The LifeProof brand has become synonymous with quality and durability, producing cases that are designed specifically to cope with a seriously active lifestyle without compromising on profile. Whether it’s water, dirt or snow, the Frē has you covered.

The first thing you see upon opening the packaging, is a set of instructions for water-testing your case before you install it. Yes, you read that right – LifeProof are so confident in their product they actually encourage you to submerse it in water for 30 minutes before use to ensure everything is good to go. I did struggle a little to figure out how to actually open the case initially, but once past this it was literally click it in and lock it closed.

Once this is complete, every port, speaker, camera and sensor is 100% sealed against ingress. Even the volume and lock keys sport bumper protection so they can’t be indirectly damaged by a direct hit to the case. But here’s the really cool part – even the home button is fully sealed in, and it doesn’t interfere with fingerprint recognition in the slightest. Like, at all.

The built in screen protector is also a winner. You notice that it’s there, but it doesn’t hamper functionality and you get used to it very quickly. Glare isn’t significantly increased and there’s no finger-drag. The charge port is easily accessible and the speaker, camera and flash performance is just the same as if your phone were nude. Drop rating is from 2m, water rating is 2m for up to 1 hour, and it only weighs 47 grams.

For the level of protection that this case provides, the negatives are minimal and I’m probably even being a little finicky here. The buttons do require a lot of extra pressure to push, so adjusting volume and the like does take more effort and time, and the case does add a fair bit of width. However, the profile is still exceptionally slim, there’s a range of cute colours, and it’s hard to argue really in light of the protection and price point.

In summary, this case is ideal for the active lifestyle (think snowboarding, motocross, trades etc) and gets 4/5 stars.