[Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge Accessories] meyerweb:
Artech 21 Hybrid Jelly: This is almost the reverse of the Ulack design. Instead of a hard back and soft sides, this is a soft TPU case with a hard frame around the edge. How does it fare in comparison? The thickness of the TPU bumper seems to be a little less than the Ulak, and it doesn't have the air bubbles in the corners, but the rigid frame around the edge may offer as much protection. (I'm not about to drop test my phone--if someone wants to send me theirs, I'll be happy to do some drop tests. ) The top and bottom lips are about the same height as the Ulak, which is good. I'm not sure how the TPU back compares to the Ulak's rigid back in terms of protection, but fingerprints aren't nearly as big a problem. Oh, there's no rainbow effect with this case, either.

On the other hand, while the buttons are better than the Ulak's, they're not as good as Spigen's. They are acceptable, but Artech knows how to make good buttons. Their Vivid Arkansas series case has the best button action I've found so far, but is not available in clear. Why they don't use the same design on all their cases is beyond my understanding.

My biggest issue is the smooth, hard plastic frame around the bumper. It's a bit slippery, and when the case is stretched around a phone you can feel a rather sharp edge where the TPU case joins the hard plastic. Not a deal breaker, but definitely uncomfortable when you're holding the phone. Well, maybe it is a deal breaker.

The back and sides of the Artech Jelly. I really like the looks of the black band, but it's pretty slippery.

With the phone inserted. Not quite as clear as the Ulak, but still shows off the phone nicely.

Like the Ulak, the Artech cases all get the screen well above the surface if you put it face down.

Vena Retain: Kind of a cross between the Spigen Liquid Crystal and the Ulak. It's a thin, minimalistic case like the Spigen, but with a hard acrylic back like the Ulak. The buttons aren't as good as Spigen's, offering no tactile feedback, but they require much less pressure than Ulak's. Other than that, very similar to the Spigen with a hard back. If you want a minimal case like this, I think the Spigen is probably a better choice, and the Ulak (and Artech) certainly offers better protection.

They don't show well here, but the top and bottom lips are closer in size to the Spigen than the Artech or Ulak.

Like the Ulak, the Vena has small "bubbles" at the corners. And like the Ulak, I have no idea if they make any real difference in impact resistance.

Poetic Affinity: It's OK, but it's lacking in too many areas to come out on top. This is another case with an Acrylic back and TPU sides, but it's not competitive with the Ualk in terms of protection. Poetic makes this in several versions, some with a colored plastic frame, and the one I bought, with a frosted edge. On the plus side, the edges of the case have a very pronounced texture that enhances the gripability of the phone. The clear acrylic back shows off the silver finish nicely. And there are raised, frosted ridges on the back that lift the clear acrylic off surfaces, preventing it from getting scratched when you set the phone down (but the frosted acrylic will get the scratches instead). The buttons work fine: almost on par with the Spigen's buttons, and the top and bottom lips are adequate, though not as high as the Artech and Ulack.

But. But, but, but. The TPU bumper is a very hard TPU, and much thinner than either the Ulack or Artech. In fact, it's so hard I'm not sure if it's actually TPU or something else. I don't think it's going to offer much impact protection at all. There is a little extra thickness at the corners, but it's the same hard material as the rest of the bumper. The product description says there are raised soft TPU ridges inside the case for extra cushioning, but mine has no internal ridges at all. As if all that isn't enough, the case is simply ugly. The frosted edges look really cheap, and the Poetic logo in the middle of the back looks like an accident happened, and the case got scraped or melted at that spot. Just terrible.

The frosted bottom of the Poetic case. Not for me, thanks.

The logo.

You can see the textured surface at the bottom of the edge, where it curves towards the bottom. This is the best feature of this case.