Spigen Tough/Slim/Hybrid Armor Review - iPhone 7 Cases

There are a ton of different variations to these cases. Make sure you get the right one!

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If you get the right version, you’re going to have a great feeling and fitting case for your iPhone 7 that will protect it from most normal day usage. The design of these cases has actually changed slightly when compared to previous versions which is neat to see Spigen evolve their products.

My biggest gripe with the cases is the amount of variation between the same case. It took a bit to wrap my head around all the different versions.

For my Spigen Tough Armor, Slim Armor and Hybrid Armor review, the Tough Armor scores the highest at 4.2 Eh’s out of 5. The Hybrid Armor and Slim Armor don’t protect your iPhone as much as the Tough Armor and score between 3.8 to 4.0’s. The range of scores is to take into account the variations of the cases.

In terms of design, the Spigen Tough Armor is the biggest of the group. In fact it will make your iPhone 30% thicker whereas the Slim and Hybrid only at about 23% extra thickness. Every case will add about 2mm or 5/64’s of an inch which might be noticeable. Despite being larger, the Tough Armor surprisingly doesn’t weigh any heavier than the Slim and Hybrid Armors.

The Polycarbonate shells and TPU sleeves fit well together which makes the iPhone feel quite safe in the cases. In terms of having the cases sliding around, every case sticks to a flat surface like glue when placed facedown but if you get on normal coated polycarbonate shell, it’s going to slide around like Monty on ice. The cases with the soft-rubber coated polycarbonate shell don’t have that problem.

The cases with the soft-rubber coating scratch a little quicker than the normal polycarbonate shells which isn’t great. But the cases with the soft-rubber coating work way better in your hand and the texture of the coating is awesome.

Confused yet? Here’s another curveball. There are transparent TPU sleeves for everyone of these cases as well. I prefer the transparent sleeves as the material is a little grippier than the black TPU but the only case that has both the soft-rubber coating and clear TPU is the Hybrid Armor.

For protection, everyone of these cases is drop-rated to Mil-STD 810G. which means they’ll protect your iPhone from at least 4 ft drops. Which as you saw at the beginning, is generally true.

Every case uses Spigen’s Air Cushion Technology which basically means tiny pockets of air protect your iPhone during drops which is fancy. The edges on the case are high enough to use thicker glass screen protectors and still keep the screen off a flat surface.

The biggest difference between these cases in terms of protection is the extra dust protection that the Tough Armor offers. Spigen added speaker grills on the Tough Armor that project sound forward so in my opinion, that offers a bit more protection for the iPhone. However, these modified speaker grills didn’t show up on the iPhone 7 plus version of the Tough Armor.

None of the cases we received came with screen protectors.

I didn’t have any issues with the functionality of the iPhone inside the case. Buttons worked well, the edges of the case didn’t get in the way of the screen and you could access the lightning port with ease. I will note that the buttons sit flush against the case which may bother some people as you’ll have to get use to groping your iPhone a bit before finding the right button. The Slim and Tough Armors got extra points for the kickstand. If you get the versions with kickstands. Frick.

One-handed usage was decent for every case as long as you got the soft-rubber coated versions.

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[whodeycinbengals]

I had a gunmetal tough armor for the iPhone 6. They make great looking cases and you won't see a lot of people with them, which I like. The tough armor is always my favorite Spigen case. Great job on the video, Aaron!

[JennieWrenStar]

After watching a few reviews, especially yours! I decided to get a Spigen crystal shell case with air-cushion technology (Cases are more limited here in the UK) for my new Jet black iPhone 7 bought on the 2nd of October 2017.
It looked smart at first, and together with the Rhinoshield 3-D curved edge to edge screen protector you recommended; has proven tough enough to cope with constant drops from my wheelchair onto my nonslip coated concrete floors.
However, the Spigen case is now constantly covered in fingerprints, no matter how many times it is cleaned, whilst the Rhinoshield screen protector remains clean.
Worse, around the camera area, powder and dust get in constantly, but my hands are no longer strong enough to keep taking the cover off to wipe inside, and my Carers can be a little slapdash sometimes, I am scared one day they’ll drop on my iPhone when the case is off to be cleaned inside! I’ve had the Spigen Case less than four months, I would expect higher quality for the price. Consequently the back of my relatively new jet black iPhone is now scratched because we keep having to take the case off to clean inside.😭 I would be so grateful if you could pass this on to Spigen. They could at least put a warning on the packet! Thank you.

