the case.

speck candy shell card case


That doesn't mean it's just a one-trick pony; the CandyShell Card also uses a double layer design featuring a hardshell exterior or flexible interior to meet or exceed MIL-STD-810G drop protection standards.

My only gripe? The hard shell exterior on the black model really picks up fingerprints. Other than that, the case has a good feel, the cards are held securely in place but easily removed, and it looks great.

Rating: 3-1/2 stars out of 4 stars possible

3-1/2 star rating out of 4 stars possible


CandyShell Inked


The CandyShell Inked ($39.95) cases are all about style and protection. Not only does it use Speck's tried-and-true combo of hard shell and soft interior to meet and exceed those same MIL-STD requirements at the Card, but it features bright and colorful prints on the outside of the case.

Speck candy shell inked case


There are seven color combos available: Lush Floral/Beaming Orchid (above), Color Dip Purple/Wisteria Purple, Rainbow Drop Pattern/Wisteria Purple, SuperNova Red Pattern/Tahoe Blue, Fresh Floral Pink/River Blue, Color Dip Blue/River Blue, and Fresh Floral Red/Boysenberry. Any of these will bring your plain iPhone 6 to life with a splash of bright color.

No gripes here, as you can't really see the fingerprints on the exterior of these cases.

Rating: 4 stars out of 4 stars possible

4 star rating out of 4 stars possible

CandyShell

At $34.95, the CandyShell case is the best known of the Speck line. The cases are slim, less expensive than their siblings by five bucks, and still offer that MIL-STD-810G drop protection. Dang, I want one of these for my iPhone 6 Plus before I drop it!

speck candy shell case


The color schemes are less sparkly and bright than the CandyShell Inked cases. Here you have a choice of Black/Slate Grey, Tahoe Blue/Charcoal Grey, River/Moss Green, Beaming Orchid Purple/Deep Sea Blue, Heritage Grey/Antifreeze Yellow (above), Black/Jay Blue, White/Charcoal Grey, Pomodoro/Black.

As with the CandyShell Card, I feel that the two cases with black exteriors pick up fingerprints that are way too visible. That's not the case with most of the other color combos.

Rating: 3-1/2 stars out of 4 stars possible

3-1/2 star rating out of 4 stars possible

CandyShell Grip

Of all of the iPhone 6 cases from Speck, I think I like the CandyShell Grip ($34.95) the most. It's not overly bright and flashy, it meets those ever-important MIL-STD requirements, it's less expensive than the CandyShell Inked and Card cases, and -- most importably for owners of the big new iPhones -- it has raised rubber grips that make it almost impossible to drop.

speck candy shell grip case


As with all of the CandyShell cases, these come in a variety of colors: Black/Slate Grey, White/Black, River Blue/Tahoe Blue, Lipstick Pink/Jay Blue, White/River Blue, and Moss Green/Black. The raised ridges on these cases not only keep the case and phone from slipping from your fingers, but they're also great for keeping fingerprints off of the glossy exterior of the Black case.

Rating: 4 stars out of 4 stars possible

4 star rating out of 4 stars possible


Giveaway

And now, the great Speck CandyShell Case Giveaway of September 2014! We have one each of these iPhone 6 cases to give away, in the colors that you see in the review. To have a chance to win one, all you have to do is enter. Be sure to tell your friends who don't usually read TUAW that this is their chance to win a free iPhone 6 case!

Here are the rules for the giveaway:

  • Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older.

  • To enter, fill out the form below completely and click or tap the Submit button.

  • The entry must be made before September 26, 2014 11:59PM Eastern Daylight Time.

  • You may enter only once.

  • Four winners will be selected in a random drawing. Each will receive one of the Speck iPhone cases described above, valued at either $34.95 or $39.95.

  • Click Here for complete Official Rules.