designed by many AL13 v3 case for iPhone 6/6 Plus ... and a few more cases for you
Design house designed by many has been around for a few years, with some fascinating products for Apple customers. Early on, the company was one of the first to come up with a protective aluminum bumper for the iPhone, and the AL13 bumper is now in its third iteration. In this review, I'll not only look at the AL13 v3 for iPhone 6 Plus, but several other designed by many cases and protective films.
AL13 v3 Aerospace Aluminum iPhone Bumper (US$84.99 for iPhone 6 Plus, $79.99 for iPhone 6)
The AL13 seen at the top of this post is wonderful minimalist protection for your iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. It comes in five different finishes: silver, black, champagne, space gray, and green, and is incredibly light - it adds only 0.6 ounces (17 grams) to the weight of the iPhone 6 Plus.
Unlike some competing designs, no tools are required to install or remove the AL13. The company has created a two-piece design that features two protruding plastic pieces that lock into corresponding holes on the bottom part. Installation is a very quick snap, while removal takes a little bit of force.
The interior of the machines aluminum bumper is lined with polycarbonate so that your iPhone is cushioned and the bumper won't scratch the iPhone's metal. There's a bit of a lip on both the front and back of the bumper to protect your iPhone's screen and back from flat drops onto the ground. That extra bit of height also accommodates designed by many's MPACT GLASS screen protector, which is included with the case.
I found the AL13 v3 to be a gorgeous accessory to the iPhone 6 Plus, with the silver aluminum finish perfectly accenting the silver finish of my phone. The power button, mute switch, and volume rocker all use pass-through switches on the case, and their are ample openings on the bottom of the case for the headphone jack, microphone, Lightning connector port, and speaker.
To top it off, the AL13 comes in a beautiful aluminum box, so it's a perfect gift for that iPhone 6 or 6 Plus owner you know.
Rating: 4 stars out of 4 stars possible
ThreeD Case for iPhone 6 and 6 Plus ($29.99 for iPhone 6 Plus, $24.99 for iPhone 6)
The next case from designed by many is the ThreeD Case, which is a bit different from your ordinary run-of-the-mill polycarbonate case. First, it has a very unique 3D triangular pattern on the back side. While that looks good, it also provides an extra grip for those who fumble phones.
Moving the case from side to side you can see the extra depth that is added by the pattern, which changes depending on how the light is hitting it. It's quite attractive, and the case comes in white, black, champagne, and space gray finishes to accent your iPhone 6 or 6 Plus.
Other than the stunning design, the ThreeD Case is somewhat similar to a lot of less expensive polycarbonate cases on the market. However, designed by many did use an "uber premium polycarbonate composite" for this case that is recyclable and RoHS-compliant, and they include an MPACT GLASS tempered glass screen protector.
Rating: 3-1/2 stars out of 4 stars possible
BEZEL Case for iPhone 6 and 6 Plus ($29.99 for iPhone 6 Plus, $24.99 for iPhone 6)
The term "case" is really a misnomer for the BEZEL Case, as it's technically a bumper with no back. Think of the AL13, except without the aluminum on the outside, and you have the BEZEL Case.
As with the other cases, designed by many includes one of the excellent MPACT GLASS tempered glass screen protectors with the BEZEL Case to provide extra protection for your iPhone 6 or 6 Plus display.
The case comes in black, white, silver, champagne, and space gray, and features pass through buttons for the volume rocker and power switch. There's an opening in the side of the bumper for the mute switch, and the entire bottom of the case is open for unimpeded access.
Rating: 3-1/2 stars out of 4 stars possible
SLIM Case for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus ($24.99 for iPhone 6 Plus, $19.99 for iPhone 6)
Finally, we come to the least expensive member of the designed by many case/bumper family, the polycarbonate SLIM Case. It's a rather generic polycarb sleeve with no special design features, really. It does come with the MPACT GLASS screen protector, and can be purchased in clear translucent, smoke translucent, black, silver, champagne, space gray and white.
While you can get similar cases for quite a bit less from a number of vendors, they probably don't include a tempered glass screen protector.
Rating: 3 stars out of 4 stars possible
Giveaway
Thanks to our good friends at designed by many, we're giving away one each of the AL13 v3 (silver), ThreeD Case (champagne), BEZEL Case (white), and SLIM Case (black) cases or bumpers reviewed here. 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 January 23, 2015 11:59PM Eastern Standard Time.
You may enter only once.
Four winners will be selected in a random drawing. One will receive a AL13 v3 aluminum bumper for iPhone 6 Plus valued at $84.99, one will receive a ThreeD Case for iPhone 6 valued at $24.99, one will receive a BEZEL Case for iPhone 6 valued at $24.99, and one will receive a SLIM Case for iPhone 6 valued at $19.99.
