Are there phone cases known for having a good weight:protection ratio?

Can’t speak the Galaxy S6 version, but the Lifeproof case around my iPad got an unusually rigorous test 2.5 years ago when my buddy’s boat sunk in some rather cold salt water. The iPad sat, in the case, in a daypack, in the rain on a salt water beach for 4 days before I retrieved it. It was fine. It’s still fine. Subsequently, I’ve had no hesitation using my cased iPad or iPhone in the bathtub or hot tub.

Same. I like my Lifeproof Nuud on my iPhone. It’s been in the rain plenty of times. I’ve dropped the phone in the case plenty of times. The only thing I don’t care for is covering the camera lens with a piece of plastic. I wish they’d use optical quality glass.

That said, I’ve switched over to a LokSack for the phone. I prefer to use it caseless and then I can drop it in the Baggie if it starts to rain or I’m going to do a water-crossing or climb a waterfall.

+1 on the Lifeproof. I have a Fre on my phone (iPhone though) and it has been great (dropped many times, in water, mud, hard concrete, etc.).

In addition, their customer service and warranty are top notch. I noticed my case (that I had for 1 year and 9 months) developed a fold in the finger reader. I saw that this was letting in dust, so the case was compromised. I called their customer service and they sent me a new case with no questions asked (I did have to pay $5 for shipping though). Good company and product.

ziploc bag

3D mesh inside bag around phone

use “seal-a-meal” to make bag the correct size if desired

cheap and lightweight

low end of protection for phone, but if you’re careful, may be good enough

If you just want to protect the phone as opposed to protecting it and being able to use it, the food containers with a silicone seal and flip locks give good protection at reasonable weight and far less cost than dedicated phone shells. Lock and Lock, Klip-It and Snapware are brands to check. They care good for camera protection too.

I found a Stanley Ecycle flask that has a flip-top of cleaning and my iPhone 5 fits perfectly. That one is as tough as a Pelican case. http://stanley-pmi.com/store/stanley/en_US/pd/ThemeID.39334800/productID.325304600

I have used a couple LifeProof cases over the years and they are good for dust/scratch/splash protection but I couldn’t bring myself to trust them for a full dunking. Spendy too.

The SealLine E-Case gives a good weight/protection ratio and some limited access to the phone controls. http://www.cascadedesigns.com/e-case

Ziplock bags are okay for keeping most of the fresh-water rain off.  But salt water is so dangerous* to cell phones, that I either (1) don’t take my phone in a small boat or go fishing in the surf or (2) put it in a cheap, gasketed, latching plastic case ($7-$11 at Walmart) and only take it out when things are totally calm to use and then put it back inside, or (3) have it in a purpose-built waterproof case like LifeProof.

*Thankfully, I learned this back in the day of cheap flip phones – the tiniest amount of salt water through a pin hole in the ziplock will kill it very dead.  Total, unprotected, brief submersion in fresh water isn’t as bad – sometimes I’ve quickly dried off, disassembled, dried the inside, and left it to air out and recovered some or all of the functionality of a phone that was under (fresh!) water for a second or two.

I don’t know if this will fit a Galaxy, but I’ve switched permanently to a full case like this one http://www.amazon.com/SUPCASE-Unicorn-Holster-Builtin-Protector/dp/B00MOOF4D8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1449502266&sr=8-2&keywords=unicorn+beetle+case

It may be a knockoff design (and heavier than a basic back cover) but my phone is droppable without shattering, and the price is fair. Ditch the holster. You can cut out the screen protector if it gets too messed up and you want to replace it.

edit: why did I think that link would work? Search supcase unicorn beetle, about $10 at Amazon