First Look: Uncommon Deflector Cases for iPhone 5 + iPod touch 5G

As was the case with past Apple devices, Uncommon has released new personalized cases for the iPhone 5 — Clearly UN Deflector ($40), Deflector ($35), and Permafrost UN Deflector ($40) — as well as Deflector for the fifth-generation iPod touch ($30). All of the cases are hard plastic shells, a style of case we generally don’t review, but they’re worth mentioning because of your ability to customize them. You can either load your own pictures onto Uncommon’s site, or choose from its designs, including collaborations with college sports teams, and such companies as Uglydoll. The UN Deflectors offer various degrees of transparency, creating a cool visual effect. While the iPhone cases were all in good shape, our review unit of the iPod touch case exhibited some issues: the paint was peeling around the volume buttons, the loop button hole snapped the first time we installed it, and removal was rather difficult.

Updated April 17, 2013: Uncommon contacted us to let us know that the iPod touch case we received was from an initial sample run, and was in fact, too tight. A replacement unit sent to us fits properly, and is easier to remove. It can be seen in the last picture below.