The HTC One M8 is this years HTC Flagship handset and at £549.99 sim free it’s certainly no cheap device. With a 5 inch display embedded neatly into a 146.4 x 70.6 x 9.4 mm full metal body it’s a device that already carries a lot of expensive real estate that if dropped could prove to be a costly accident.
When I went looking for a case for the device I thought it best to get one that full body protection and made sure the screen stayed safe too. Of course there are HTC’s official cases however they offer little protection as seen on our HTC Dot View Case Review so I had to look outside the HTC nest and ended up on the Noreve website looking at what they class as the “Leather D” case.
Aesthetics
The case itself looked lovely on the website, it seemed to cover everything you would want in terms of protection and based on looks alone, it didn’t look to add much bulk in terms of dimensions or weight.
Of course, when you order something online the downside is the fact that you can’t see it and confirm that everything you thought of the product was true.
The first thing that struck me was the packaging of the device, it was far superior to your average case and came in a nice cardboard box with its very own carry pouch for the case, though why you would need a carry case for a cover you intend to keep on your phone is beyond me.
Looks wise, the case was exactly as per the website if not slightly bulkier on the front than I imagined though this bulk would simply be considered additional protection.
Materials
The case is manufactured from genuine leather (though not sure which animal it came from) and a has a Thermoplastic Polymer inner structure (with no EM Interference) which does add a little more weight to the phone.
Build Quality
Based on build quality alone, the case it solid. Not only do the plastics feel solid, the lather is very well padded though strangely around the speaker grill the padding seems to have been forgotten about. This isn’t the only annoyance though, the speaker grill has a mesh which just isn’t fitted straight so it looks really annoying.
The case clips closed thanks to a solid piece of the Thermoplastic Polymer inner though over time I’d imagine it could either become weak or possibly cause some wear on the device.
Port Accessibility
Overall the port accessibility is pretty nice on this case, most (and I do say most) of the cut outs are exactly how they should be with the exception of the front facing camera cut out which for some strange reason, despite being round in shape, covers almost all of the camera and allows for the sensor to be shown.
What I did like though is that the case makes sure not to cover the additional noise cancelling microphones the phone has.
Fitting and Removing
Fitting the case is as simple as removing it, it clips in with very little force though and sits inside lipped edges around the device.
Protection
There is no doubt in my mind that this case offers some of the best protection on the market for the device. With a leather padded front end that wont flap open, thanks to the clip, you would struggle to damage the screen on the handset (that’s not a challenge though).
Even the rear, corners and sides of the device are protected from impacts and falls with the Thermoplastic Polymer inner.
Sadly the only thing that I can see damaging your phone though is the case itself which I covered above when discussing the clip that holds the case closed.
