Hitcase Pro Review: Rugged Case & TrueLUX iPhone Lens System

0 Shares

Mobiography is a reader-supported website. If you buy through some of the links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more

For adrenaline junkies or enthusiastic iPhone photographers alike, ensuring the safety of your beloved iPhone is a high priority. If you have ever dropped your beloved phone, then you will know that strange sensation when time seems to suddenly switch into slow motion. For this reason, many photographers choose to invest in a robust, protective phone case.

I recently managed to get my hands on the Hitcase Pro and their TrueLUX iPhone lens system. This conveniently coincided with a family holiday and gave me the perfect opportunity to review the Hitcase Pro and put it through its paces.

In this Hitcase Pro review I’ll give my views on this waterproof iPhone case, its macro, wide, and superwide lens and how the products performed.

What is the Hitcase Pro?

The Hitcase Pro is a waterproof case for iPhone (sorry Android users), which provides a high degree of protection against knocks, bumps, or accidentally drops, even from a height of 16 feet.

Thanks to a side attachment fitting, the case can be fixed to a variety of different action camera mounts including the Hitcase ShootR hand grip or a goPro compatible fitting.

In short, the Hitcase Pro is a rugged and protective case that is perfectly geared to people who love an action-packed outdoor lifestyle but who hate risking expensive phone damage.

The case itself has a solid feel about it thanks to an aluminum frame and polycarbonate surround. I found that my iPhone fit snugly into the case surround with no room for movement once in position.

The Hitcase Pro comes with a choice of two covers that snap onto the front of the case surround. The first is the waterproof cover which, when fitted, creates a completely watertight seal around the phone thanks to an O-ring system. This means the phone has an underwater rating and can be used underwater to a depth of 10 meters or 33 feet.

The second cover is simply a rubber surround that provides a raised barrier that stops the screen from coming into direct contact with any surfaces that may scratch or mark the phone’s screen.

How to Fit the Hitcase Pro Case

Fitting the Hitcase cover is a breeze. First, you need to make sure there is no debris lodged in the O-ring seal which might cause water to leak into the case. With the cover places over the seal, all you need to do is firmly press down and make sure all four corners and the edges are firmly snapped into position. Make sure there are no gaps that would allow water to penetrate into the case (and subsequently the phone).

Once the cover is in position, the next step is to open the rubber lightening charging cable cover at the bottom of the case, then lightly slide your fingers down the cover from top to bottom. This will expel any excess air from inside the case and ensure that the touch-sensitive cover is firmly pressed against the phone’s screen. Finally, the lightning plug cover needs to pushed back into position creating an airtight seal.

How Practical is the Hitcase Pro?

With the waterproof case in place, the Hitcase Pro is a product that opens up plenty of underwater photo opportunities.

I was a little reluctant to test the performance of the case when being dropped from a great height. However, my 7-year-old son was not. On a couple of occasions, he accidentally dropped the phone onto hard, tiled flooring and on both occasions, I’m pleased to say the phone survived. Following these mishaps, I can confidently say that the case would help protect the phone from any unwanted knocks and tumbles.

Using the phone while the case was fitted wasn’t a problem. The touchscreen of the phone was still very responsive and the cover didn’t impede performance or sensitivity as I thought it would do. I did find that the case added quite a bit of weight and bulk to the phone, which I felt for everyday use would become a bit of an annoyance. For this reason I only really used it when at the pool, on the beach or anywhere that would likely put my phone at risk of water damage, exposure to sand or being dropped.

On one side of the Hitcase Pro is a slide attachment. This enables the case to be fitted to a number of different camera mounts as well as the Hitcase ShootR hand grip, which is a short, lightweight monopod with an extendable handle. A bit like a selfie stick. When fitted, the attachment provided a reassuringly solid grip.

But What About the Hitcase Pro iPhone Lenses?

The Hitcase Pro also features three add-on TrueLUX lenses that extend the clarity and creativity of the images taken. The lenses consisted of a wide lens which offering a 104-degree field of view. A superwide angle lens that gives a 160-degree field of view and a macro lens which is perfect for taking photos at a distance of 15-25mm.

Each of these lenses twists into a screw mount fitting on the camera case. I found the photos produced using the lenses were of good quality, although there was a lot of distortion using the wide lens, but this is often the case with small, wide-angle add-on lenses.

I think the lenses are probably better suited for action video work rather than for serious iPhone photography, although if you can work with these distortions then you can get some really creative results.

Let’s take a closer look at each lens.

The Macro lens

The macro lens allows you focus on subjects at very close distances of between 15-25mm. The resulting images were clear, edge to edge clarity, with none of the outer edge blurring which you sometime get with other small add-on lenses.

Photo taken with the macro lens

As with all macro lenses, the depth of field is very shallow which helps to create some superb bokeh effects and added depth. This is something that you need to bear this in mind when focusing as a steady hand is needed at such close quarters.

I was very impressed with the results produced by the macro lens. It is a perfect way to add some creativity to the photos you shoot with your iPhone.

The Wide Lens

For situations such as shooting landscape scenes, wide open spaces, architecture or travel photography, you may sometimes benefit from being able to capture a wider field of view than that captured by just using the standard lens of the iPhone camera. These sorts of situations are perfect for the Hitcase wide lens.

The wide lens captures a 104-degree field of view which is perfect for photographing wide open vistas or scenes where the standard iPhone lens just isn’t enough.

Photo taken with no lens attached

Photo taken with the wide-angle

The Hitcase Pro wide lens offered great clarity throughout the image with only some slight blurring in the corners of the images. These weren’t very noticeable and can be again expected from small add-on lenses of this type.

A more obvious effect of using the wide lens was a curved distortion that was created, particularly towards the outer edges of the frame. This is more noticeable in a horizontal or vertical lines and again, can only be expected when using wide angle lenses, particularly the smaller variety.

Overall I was impressed with the results achieved of the Hitcase wide lens.

The Superwide Lens

The Hitcase supersede lens allows you to capture an extremely wide 160-degree field of view. Much wider than when using the wide lens. The effect produced by the superwide lens is a sort of fisheye look that gives some awesome distortion effects. Theses fisheye effects may not be for everyone or to be used in every situation when you want to capture a wider field of view but they certainly offer photographers some additional creative photo opportunities.

Photo taken with the super wide-angle

Like with the other Hitcase Pro lenses, the clarity throughout the image is very good with hardly any of the dark vignetting that you sometimes get with other super wide angle lenses that I’ve used in the past. Any dark vignetting that you may get can easily be removed in post production using photo editing apps like Snapseed or Touch Retouch.

Final Thoughts

Overall, I was impressed with the Hitcase Pro and would highly recommend it. It is well-made, cleverly designed, rugged product that demonstrates excellent levels of durability. The add-on lenses were of good quality and delivered superb results.

There were some obvious distortions, but this can only be expected when using small, wide-angle add-on lenses. If you are looking for an add-on lens as a serious photography tool, then you are probably best investing in something like a Moment lens.

However, if you are someone who is an active outdoor type and regularly takes part in water sports activities, mountain biking, snowboarding, climbing or other similar activities and you need something that will stand up to a bit of rough and tumble, then the Hitcase Pro is well worth taking a look at.