Does the community recommend to use a softcase?

[berlinfairphoneuser]

@urs_lesse That’s a great idea I’ve never thought of - the case as a visual help to find the phone when you are at home and the phone disappears… The cases I had were all black, and why not try a case with a loud color? - Another question: Is there any third party company who makes cases for Fairphone?

[tklr]

Not cases but bags over here at FitBag, used them long ago and they served me well.
Another option are custom made ones at Etsy.

[anon9989719]

I work outside in the fields with a green case, there was no red for the FP3 so I have an alarm set for 6pm every day so I can go listening around the field when I loose it

However the reason I have the case is so I can stick a thin piece of fabric between the case and the USB port so the port doesn’t collect dust and debris.

[Paperpilot]

I say the case question depends on how you feel about scratches and dents.
I’ve had my FP4 for less than 4 days, and it already has the start of a tiny scratch/ding collection on the frame due to my clumsiness and also stupidity.

Therefore I am 3d printing a case as I write!

[Willeke]

Hi tklr,

One more thought about the softcase… I didn’t purchase the protective case yet, because it wasn’t available in the beginning. So I thought, because FP states that the device has a military standard for being robust, let’s first start using it without one. I did buy a screeenprotector though. That didn’t work to protect the screen from breaking. I dropped my phone accidentally and the screen is already broken. I guess it is the weight of the phone. I own my fp now for 6 weeks and I have dropped it already more times than all my former devices together. I guess the weight is the problem, both for dropping it so often and for easy damaging. So now ordering a new screen and a protective case. I am curious to other experiences with handling this phone?

Kind regards,
Willeke

[Paperpilot]

As with all my previous phones, I have a case on mine.
This time I printed my own for “fun”, and also went for slimmer (“less”) protection this time (compared the bulky folio cases on my previous phones). The reason is four-fold:

• This phone is very bulky! Hence the desire for a slimmer case.
• Spare parts are readily available at more reasonable prices than for my previous phones, this time from the manufacturer, not AliExpress. So if the screen breaks, it’s not the end of the phone.
• The often mentioned “mil spec” drop rating. I’m not going to rely solely on it, but it must count for something compared to phones without?
• Scratches on the aluminium frame anodising are purely cosmetic, nothing to worry about… but I still don’t like them!

Additionally this is the first phone I put a screen protector on. Reducing the need for a folio case.

[Alex.A]

@Paperpilot

So if the screen breaks, it’s not the end of the phone.

I personally don’t really agree with this argument, as the environmental impact of breaking a screen is much more important to me than not having a soft case for different understandable reasons. The easily replaceable/not too expensive screen isn’t really a good argument for me, as I think the best is not to break my screen at all in the first place.

[Paperpilot]

Of course. But accidents happen.
Anyway, it’s still my justification for a soft case instead of an otterbox. protect for the 99% rather than the 99.9%.

[Alex.A]

Sure, I think I misunderstood you, and having a case is important for me too Was just replying to the general argument.