It's that time again folks! Nordy is back from vacation, and that means more OtterBox goodies have been tortured, tested, and tormented for your knowledge and pleasure!
This years vacation was a working one, in addition to the camping trip, I was photographing my sister-in-law's wedding, so I needed to be able to take my gear with me. While OtterBox doesn't as of yet make a case large enough to hold my camera itself, they do make several models that are perfectly sized to hold a lot of my gear and accessories (Flashes, power packs and other tid-bits that I need while working). As well, with my recent promotion at work, I often need to be able to carry my surveillance gear in cases that a client will not find offensive, or amateur in appearance, so I had to look at upgrading how I move my supplies and protect them, and OtterBox had just the ones to fit the bill.
I had 3 new pieces of OtterBox kit with me this trip, all three of them being equipment cases for transporting of supplies
The
2500 
http://www.otterbox.com/waterproof-cases/otterbox-2500/
3000 
http://www.otterbox.com/waterproof-cases/otterbox-3000/ and
3510,
http://www.otterbox.com/otterbox-3510-foam/ Series cases.
As usual, all of these cases are manufactured to the usual OtterBox standards (Impact resistant polycarbonate shell with compression fit seals to make it a “Drybox” design, secure fitting latches that you KNOW are gonna hold when you close them, tie down fittings and lanyards built into, and included with the box itself, all of these are STANDARD features with OtterBox cases) and there is not much new that can be said about the manufacturing and standards, they are still top notch, and improving on them would be difficult.
Now for the Specifics...the 2500 was used for carrying spare batteries, my Flash, and my lens filters, gels and flash diffusers and color plates. The interior dimensions of the case (5.69”L-R x 3.06”F-B x 2.74” T-B) are snug, but allow for a fair amount of small supplies to be carried if you take the time to pack properly (I spent a ½ day before I left packing and re-packing each case so I could find the best fit for each of them for the items they were gonna carry). And this is the one that got the worst treatment. The Wedding Reception was held on a beach on the edge of the North Atlantic Ocean, so salt, mist, spray and sand were all an issue. Through it all, the case stayed tight and secure, no intrusion from Sand, Spray, or Salt (The terrible 3 “S”'s of any photographer shooting near the ocean). Hehehe, in fact, at one point during the shoot of pictures on the beach, we lost track of time and my “accessories” case, which has been seated on the beach near my feet, started to float away because the tide had come in without us noticing it. Luckily, the case was sealed, and it held up great, bobbing along like a little trooper in the North Atlantic Ocean. A quick $10 bribe to one of the kids playing on the beach got my case back without me having to wade out after it.
The use of the 3000 was not work related at all, this one was pure, personal Geek Comfort while camping. It PERFECTLY holds a PSP, Charge/Connection cord, spare extended life battery, and six UMD discs in snug, secure comfort. No fear of damage, moisture, or Mother Nature getting too friendly with your device. Load up your device with music, and movies, and have a few game discs on hand, and even when it pours down rain (which it did for 4 of the 6 days of the trip) you have plenty of entertainment in the tent to last you through the trip while the weather conspires against you, and you don't have to worry about it leaking when your tent does! (and BOY did our tent leak!)
And finally we come to the 3510. This one had the most handlin of anything brought on the trip, it held my Video Camera (Sony DCRSX40R) and charger with a spare battery, so this thing was constantly on the move, battered around, opened, closed, exposed to the elements and just generally
used. Through it all, it came through great, no problems, leaks or concerns (although the closure clips ARE a little stiff until you break them in, so be aware, that you will need to get a little wear on them before they open smoothly, until then, they will take some effort).
The 3510 comes with cellular foam on the inside that is designed to be formed to your device specifically, so you will want to send a little time laying things out for fit BEFORE you remove the foam to make little storage compartments for each component. Once you have that done, you are done, fit your gear in the box, throw in a moisture absorbing gel pack, and forget about it until you need it. Unless you plan on throwing it off a cliff, or running over it with a vehicle, it's pretty much safe.
I'll be rating all three of these products as one score for each category, as they all preformed to the same high standard. All scores are out of 10 points, and are purely subjective based on personal opinion.
Design: 9.5
The only issue I had with any of these cases, is that I did not know when I got them, that the closure clips are removable...this is not an issue, but it scared the crap out of me when I first opened the cases and the clip on one slid off, making me think I broke it. Once I looked at the design and realized it was meant to be that way, I was fine, but the initial shock was something I could have done without (Incidentally, if you are going to be taking these cases into the wild, I STRONGLY suggest a liberal dose of C/A (Cyano-Acrolate/Crazy Glue/Super Glue) and 24-48 hours drying time...the LAST thing you want is to lose a clip in the dark, and not be able to seal your case)
Ease of Use: 10
A 3 year old and a monkey could figure out how to use the cases and use them properly, sinple, basic, designed with a purpose, and fulfilling that purpose PERFECTLY.
Durability: 10 (only because my rating system only goes to 10)
Unless you are specifically TRYING to do so, you are not going to break these cases...even WHEN trying to do so, it is hard to do (I also own a 1000 (
http://www.otterbox.com/waterproof-cases/otterbox-1000/ ) series that I was given as a gift by a friend, that I use for carrying ID, cash, wallet, etc, in when I travel, I have thrown it down stairs, dropped it from a second story window, floated it in a sink, river, lake, AND Ocean, gone through Customs in 3 countries, and given to a teething child to chew on during a trip with my nephews...if the Baby drool cant penetrate that thing, nothing short of industrial strength acid will!). These cases will all hold up to more than average abuse, and you can feel safe and secure in using them to carry whatever gear you need to have with you.
Now if only they made one (foam lined) big enough to act as a case for my Digital SLR camera...HEY Kristin (Who is STILL the best company contact in the world BTW), suggest to the boys and girls in "Design" that a case for a Full Sized Camera would be appreciated...I'll even test it for them!
Overall: 9.83, coulda been a perfect 10, but I still cant figure out why the clips are removable, and it bugs me! (I'm obsessive that way)
Until next time, or until I finally manage to break an OtterBox product under everyday usage, we'll see ya later.
-'Nordy-
Hybrid Mode
