Samsung's Two Piece case is actually kind of perfect
I'm not sure I'd call this a case, but I love it and want one for every phone.
A common thread alongside the unveil of the Galaxy S8 was a critical side-eye at the Two Piece case that would be sold for both sizes of the phone. Samsung didn't spend a lot of time explaining how this case worked, only that it had a top and a bottom that didn't connect and several color options that didn't match would be made available after the phone was released.
While everyone else was laughing, I bought one to see how it actually worked. To be perfectly honest, what Samsung did here is brilliant and I'm eager to see other companies follow suit.
I don't think this really qualifies as a case, but it's a nice-looking bumper.
If you've been reading my stuff for a while, you know I don't use cases. I can't ever stand them for long, something about $40 of plastic and silicone making the phone bulkier and generally not feeling as nice as the actual phone bothers me. It's not that I don't care about the phone, but I place value in the whole experience being enjoyable. Yes, I occasionally regret this choice a little when the phone looks beat to hell a year later. It's an conscious choice on my part, but if I could find a way to keep the phone slightly more safe through day to day use without compromising the design I will always consider it. Which is how I got here in the first place.
This "case" is really two pieces of silicone with a pad of that adhesive stuff you usually see called magic anti-slip material underneath. Each piece adheres to the top and bottom, and once in place neither piece moves unless you really try hard to remove them. I don't think this really qualifies as a case, but it's a nice-looking bumper for each of the four corners. At a minimum, it's enough material that I know I can set the phone down on its back without it sliding around anywhere or scratching the back and lens area.
Technicalities aside, this case offered me some immediate benefits. The grooves in the top half make it much easier to find the fingerprint sensor with my finger. I almost never put my finger on the camera anymore, which actually makes me want to use fingerprint unlock now. The bottom half provides just enough grip that I am comfortable using the phone with one hand in landscape, which means I can more quickly pull the phone from my pocket and take a photo. The edges of this phone made this particular maneuver pretty awkward for me up to this point, but now I'm able to really use the S8 the way I've wanted to from the start.
The biggest benefit for me is how easy you can remove Two Piece from the phone. There are no plastic notches to fumble with, and no worry that I'm going to damage the case by applying pressure in the wrong place. Apply a little force under one of the flat edges, and the adhesive releases. This means I can quickly jump in and out my Gear VR, where most other cases for this phone make this process tedious and time consuming.
For my needs, Samsung's Two Piece case is nearly perfect.
As much as I have enjoyed this bumper case thing so far, it has one glaring flaw. The adhesive pads are not flush with the edges of the silicone, which means the small gap in between your phone and the case quickly fills with whatever small junk is floating around in your pocket or bag. It's a trivial thing to remove the bumper and clean the back of the phone occasionally, but it's important to remember the back of this phone is glass. This means sand particles rubbing against the case over time will score the glass, eventually making it more fragile and prone to deeper scratches and breaks. It's also super gross to look at when you do eventually take the case off.
For my needs, Samsung's Two Piece case is nearly perfect. It gives me grip, a little peace of mind when using the phone, and I still get to enjoy the actual phone Samsung spent so much time and energy designing. It also helps that the asking price, $20 on Samsung's website, is pretty reasonable. Right now the only color for me is black, the pastel options Samsung has available aren't my thing. I'd like to see Samsung release a nice deep blue or green, but I'm very happy with what I have right now.
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