Letting young children play with iPhones is an easy way to keep them busy, but the risk of damage is always a serious concern for parents. Griffin’s KaZoo for iPhone 5 ($25) helps alleviate that issue by wrapping the device in thick, protective silicone that’s been colored and molded into fun animal shapes. Available in elephant and monkey variations, the case covers almost all of the device without limiting its use. We’re sure there are some adults who will like the forms too.
The case’s soft rubber material is very substantial, as it should be on such a case.
This prevents it from being easily torn and helps limit the damage an iPhone might otherwise take from drops. Both versions are wider, thicker, and taller than most cases thanks to animal body parts that stick out. Each KaZoo covers the back of the iPhone 5, its side and top edges, and the lower bezel and Home button; cleverly, the volume buttons are still easily usable through the raised ears of the animals. One long opening along the bottom allows access to the ports, mic, and speaker; there’s also a black-lined iSight camera hole on the back.
We found the quality of the designs in the soft silicone to be high, and although there were a few imperfections in the monkey’s eyes, they weren’t terrible; kids will never notice or care. Otherwise, KaZoo is a neat, solid case—nicely built and pretty affordable. The only real issue is the limited practicality: most adults would steer away from a case like this for daily use, and most kids who would be young enough to really appreciate it as a full-time case won’t have their own iPhones. The appeal is therefore limited to parents who will pull it on and off, bundling their devices up before handing them off, which seems inconvenient to us; most parents will opt for something less funky instead.
