Cons:
No oleophobic coating, collects oils, smudges and fingerprints like no tomorrow
Glass is not smooth and therefore swiping is more difficult
Dot Matrix
Putting pressure on a side or corner makes a sound like its not adhering, like a sticking sound.
Thicker
pro
Full coverage
Looks decent
Fairly cheap
I actually bought this protector. It was in my opinion horrible. I had it on for 2 days and it started coming off at the corners constantly. It does not work with a case. I used the Tudia Low Profile design case. It would peel up. It also cracked in multiple places while trying to reseat it. I highly suggest avoiding this product.
Related
Hi guys.
I thought I'd share my experiences with some products I bought. It's the least I could do for a forum that's provided me with so much good stuff. Descriptions of the experiences will be brief and straightforward.
Let's get straight to business.
Zagg InvisibleSHIELD Dry Screen Protector [front and back]
When I purchased my GS4, I ended up getting this screen protector kit for free after haggling with the sales rep. Always haggle.
Installation was straightforward and easy due to the dry install. Clean the screen, align the protector, apply, squeegee. Repeat for the back.
The texture of this protector was very similar to Zagg's original wet application protectors. It's slightly thicker than the average cheap screen protector, it feels tough, but the trade-off is high friction. Some (like me) wouldn't enjoy this.
If light hits the screen at the right angle, you can generally see some marks on the screen protector as it is essentially a flexible plastic material. Not a big deal, and they sometimes go away (Zagg's signature "self-healing" product).
The back protector has a matted finish to it. It may appeal to some as the back of the S4 is highly glossy - even the black models which have a crosshatch black and silver design. The matted protector tones down the glossiness and the black/silver crosshatch design gains sort of a dull metallic look. Pretty cool.
If you're particularly looking for a Zagg product and hate wet application as I do, then this will be the product for you. Overall much better than the Zagg HD protector (as I will explain below).
Zagg HD Screen Protector
After the high friction nature of the Zagg Dry application screen protector bugged me too much, I decided to try out the HD. The representative at Best Buy was telling me just how amazing it was. So.. as the naive consumer, I gave it a shot.
$25.99 + Tax - Pretty much standard price for retail stores, and the bulletproof warranty that Zagg offers is always nice.
Installation was a breeze. I paid them 8 dollars to get a terrible application job involving several dust bubbles. They assured me all of it would disappear after 48 hours. Surely enough, after 48 hours I came back and had them re-install a new one for free.
Not to bash the folks over at Best Buy - some of them are great. Just make sure you tell them not to saturate your phone to the point of comparison of a liquid submersion with that Zagg spray solution.
The HD seemed like it delivered at first. I had the protection (that they claim), and the screen felt a lot smoother than the dry application/original. It nearly felt too good to be true - and it was.
The Zagg HD's texture is thanks to being a little thinner than their original. The consequence of this is that even the slightest pressure with your fingernail ends up creating an indentation mark on the protector. Worst of all is that these indentations are essentially permanent.
Within one week, my screen was cluttered with indents from poking and entire streaks from swiping.
It actually doesn't look bad when you're directly looking at the screen or at night. As a matter of fact, you can't even tell they're there. If you're out in the sun however, forget it. Text is illegible at times due to the sunlight showing those indentation marks to tear your sanity asunder.
Save your money, don't get this.
Spigen Glas t Nano Slim [0.15mm]
The search for a decent screen protector seemed to be grim until I came across this. The Glas t Nano Slim is made of tempered glass. Glass on top of glass - who (a noob like me) would have thought?
It was pricey. $34.99 + Shipping for a single screen protector without a bulletproof warranty (like Zagg) is pretty heavy.
Needless to say, I purchased it after reading so many great reviews of the product.
Contents: Protector, squeegee, a clear back protector (that I didn't use), microfiber cloth, some plastic button stickers (to put over your home key) in orange, white, and black. They look like plastic bubbles (not all that great).
Being such an expensive screen protector, I decided to use a shower steam technique:
Take your clothes off
Go to the bathroom
Shut the door
Clean the counter you'll use with microfiber
After cleaning your phone of oils, place your phone and screen protector+installation materials in a drawer
Turn the shower on (hot)
Place a hand rag on the floor (to keep debris low)
Wash (the crap) out of your hands, dry with rag on floor
Turn shower off when the mirror fogs
Wait a few minutes for the steam to settle (else you may get water particles to adhere to the screen protector adhesive)
Take phone/protector/materials out of drawer
Use alcohol swab included in package to wipe screen
Use same swab to wipe counter once more before setting phone down
Wipe screen with microfiber cloth included in package
Take off screen protector backing while holding the screen protector adhesive side DOWN
Align, drop, gently press finger on center and watch the adhesive evenly spread
Use squeegee for any bubbles (I had none)
I'm absolutely terrible at installation but this one was on perfect.
