Gadgetory

this may look like a pocket arcade game from 1989 but it's actually a case for one of the world's most advanced smartphones is the HTC One m8 snoo dot view case worth the 50 bucks the company wants for it i'm michael fisher from pocket now let's find out as cases go this one is pretty typical around back rigid plastic available in a variety of colors with a display cover around front that opens on a side mounted hinge if that were all there was to it we'd end the review here with a half-hearted matte but of course this case is called dot view for a reason over 1500 perforations in the front cover work with a dedicated screen mode and a magnetic sensor to display the time the weather waiting notifications and other information when the flap is closed the dot view case allows limited touch input when it's closed as well you can double tap to wake the device swipe down to activate voice tiling and swipe up to take an incoming call if there are no notifications waiting the device will display the current weather beneath the time the notifications are fun if a little limited they're confined to HTC apps so while phone calls SMS calendar reminders and such will be displayed other common alerts like hangouts Facebook Gmail won't that's understandable but it's still unfortunate on the bright side the phone automatically wakes from standby when the case is open which is very handy and media continues playing even when the case is closed all that is very smart not so smart the hinge design well it's very good-looking it's also quite rigid and it's inflexibility means the front flap doesn't sit flush against the cases back surface that makes using it kind of a pain the constant hinge tension makes the phone very springy in both one and two handed use which makes typing almost impossible unless you're really squeezing on the thing to keep it open it's easier in landscape but overall it's pretty uncomfortable that's a shame given the case as other high points we've never seen anything quite as retro chic as the dot view approach and the case is well built low profile and attractive on the whole we've reached out to HTC for comment on a possible fix and will edit below if the company replies it's also quite possible this problem will solve itself over time as the hinge becomes broken in with use until we get a better sense of how it ages our impression of the dot view case is that of a form over function accessory but then again form is at the top of HTC's priority list with the new one m8 the cases limitations will doubtless bother some especially given its $50 price point but you're also getting quite a bit of retro style and not a little protection for that ulysses s grant note and for some buyers that's reason enough to splurge our full review of the HTC One m8 is live right now and it's available in the first link in the description below there's a like button down there to please click it and leave a comment let us know what you think about the dot view case whether you would buy one if you also picked up an HTC One m8 check out our comparisons in depth feature tours and unboxing of the same device here on YouTube and be sure to follow us on social media so you can see what we're talking about both on and off duty until next time this has been michael fisher with PocketNow thank you for watching we'll see on the next one you