Otterbox Announces iPhone 5 Cases

The leaks of the iPhone 5 paid off for some accessory makers, just moment after the announcement Otterbox already has cases for the new device.

Otterbox has iPhone 5 cases in all four of its major product series: Defender, Commuter, Reflex, and Prefix. All four lines offer some sort of protection for the iPhone 5, though with varying degrees. The Defender is the strongest of the four, and the durability of the cases decreases as the price decreases.

Of the four devices, only the Defender and Commuter cases are available for pre-order now. The Defender Series costs $49.95, and the Commuter Series case costs $34.95. Neither case comes with a firm release date, but they will likely be available shortly after the iPhone 5 releases on September 21 if Otterbox is already taking pre-orders.

The two other lines, the Reflex Series and Prefix Series aren’t yet available for pre-order, and they also lack release dates. Users can sign up for more information about when the cases are available, however. The Reflex Series will cost $34.95 like the Commuter Series, and the Prefix Series will cost $24.95.

Historically Otterbox is one of the best manufacturers of rugged/durable smartphone cases. There are other durable cases out there, but Otterbox is one of our favorites.

Unfortunately Otterbox’s Armor Series wasn’t announced for the iPhone 5, but that’s not a huge surprise as the company had to delay the production of that case for quality issues already. We hope that when the Armor Series is ready it will come out for the iPhone 5 as well as the iPhone 4/4S.