There are 2 types of Blackberry user; one that never goes anywhere without their device, and one that has a husband/wife that tells them to leave it at home or face dire consequences.

If you are in group one, then you’ll often be found in fun places, with your Blackberry holstered on your side. If that is the case, then you’ll probably have already killed several of them when you got sand, water or beer stuck inside it.

So, today I’m going to get you up close and personal with the latest Blackberry case from my friends at Otterbox; the Blackberry 8800 series Defender case.

The Defender case turns your fragile and vulnerable Blackberry into a drop and drip resistant email machine without interfering with any of the features, buttons or ports.

The case itself consists of 5 parts: a thin plastic molded membrane for the device, a 2 part hard plastic shell, a silicone rubber skin and a holster with belt clip.

The plastic membrane wraps around the front and back of the Blackberry and has an opening for the trackball. The earpiece and speaker are still perfectly audible thanks to thin pieces of filter material that keep dust and dirt out, without dampening the volume of the phone.

The keys are molded into the membrane, so you get an absolutely perfect fit and you’ll still be able to type away without it ever getting in the way.

Installing the case is fairly easy, and can be done in under 30 seconds. You first place the membrane on the Blackberry, aligning it with the keyboard and trackball. Then you snap the 2 piece hard plastic shell around it, and slip the silicone skin around the case.

You can still charge the Blackberry or access the headphone jack through a flap. When you don’t need the ports, the flap closes snugly to keep your device safe.

On the top you can clearly see the power and standby buttons, as well as the 2 openings for the earpiece and speaker.

There is even an opening so you can see your message/Bluetooth indicator LED. On the side are 2 raised portions that control the Blackberry volume buttons.

On the back of the holster is a small magnet. This may look uninteresting and boring, but it’s actually one of the best features of any Blackberry case, as it allows the device to detect when it has been holstered so it can switch profile or perform a memory cleanup.

The beltclip on the back of the holster rotates a full 360º which makes it easier to wear. The clip itself is very sturdy and the Blackberry slides into the holster with a nice reliable “click”.

All in all another great case from Otterbox, and one that is certain to keep your Blackberry safe. It’s the kind of case you’ll need on vacation or if you are doing any kind of work where things get dirty and damp. Being able to protect your device while still offering access to all the buttons means you don’t lose any functionality of your Blackberry.

My only concern is that the trackball is not protected, so there is always the chance that dirt or dust gets caught in it.The Otterbox Blackberry 8800 series Defender case costs $49.95 and is available here. Defender cases are also available for the Curve and Pearl series Blackberry smartphones.