iPhone camera accessory maker Olloclip has been making lenses for the iPhone 6 since the phone debuted last year, but the company recently enhanced its product lineup with the addition of new iPhone 6 and 6 Plus cases and a new Active Lens, which combines a super. Wide-angle lens with a telephoto lens.
Oloclip’s iPhone photography accessories are among the most popular on the market due to their quality and ease of use, and the company’s two new products are a welcome addition to the product lineup. The iPhone 6 OloCase works perfectly with Oloclip lenses, and the Active Lens is one of Oloclip’s most versatile lenses, useful for landscapes, selfies, portraits and shots where you need to get a little closer to your subject.
Olokas
Oloclip’s lenses don’t work with iPhone cases because of the way the lenses fit on top of the iPhone 6 or 6 Plus, leading Oloclip to create the OloCase, a special case that accommodates its line-up of camera lenses.
Oloclip first ventured into case making with the iPhone 5s, creating a two-piece plastic case that was heavy and overly complicated, but their new cases for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are much, much better, and it’s clear that a lot of thought went into the design. .
It’s made from a thin polycarbonate shell that adds little bulk to the iPhone and has a rubber bumper around it. The rubber bumper protects against minor drops and extends slightly away from the display, preventing it from touching a table or desk when it’s face down. As a bonus, the flexibility makes it easy to put on and take off if you want to swap cases often.
The volume button and power button are protected, and there’s a large cutout on the back where the camera is located, made to accommodate the lens. Because of this, it offers no protection to the camera without the lens, which may be a downside for some potential buyers. The bottom of the phone is also exposed for charging and using the headphone port, as is common with many iPhones.
Overall, the look of the case is quite pleasing and is no different from your average iPhone case. It is available in two colors, a translucent gray and a matte black, and has a pattern engraved inside it to add visual appeal. I have an iPhone 6 Plus, so the version of the photos is for Apple’s larger iPhone. iPhone 6 cases look similar.
Those of you who own Olloclip’s lenses know that they ship with an insert to fit the iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus, but in this case, those inserts aren’t needed. The Oloclip dual lenses fit over the camera cutout in the case, snapping in a second. I find that putting on and removing lenses can be quicker than taking off the case, because I know exactly where to place the lens accessory for a proper fit.
On the iPhone 6, a lens placed on top of the olocase will automatically align with the front-facing camera and the rear-facing camera, but with the iPhone 6 Plus, you’ll need to pull the lens forward or back slightly when switching. between the two cameras to adjust the position. Sans case, the iPhone 6 Plus versions of the Oloclip lenses already work this way, so there are no changes here for iPhone 6 Plus users.
As someone who regularly uses Oloclip lenses, I appreciate the case. It looks decent, it doesn’t add bulk, it keeps my iPhone safe, and it reduces the need to take off my case every time I want to take a picture. Not having to remove my case eliminates much of the hassle of using Oloclip products. There’s still one caveat — this doesn’t change the way iPhone screen protectors work with Olloclip lenses. Oloclip lenses fit very tightly, causing most screen protectors to peel off.
active lens
Active Lens is another new product from Oloclip, recently debuted with the case. It combines an ultra wide-angle lens with a 2x telephoto lens, a pairing I liked a lot in my testing. If you’re familiar with Oloclip’s products, you know that there’s already a telephoto + wide-angle option available, and the difference here is the ultra-wide-angle lens.
The Oloclip’s standard wide-angle lens has a field of view that doubles the iPhone 6’s standard field of view, coming in at around 120-130 degrees. The active lens has an ultra wide-angle lens of about 155 degrees, putting it between wide-angle and fisheye (180 degrees). It’s very close to the field of view you’d expect to get with a GoPro or similar action cam, with a nice wide field of view without the extreme distortion you’d get with a fisheye lens.
I’m not going to talk too much about the design of the Oloclip lenses since I’ve reviewed them several times before, but I’ll give a quick recap. These are dual lenses that can work with either the front camera or the rear camera. Olloclip’s lens accessories are all made of a thick plastic and are two-sided, each side containing a different lens. The lenses are made of high-quality, aluminum and glass.
On the active lens, there’s the aforementioned 155-degree wide-angle lens on one side and a 2x telephoto lens on the other. It’s a solid combination that complements the built-in camera nicely. On the one hand, you’ve got a lens that’s ideal for capturing group shots and landscapes, on the other hand, you’ve got a lens that’s good for portraits and other close-up shots.
There’s a lot of versatility between the wide-angle, telephoto and built-in iPhone cameras, and no space is wasted on lenses that are only situationally useful, like macro or CPL.
The ultra wide-angle lens lets you get more in the picture, whether it’s a landscape or a group selfie using the front-facing camera. It’s a lens that works with both the rear and front cameras — with telephoto, there’s little reason to use it for selfies.
Because it’s an ultra-wide angle, there’s certain distortion at the edges of an image that’s almost like a subtle fisheye effect. It’s very noticeable when there are straight lines in an image or indoors, but it’s less visible with outdoor action shots and landscapes. The distortion is less pronounced in images taken in portrait mode or with a square crop.
Some people are going to like images with a slight fisheye effect, some won’t. I prefer a little distortion, and it seems an acceptable tradeoff for the ability to capture more in one shot. If I want a standard landscape photo, my iPhone can do without the lens. If I want something a little more visually appealing with a different flair, the ultra-wide angle is for it. It’s also great for panoramas and front-facing selfie shots.
The telephoto lens is a 2x optical zoom, allowing you to get a little closer to what you’re photographing. 2x zoom is useful in many situations because the iPhone’s focal length is so short. For example, I used it in a garden to get close shots of some baby ducks. It’s also useful for portraits, and it’s superior to the iPhone’s built-in digital zooming capabilities because you’re not losing image quality. In fact, with both telephoto and wide-angle lenses, the iPhone’s camera quality didn’t suffer — shots were clear both with and without the lens.
One caveat: With the telephoto lens, it’s harder for the iPhone to focus, especially on objects close to the camera. You may need to tap the screen a few extra times to get a crisp picture. You won’t want to bother using the telephoto with the front camera. If you want a close-up selfie, just move your iPhone closer to your face.
bottom line
If you use Oloclip lenses and miss a case on your iPhone, the OloCase must be purchased. It’s reasonably priced at $29.99, it’s relatively thin, it offers a good amount of protection, and it works seamlessly with all of the company’s lenses for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. Oloklip did a good job with Olokase.
Not working with a case has always been the number one negative for Oloclip’s products, so it’s nice to have an alternative. Access to a functional case may put some people off buying an Olloclip lens, and I’d recommend buying any lens with a case if you’re someone who doesn’t like the risk of a bare iPhone.
As for the active lens, it’s a solid combination that works really well with the built-in iPhone camera. Telephoto and ultra wide-angle lenses are versatile and can be used in almost any situation to help you get the ideal shot. For those of you who like the idea of a wide-angle and a telephoto to extend the range of the iPhone camera, Active Lens is a solid choice. In many ways, it’s superior to Oloclip’s other lens offerings, including features like macro that aren’t often used.
For those of you who don’t like the look of ultra wide-angle lenses, check out the standard wide-angle + telephoto. It’s quite similar, but the field of view is narrower so there isn’t as much distortion.
How to buy
iPhone 6 and 6 Plus cases cost $29.99 and Active Lens costs $99.99. Both products are available for purchase from the Olloclip website.
Note: MacRumors was not compensated for this review.
