Some of you may not have heard of Nillkin, but they are a big Chinese manufacturer of mobile accessories. They produce cases for a wide range of mobiles including a number for the recently launched Sony Xperia S. Whenever you buy a new mobile finding the right case can be a challenge. You obviously don’t want to detract from the sleek lines of a new handset by adding a bulky case, but then again you need some kind of protection against bumps and scrapes.
We’ve already come across a number of Xperia S users who have dropped their handsets causing damage to the phone. Thankfully the Nillkin Super Shield shell for the Xperia S seems to offer a great compromise in maintaining the design of the handset whilst offering some protection. Click through to read our thoughts on this case.
We bought this handset on eBay for around the $15 mark, shipped directly from China. It took around ten days to be delivered to the UK which isn’t too bad. As you’ll read later, we think it was money well spent.
This particular case is available in three colours (black, brown and red). We are reviewing the black version that probably works well on both the black and white Xperia S models.
The shell comes well packaged and for the money you also get a decent screen protector included.
You get full instructions on how to apply the screen protector including a Nillkin card to help ensure bubbles are minimised.
A Nillkin cleaning cloth is also included to make sure there is no dust on the screen pre-application.
The hard shell is made from injection moulded matte plastic. There is no soft material on the inside holding the phone.
The Xperia S clips quite easily into the Nillkin shell. Perhaps a bit too easily was our first thought, but despite our attempts to shake the phone out the shell it did its job, holding the Xperia S in place.
The back of the shell has a textured anti-dust surface that should mean it is easy to wipe clean. The surface feels almost rubbery and holds firmly in the hand, leaving little chance of slippage.
The case has been beautifully designed with cut outs for the camera lens, flash and speaker all perfectly aligned.
The really nice thing about this case is that there is also a hole for the transparent LED strip. This means you will see it light up when you get a phone call and the handset is lying on its front. A very nice touch and not too many cases offer this.
There is ample room to access all of the phones ports and features including the HDMI port and volume rocker and camera shutter button.
The same goes for the other side with the USB port. We were initially worried that a plugged in USB cable may hit the top ledge of the case, but this wasn’t an issue in practice.
There is complete access to the top of the Xperia S…
… and likewise the bottom.
The phone clips into the hard shell. It should do a good job of protecting the phone in a fall, although as you can probably tell by the pictures the phone will not offer the protection that other cases do such as the Otterbox series.
SUMMARY
The Nillkin Super Shield Shell is one of the best Xperia S cases we’ve come across so far. It’s inexpensive, hardly adds any bulk, will protect your phone against small bumps and is beautifully designed. We haven’t come across any European retailers selling the Nillkin shell but it is readily available on ebay.
