Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
Since the early 2010s and my HTC Desire Z, I’ve bought and used over a hundred different phone cases, with various materials and designs, all ranging from the cheapest to the super expensive. I’ve had thin hard shells, bulky Otterbox armors, flip-case leather, faux-leather, aramide fiber, TPU, slimy and transparent, colorful and rigid — you name it. Recently, every year or two, I’ve also tried Google’s official case for my Pixel phones just to see if it was worth using, and every time I did, it started well and ended in disappointment.
I didn’t learn my lesson. I just bought the official Pixelsnap case for my Pixel 10 Pro XL ($49.66 at Amazon), and although there’s a lot to love here, I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone. Here’s why.
Have you bought Google’s official case for your Pixel phone?
18 votes
Yes, and I love it!
28%
Yes, but I returned it.
6%
Yes, but it didn’t last long / it broke.
17%
No, I bought another brand of cases.
39%
No, I didn’t buy a case for my Pixel phone.
11%
Problem 1: Lint, lint, and more lint
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
Like all soft silicone cases, my Pixel 10 Pro XL case attracts a lot of lint. A. Lot. I put my phone in my pocket, take it out, and there are anywhere between a dozen and a hundred tiny strands of fabric and dust on it, especially around the sides and top or bottom, depending on how I slipped the phone in. I made the mistake of wearing a new, unwashed black jogger the other day while traveling, and it repeatedly transferred all of the lint to my phone’s case each time I pocketed my phone. I rued the day that I chose those joggers with that case.
I’m not the only one who’s experienced this, u/fluffy-zebra-7938 said the same thing on Reddit:
It’s a complete lint magnet and driving me crazy. I’ve never had this issue with a phone or case before but every time I get it out my pocket I’m having to clean it down.
If you like wiping your phone each time you take it out of your pocket, this won’t be a problem, but if you don’t, you may want to skip on the official Pixelsnap case because that’s literally all you’ll ever do.
Problem 2: Slipperiness? Grippiness?
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
This case’s material is very confusing. It feels grippy at times, slippery at others, depending on my hand’s state. With previous similarly built official Google cases, I’ve noticed that during winter, when my hands are a bit drier, the case gets more slippery if I don’t pay attention. It becomes grippier — very grippy actually — when my hands are less dry, around autumn and springtime. And then it goes back to being crazy slippery when it’s summer and my hands are more sweaty.
Agreed. If you are holding it vertically, it really wants to just slither down out of your hand.
It’s weirdly grippy, but fake-grippy and slippery at once. Like oiled silicone.
There’s a delicate middle-ground where the Pixelsnap case is grippy, but everything else transforms it into a sliding hazard. I’ve looked around on public forums and found dozens of comments in these Reddit threads from people arguing whether the official Google case is slippery or grippy, and I think the difference lies in the state of your skin and the current humidity — and also in long-term change in the texture, but I’ll get to that later.
Problem 3: Long-term durability questions
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
I’ve experienced most of this, too. My light “porcelain” colored Pixel 7 Pro case had its corners turn blue from my jeans pockets. My blue Pixel 8 Pro case split and degraded near the top left corner after one drop, as if a dog had chewed a bit of it off — better it than the phone, though, right? Check it out in the photo below. My Pixel 9 Pro XL case had one, then two broken tabs near the USB-C port. And my Pixelsnap Pixel 10 Pro XL case is already showing questionable signs of pre-tears between the inner lining and silicone (see the photo above).
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
Of course, I don’t expect my cases to last forever, but I haven’t had similar problems with other materials or brands of cases. Especially not the broken tabs or the chewed-corner symptom after falls. Most of my recent non-Google cases have been made of TPU, and that material can take a beating and not show a single sign of wear and tear. The official Google case and its silicone, though? I wouldn’t bet on it; even if we don’t have a lot of reports about broken Pixelsnap cases yet, Google’s history and its use of similar materials don’t bode well.
Problem 4: So. Much. Slime.
Those who manage to make it through a year or more of use of Google’s official cases will tell you that the material’s tactile feel and texture change drastically with time. The case becomes slimy and tacky, equally slippery and sticky.
u/SensitiveCockroach98 explains:
After having a few generations of the official case after its been used for a little while it becomes more grippy and almost sticky.
u/octavianreddit also complained about this:
I had two of them and returned them because they were too slippery. I almost dropped my phone a few times which is odd for me. They stick to your pockets and slip in your hands.
This tends to happen a lot with soft silicone. There’s a point where the material gets slimy, attracts dust, and becomes almost greasy and unpleasant to touch. I’ve personally already experienced it with the official Google Pixel Tablet case, which is now exhibiting these signs, as well as the Pixel 8 Pro case, some power banks, and a bunch of other random tech gadgets and home items I’ve bought that are made of a similar soft silicone material.
Problem 5: A hefty price tag, for what?
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
The biggest reason you should buy Google’s official Pixel cases is to color-match your phone. I really wanted a Jade Pixel 10 Pro XL, but I received the Obsidian model through work, so I got the official Jade Pixelsnap case to pretend I had the green phone instead. Overall, this isn’t a bad case at first glance. It fits the phone perfectly, aligns with every opening, and doesn’t add too much thickness. It wraps around the edges and camera bar with a thin protective lip but without impeding edge swipes and gestures. And it has perfectly aligned magnets for Pixelsnap accessories, as well as extremely tactile buttons that are a pleasure to use.
The problem, though, is that it costs $50 for this privilege, all while exhibiting all those problematic symptoms across its entire ownership duration. Lint today, slipperiness tomorrow, slime and grease later, and potential breaks and tears. As much as I love how good the Pixelsnap case looks on my phone, I honestly don’t think it’s worth the asking price.
If this case were priced around $20, I’d say it’s worth a gamble to see if it works for you and to get a good six to nine months out of it. But for $50, you can buy a couple or more good Pixel 10 cases from other brands that are made with more robust and less problematic materials, and switch them around to keep your phone feeling fresh. You could also save a few dollars and just buy one good, cheap case. Either way, you’re better off than spending $50 on Google’s official Pixelsnap case.
Pixelsnap Case for Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro or Pixel 10 Pro XL
Pixelsnap Case for Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro or Pixel 10 Pro XL
Color-matches any Pixel 10 • Built-in magnets • Perfect port and opening alignment • Clicky buttons
A Google-made case for the Pixel 10 series that matches your phone’s exact color
The official Pixelsnap case for the Google Pixel 10 series is available in the same colors as your phone. It’s soft to the touch, not too thick, but raises with a lip around the Pixel 10’s screen and camera bar. It perfectly aligns with all of the phone’s ports and microphone openings, and has very responsive buttons. It also comes with strong magnets to attach your Pixel 10 to compatible chargers and magnetic accessories.
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