Review: FlexiShield Skin for Nokia N8
Score:
61%
There are those who proclaim that the Nokia N8 needs no protection at all. After all, with Gorilla Glass and aluminium unibody shell, what's there to get damaged or to break? However, it's still a relatively expensive bit of kit and even small scuffs will annoy if you drop it onto concrete enough times. And you will, since the aluminium is incredibly smooth and slippery. Which is why there's a small industry creating grippable skins for the N8 - the FlexiShield is the latest of the breed - but it does it pass muster?
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First impressions of the FlexiShield are good, it's made of very tough plastic, glossy on its top half and matt on the underside, more or less mimicking the N8's own look. Unlike the super-flexible Nokia CC-1005, which I reviewed a month ago, the Flexi-Shield is fairly unyielding and has to be eased onto the N8 much like putting on a bicycle tyre, you almost need a lever as you try to get the last corner on! This means that the FlexiShield is likely to stay on, once it's on - you're not going to be swapping N8 covers on a daily basis.
The case's looks are a little odd, in that there's little wrap around at the top, above the N8's 'Nokia' logo, but it's generally a good fit. The FlexiShield sides raise the N8 screen away from any messy surfaces you care to leave it on - ditto the camera 'glass'. Cutouts for almost all the N8's buttons and features are well placed and look neat enough:
Notice the contrast in the photo above, between the shiny half of the FlexiShield and the matt half. In addition to the styling, the materials used do make it very hard to drop the N8 - which is, as I say, one of the main reasons for the case's existence. There's plenty of grip and plenty of protection.
Alas, there are also a number of significant negatives that stop me recommending the FlexiShield. There's evidence that this case was designed based on an early prototype N8 and that the designer didn't really understand what all the N8's physical features were for. For example, on the camera island cover, there's no hole for the main N8 microphone - so any videos you take on the N8 with this case on will have the main audio channel significantly muffled:
Just as tellingly, there are cutouts for the end-cap dismantling screws, something which the average user will never, ever need to touch:
All I can think is that the designer didn't really understand this point. And in any case, even if you were to unscrew these screws through the FlexiShield cutouts, how the heck are you then supposed to remove the end-cap with the case on? Staggering and Baffling.
There's more, though. The rigidity of the FlexiShield means that the superb N8 volume/zoom/shutter buttons are all drastically reduced in sensitivity - you have to press really hard and it's not a pleasant experience. Even worse is the moulding over the main power button - you have to depress this with extreme force, using a hard nail or a convenient screwdriver(!) in order to make it do anything at all.
I wouldn't totally dismiss this case out of hand - after all, it does its primary job of protection and grip quite well - but its presence ruined the N8 for me and made it almost unusable. Into the giveaway pile it goes. Sorry, Mobile Fun!
Steve Litchfield, AAS, 26 April 2011
Reviewed by Steve Litchfield at