[MakzFishin]

I nabbed the tough armor (in black) a week before the iphone 7+ was to be released and received it the day before the 7's were supposed to go public. My iphone 7plus matte black was sent out the next week so I had to hold on to the case for about a week before slipping an actual phone into it. I had reservations about it because without the phone inside it felt a little flimsy. As soon as I put the iphone 7 plus inside of it the case transformed into a solid feeling case that I knew I could trust for some decent drops and dings. The pronounced edges on the back can make an impression on your hands after some extended usage but you get used to it. The buttons being flush does make you blindly mash the volume buttons until you've really figured out the spacing of them. I quickly installed a zagg glass screen protector and with that and the tough armor case I am pretty confident my iphone 7 plus will handle it's fair share of drops. In fact, while getting out of my truck my iphone went flipping out of my lap and bounced around on concrete for a second before coming to rest. I said a few choice words being mad at myself for not being more careful but after inspecting the case and iphone found there to be little no damage to the case. There were some small scuffs where the rubber had contacted the concrete but after wiping off that area I found that it was mostly dust/dirt form the ground and the few nicks were miniscule. I am very happy with my case and the fact that it cost a fraction of what other brands charge. I enjoy watching your videos and hope to see more from the future iphone 7/7+ cases that companies will offer in the future. I know the iphone 7 series is pretty much waterproof but still excited to see what lifeproof and catalyst come up with so ill keep an eye on your channel for when you get those in so I can receive an informative review

[THHGURU]

best channel for case reviews! Never disappoints.

[Roginator]

Did they listen to my tweet then Aaron? Nice to see you actually being sent them for a change and still being your unbiased self 👍🏻

[eyean]

As an Apple employee I love your videos!

[antoninoquintero]

I think I've watched almost all of your videos 💯🔥

[steve.newcomb]

I would like a 7 plus case. Mine is matte black so whatever you think looks good with that I'd be happy to have.

[lilmsgs]

Where's the tool? All I see on your website link is a review of your 10 favorites...

[andrewobloy]

i really like the iphone 7 ones with the clear tpu and the kickstand. and would love to take one off of your hands.

[jjday]

I would be grateful to get one for my 7 plus matte black. Slim armor in black if available. Good job on the video by the way. Very informative.

[mjabdus]

Hi i cant find the ranking or scoring list comparing all the case you tested in the website. Can you provide me the direct link to the scores of all the cases. Thank you

[davidchatson]

I want to buy the Spigen Tough Armor. Where can I buy the right version???

[AW-kgck]

Okay just to make things even more confusing I reached out to Spigen regarding the soft rubber coating and now for the 7 plus version only "the black"(not jet black versions) have the soft rubber coating no other colour for the 7 plus is offered in the soft rubber coating. And since I don't have the iPhone 7 version I have absolutely no idea what versions it offers in the soft rubber coating. Holly Molly.... If Spigen would just offer every case they sell in every colour with the soft rubber coating I would probably just use spigen cases. I do not like there cases that don't offer the soft rubber coating just way to slippery. Now I'm really confused 😱

[deadhandtcg]

Would recommend the jet black spigen tough armor, 10/10 I love spigen

[megami]

I'm thinking about getting the tough armor

[whatslefther]

Black tough armor for iPhone 7 plus? I haven't been able to find a case I like yet

[huroners]

best case under 40$ ive ever use for my iPhone!

[penguinsnaners]

I love the you actually use the cases before you review them! If you still have one, could I have a 7 plus case please? 😊

[deathrodamus]

Hi Aaron, can you add an additional test when you do case reviews. I suggest to measure the heat generated by the phone and comparing it with the same phone in a case. I'm like graphic intensive games, and it heats up the phone pretty quickly. So this will be very helpful for me and those people who play games a lot on their phone. Thanks. And great video man!