OtterBox Resurgence Power Case-2

Whether or not you have Apple’s latest iPhone 6 or next-oldest 5/5s, Otterbox’s Resurgence Power Case is optimized to give you a high-speed charge and double boost of battery power on the road while protecting your valuable piece of Apple tech.

OtterBox Resurgence Power Case-3

Out of the box, the case includes a micro USB charging cable, headphone jack extender and pocket instruction guide. I found the two-part case difficult at first to open, fearing I would actually break the thing. A tip from OtterBox’s tech support: the lip on top right by Apple’s power button is where you want to begin snapping it apart. I’ve read many online reports mentioning the difficulty.

Once you get the hang of it, the case feel solid and not as clunky in the hand as I first suspected it might be from the first time I got it out of the package. The photo below shows the area I’m referring to. Snapping it back, start from the top and work your way down.

OtterBox Resurgence Power Case-6 OtterBox Resurgence Power Case-9

Tech Specs

– 2,000 milliamp hours (mAh) battery power doubles the phone’s battery life
– Sync data wireless or plug your phone into a charging cable without needing to remove the case
– Slim design offers rugged protection
– Jack extender doubles as a headphone keeper

OtterBox Resurgence Power Case-1

A button on the bottom right of the case measures the charging status in 25% increments using sections of light that form a circle at 100% charge. When plugged into a computer or iPad wall charger (recommended according to the website’s downloadable FAQ), the phone will charge first, then the case.

OtterBox Resurgence Power Case-8

The site also notes that the speed at which the Resurgence will charge depends on three things:
– How much charge is on the case
– How you use your phone while charging with the case
– How low the remaining battery percentage is on your iPhone

OtterBox Resurgence Power Case-4

When the phone and case are completely charged, the unit shuts off automatically in order to save extra battery for later. Resurgence will sync both wired and wirelessly with the case on. A headphone jack extender is included since the bottom of the case has is too deep to accommodate the jack on its own.

Battery Test

As the Resurgence ships on a partial charge, I added a few hours using the cable and an iPad wall charger for the first time. I took the phone out for a full day of use and waited until my iPhone was at 25% remaining power before boosting it back up with the Resurgence.

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When I pressed the status LED button for a few seconds, the LED flashed, the circle rotated three times and indicated the case charge level as per the manual (this confirms that the case’s built-in battery is charging the phone). The case stopped charging once the phone was back at 88%, just over an hour later.

I used the phone a couple of times for Twitter, so I thought perhaps having done that, the charge stopped. I restarted the phone and watched the percentage change to 90%. After another hour, it remained that way.

I did this test a second time, waiting for the battery percentage to drop to 17%, then letting the remaining power in the case charge up the phone. This time, the phone charged up to 92% (from 17%) in two hours, 10 minutes.

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I made a phone call during that time (even though I’d meant to stay away from the phone this time to see whether that would make the difference straight to 100%), it’s hard NOT to use a smart phone for over two hours! When through with the call, I pushed the LED button for a couple of seconds, and heard the charge connectivity sound from the iPhone. After another 20 minutes, the charge was at 100%.

BTW, to manually cancel the charging process, press and hold the same button for a few seconds. The LED will flash, blink three times, then show the case’s charge level.

This is the first non-solar built-in charging case I’ve worked with. The closest product in price and functionality to the OtterBox line is Mophie’s Juice Pack Air, though the battery case has slightly less battery capacity at 1,700mAh instead of OtterBox’s 2,000.

OtterBox Resurgence Power Case
[iPhone 6 OtterBox Resurgence Power Case collection]

iPhone 6 Resurgence Power cases are available in two-toned Glacier (white front, grey back) Cardinal (black front, red back), black (on both sides) and Mint Ice (white front, mint green back).

OtterBox Resurgence Power Case
[iPhone 5/5s OtterBox Resurgence Power Cases]

For the iPhone 5/5s, the two-sided black and two-toned Glacier is joined by Satin Rose (black front, deep pink back) and Teal Shimmer (white front, teal green back). Noticeably, the LED lights have moved to the back of the 6 cases, and the front bottom is not as deep, eliminating the need for a jack extender (as on the 5/5s).

Conclusion

The Resurgence is a solid case with dual functionality that’s reliable under most conditions. My second test confirmed that the battery would charge to 100%.

The OtterBox Resurgence Power Case retails for US $79.96 via OtterBox online. Best Buy Canada’s current price is CDN $81.98.

Disclaimer: OtterBox sent me a Resurgence Power Case to test drive for this feature. Opinions, as always, are my own.

Unwatermarked photos courtesy of OtterBox.

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