Apple Watch Series 9 (41mm) Cases

They do different jobs, so for most people yes. A screen protector handles scratches and spreads the force of a point impact across its surface. A case absorbs the energy of a drop before it reaches the display at all, and it covers the corners and edges that a protector can't.

The common failure is a phone dropped on a corner: the case is what stops that becoming a crack across the panel. If you're only going to buy one, buy the case — but the two together cost less than one screen repair.

It depends far more on where you use it than on the device. On a building site, in a workshop, or with a child in the house, a rugged case with reinforced corners is proportionate. In an office and a coat pocket, it's bulk you'll resent daily.

Be sceptical of drop-height claims. There's no consumer standard behind most of them, and a case tested onto plywood tells you nothing about a paving slab. Reinforced corners and a raised lip around the screen are better signals than any number in the listing.

A bumper protects the rim as well as the face, and that rim is where watch damage usually lands. A glancing knock against a door frame rather than a flat impact. A film or glass protector leaves that edge exposed.

The cost is looks and bulk. If you want the watch to look as designed, use a protector; if you've already damaged one, or you work with your hands, use a bumper. Match the case size in millimetres exactly — a 44mm bumper won't fit a 41mm watch.

Between about £12 and £35 covers nearly everyone. Below roughly £10 the materials are thin and the fit is a lottery, cases that stretch, buttons that stop clicking properly, cutouts a millimetre out.

Above £35 you're paying for a specific material, a mounting ecosystem, or a genuine engineering claim. Those can be worth it, but the step from no case to a competent £15 one is far larger than the step from £15 to £50.