[Galaxy Note II Accessories] snapz54:
Today we’re looking at the two custom cases for the Galaxy Note 2.

Click here for the full review with clickable links and where to buy

First, a very basic thin plastic case from Casetagram. Casetagram, as you've no doubt figured out by now, involves your social media in the design process. Another case from Case-Custom is thicker hard glossy plastic and it has almost squared off sides that turn the Note 2 into an almost iPhone shaped smartphone. They'll both take about 1 month from the time you order them unless you select expedited shipping which will cut that time in half. While they are the same thing in theory, these two products are different on just about every level, read on.

Click here to see a video slideshow of the two cases

Casetagram case $39.99

Pros: Great if you're social, very thin case, decent printing, layouts and effects are unique to customizing sites, case design app available for iOS

Cons: a bit expensive for what you get, no Android design app

A very thin, lightweight case that is made of a clear white or clear dark plastic. It's thin enough that it should still fit in some custom molded note 2 docks. Either color you decide to design on, you'll be able to see through to the back of your phone if you pick a design that leaves empty negative space. I personally can see the “Galaxy Note 2” logo and ugly “Verizon” logo and huge “4g” graphic through the cracks in my photo collage. If you read this site frequently, you know how I feel about Verizon, the fact that I can't cover up their graffiti makes me angry. I don't see the benefit of the negative space being clear when you're designing a cover to “cover” your phone. To be fair, the design tool on the website does clearly show you that the negative space will be see through. It shows the international back plate on the phone though without all of the Verizon clutter on it so you don't notice it while designing.

The only way to avoid negative space showing is to select the “single” layout which is one full sized picture across the back of the device. The problem with that is it doesn't really accommodate full pictures. Any Instagram picture that you insert is automatically 72% below the recommended resolution (the site never says what the recommended resolution is?) This becomes a guessing game that isn't very easy, It took me a half hour of resizing, uploading, and selecting pictures until I had a picture that supposedly fit in full sized design mode. Even then, when I was said to be within the recommended resolution, I still received a low resolution warning on the screen even though the picture looked fine. It isn't made clear anywhere on the site but in order to edit or move your image once it's placed, you have to double click on the working image of your designed phone. You are then given a crude set of tools to re-size and move your image. In trying to re-size the picture, the cursor would go out of the borders of the web page numerous times and it became quite frustrating to finish.

Things become almost humorous when you realize that Casetagram, which is a name derived from Instagram, offers it's own filters which they call “effects.” What this ends up meaning is that you can take a filtered instagram picture and re-filter over your initial filter. If you've always wanted to double sepia all of your photos and you didn't know how, problem solved.

They offer cases for Apple smartphones and tablets, the Galaxy smartphone line, and the nexus 4 currently.

Case-Custom case $32.99

Pros: thicker printing, thicker case for better protection, unique squared off sides, relatively cheap

Cons: difficult to communicate with customer service if you have to, buttons can be hard to press in recessed cutouts

This is a thicker case, but in a substantial kind of way. It feels stronger and fits in the hand better in my opinion. It's unique straight sides give it a modern look but also make it easier to grab. Samsung and others design phones to better slip out of your hand. They want your phone broken so you're lining up to get a new one as soon as possible. Why do we put up with this? My old Motorola Droid X was perfect, a rubberized metal exterior that felt solid and stayed in your hand. This case is very glossy, but the design of the sides makes it feel secure in my hand. For those of you that love the clean simple design of the iPhone but hate Apple's controlling grip on software, this gets you a little closer to the look you love.

Case-custom has a much fuller selection next to casetagram. They offer options for most any current smartphone and many tablets besides just the iPad. They also offer custom designed leather case options and for the Galaxy Smartphones that means flip cases. Custom printed leather flip cases are something I've never seen available, I'm in the process of trying to get one for review so hopefully I can answer some questions. I don't know how sturdy the actual cover is, whether they've added an NFC chip to the cover or what the inside that touches the screen is lined with. I'll have answers to those questions and more possibly soon. It's only $6 more for the flip cover over the snap on so it should be worth it if they offer the same quality that I see in the case I'm currently holding.

Case-Custom's design tool online is a bit odd. Everything is there, including facebook and instagram integration as well, but it's just a bit clunky. It's less flashy that Casetagram's tool, but in the end it's simple in a great way. Where Casetagram's design tool makes you guess, Case-Custom's is straight forward. Unfortunately, you can't see any other angles of the case besides a head on view while designing, it doesn't show off the unique straight sides anywhere? The case also looks as if it is soft plastic in the first picture you see on the site, but it is in fact, hard plastic. You aren't given a choice to pick the color of the plastic that is used for your overall base case. I designed a full sized picture to take up the whole back and the sides and inside are a bright clean white gloss plastic by default. It looks great in the end but It was a shot in the dark. Everything seems a bit confused with Case-custom, down to their customer service. It was odd talking back and forth and I assume it is all thanks to an English-Chinese language gap. All of my email exchange with the company was signed by a person named Zoe Saldana. It's a completely unique name and the equivalent would be if I told you that this article was written by me, Arnold Schwarzenegger, thank you for reading.

The process of ordering a case through Case-Custom reminds me of the words of the late great Hunter S. Thompson:

“Buy the ticket, take the ride...and if it occasionally gets a little heavier than what you had in mind, well...maybe chalk it off to forced conscious expansion”

It might not feel like the case will arrive, but if and when it does, it might be one of the better cases that you've ever seen. I wish I could be more certain for you here but all I can tell you is that the Case-custom case costs less, it was easier to design, and I'm much happier with the final product next to the Casetagram case. Buy the ticket, take the ride...

Final thought: A big part of which of these makers gets your business will come down to personal preference. The printing is good enough on both, they are both tough enough cases, and they both have cutouts that line up well to accommodate the Note 2. If you want thin and light and putting filters on top of filters on top of filters interests you, then Casetagram is for you. If you don't mind a thicker plastic case and you like the modern straight edges a la the iPhone, you'll be happy with the Case-custom case.

If you haven’t already, click here to see a video slideshow of the two cases.

ENJOY YOUR GADGETS!

[MENTION=4312408]examiner[/MENTION]Phil