LifeProof vs OtterBox

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LifeProof and OtterBox are both smartphone cases designed to protect against drops and water damage. While Lifeproof only manufactures cases for iPhones and other Apple products, Otterbox is available for Android smartphones as well.

The OtterBox comes in various different series. The case that is comparable to LifeProof is the Armor Series. It is also available in less resilient, cheaper series called Defender ($49.95 - $59.95), Commuter (34.95), Reflex ($34.95), and Prefix ($24.95).

Comparison chart

LifeProof versus OtterBox comparison chart
	LifeProof	OtterBox
	current rating is 3.03/5 1 2 3 4 5 (271 ratings)	current rating is 3.53/5 1 2 3 4 5 (198 ratings)

Introduction	LifeProof, now acquired by Otterbox, was a private company selling iPhone cases and a registered trademark .	OtterBox is a privately owned consumer electronics accessory company and a registered trademark that is often used generically for waterproof electronic cases for mobile devices.
Price (when bought directly from companies)	$89.99 (iPhone 5s)	$99.95 (iPhone 5)
Headquarters	San Diego, CA	Fort Collins, CO
Meets military standards	Yes	Yes
Shock resistance	Up to 6.6ft drop	Up to 10 foot drop and 2 tons of crushing force
Waterproof IP-68 rating	Up to half an hour, 2 meters down	Up to half an hour, 2 meters down
Thickness	0.48 inches	.75 inches
Weight	1 ounce	4.1 ounces
Colors	Black, white, grey, dark grey, yellow, red, azure, cyan, olive, pink	Black with green, blue or orange.

Features

LifeProof is waterproof for half an hour, up to a depth of two meters, and can protect against drops of up to 6 feet 6 inches. It also allows users to take photos underwater and has a swimming headphone adaptor. It adds 1.5mm to the thickness of the phone, and it also functions as a subwoofer to improve the bass and mid-frequency sounds from the iPhone speaker. The case is available in black, white, cyan, brown and magenta.

OtterBox is also waterproof for half an hour, up to a depth of two meters, and can protect against drops up to 10 feet. The headphone and charging ports are accessible through watertight rubber flaps.

Design

Here are the front and back views of OtterBox and LifeProof cases (click on the image thumbnails for larger views).

Front and back view of LifeProof Fre for iPhone 5 from the LifeProof website

Front and back view of Otterbox Armor for iPhone 5

Durability

LifeProof is shock, water and dust resistant. It meets Military Standard 810F-516, which requires that it can withstand infrequent, non-repetitive shocks.

OtterBox is also shock, water and dust resistant. It can withstand drops of 10 feet and 2 tons of crushing force.

LifeProof Nuud for iPhone

Price

LifeProof for the iPhone 5s costs $89.99 when bought directly from the company.

The OtterBox Armor costs $99.95 for iPhone 5.

Where to Buy

LifeProof and OtterBox can both be bought directly from the companies themselves, as well as from places like Bestbuy and Amazon, with a small discount. The official LifeProof website also offers the chance to purchase a complete guarantee against water damage.

The Amazon Best Sellers List for smartphone cases has several other options for smartphone cases.

Reviews

PCMag praised LifeProof’s resilience, but claimed it made the screen duller and more reflective. They also criticized the sound quality of calls.

According to a review by News Observer, the OtterBox can withstand being driven over by a car.

Popularity

LifeProof was the About.com Reader’s Choice in 2013 for Best iPhone case. It also won the Backpacker 2013 Editors’ Choice Snow Award, and was name the Best iPhone Case of 2012. It's lighter, more fashionable looking, but not as sturdy as Otterbox, although it's still 100% waterproof.

OtterBox is the number one bestselling smartphone case in the US. It's plain-looking and almost twice as heavy as LifeProof, but extremely sturdy and scratch-proof.

OtterBox acquires LifeProof

In May 2013, OtterBox acquired LifeProof, making it the no. 1 company for smartphone cases. While the terms of agreement are not completely known, both LifeProof and OtterBox can both be purchased at their respective websites.

References

About the Author

Nick Jasuja has over 15 years of technology industry experience, including at Amazon in Seattle. He is an expert at building websites, developing software programs in PHP and JavaScript, maintaining MySQL and PostgreSQL databases, and running Linux servers for serving high-traffic websites. He has a bachelor's degree in Computer Science & Engineering.