At first glance you can hardly tell there's a screen protector at all. The fit is very close to the edges. There's an oleophobic coating on the glass so your fingers will glide across the screen. Responsiveness is crisp (for all 3 screen protectors).
The tradeoff for such a great looking/feeling screen protector is protection. Zaggs don't shatter. Supposedly the Glas t will crack like an eggshell if broken, and you can simply peel it all off in one piece. Hopefully, I won't have to find out myself.
The problem I witnessed with going naked on screens (with my Galaxy S2) was that the oleophobic coating eventually wears off. It took me about a year before the coating was completely gone. This makes the screen smudge severely to the point of no visibility in sunlight.
The Glas t protector is a neat addition. You can use it (hopefully) for a year until the oleophobic coating wears off, then just rip it off and either put another one on or just use the screen naked. If naked, it'll perhaps be time to consider an upgrade by the time that coating wears off anyways.
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Summary:
Zagg Dry: Orange peel look, tough protection, high friction, matted finish on battery plate, marks may heal over time, bulletproof warranty
Zagg HD: Smoother feel than Dry/Original, prone to indentation/scratch marks, marks do NOT heal, bulletproof warranty
Spigen Glas t: Made of tempered glass, oleophobic coating (super smooth touch), close to invisible, feels a little fragile (since it's glass), expensive, only limited warranty (defects)
It's my first review, so I apologize for any sloppiness. Will write more reviews on a couple of cases and batteries sometime down the road (after I used them enough).
Happy shopping folks - choose carefully.
That's a great review man. Thanks for taking the time to write it.
NRGZ28 said:
That's a great review man. Thanks for taking the time to write it.
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Was just starting my search for screen protectors, and this was great. Thanks for the review! How was the screen clarity between the dry Zagg and the Glas T? I've noticed with previous Zagg wet applications a severe degradation in clarity with the screen protector on.
I had the spigen Glas.T nano installed, real glass @ 0.15mm, fantastic product but for me it proved to be a little fragile, in my pocket something caused the edge to "chip" then it just spread accross the screen. I'm now using spigen Glas.TR which is a little thicker @ 0.4mm but has the rounded edges for better "chip" protection.
I see that for iPhone 5 they've fetched out a Glas.TR nano @ 0.23mm thickness & rounded edges, If they fetch these out for S4 I'll be buying one.
Just going to give a quick review on the Otterbox Commuter case and the Skinomi TechGlass Tempered Glass Screen Protector!
I'll hit the case first.
If you've ever had an Otterbox Commuter case before there is nothing more to read because it is again more of the same. I previously ventured away from the defender series once I got my Droid Razr Maxx and have not looked back. The Commuter offers great protection without all the bulk and is much easier to slide in and out of the pocket. Compared to my Seidio Active (Dilex now) that I had on my Droid DNA it has more plastic surface area but I also feel as though this provides a little more protection. That may just be something I think personally but it is what it is. The silicon underneath seems to have a nice thick structure to it and also has a nice "spring" to it around the corners that I also believe helps in protecting the phone. As usual Otterbox includes a plastic screen protector that was ok but if I am going to use a plastic screen protector I prefer a wet application one such as the ones provided by Xtremeguards (which I also use to protect the back of the phone). The buttons work well and the headphone port cover is very easy to disengage and also stays in place very well. There is no cut out for the fingerprint scanner which can make it some what awkward to use but thats no big deal to me personally. The IR blaster and heart rate monitor function flawlessly with this case on.
The Skinomi TechGlass is the first tempered glass screen protector I've ever used. I ordered the Mime Feather Tempered Glass protector but still has not arrived due to problems with USPS. I decided to order the Skinomi one on a whim because I really wanted to get some solid protection on this phone and in a hurry. Needless to say I am very impressed with the Skinomi screen protector. It is slightly thicker at .33 mm but it is an absolute joy to use with the phone. It feels just like the screen does and the Commuter case covers the edges of the TechGlass perfectly. The TechGlass does not extend all the way to the edges of the phone but that is not a huge deal to me as it is rounded and doesn't feel out of place at all(edit: It almost goes all the way to the edges. Maybe 1mm on the top from the edge and about .5mm or less from the bottom and sides.). Application was surprisingly easy. It may just be because I over prepped for it after failing with many plastic screen protectors but it was not difficult at all. I personally cleaned the screen with a cleaning spray, a microfiber cloth, an alcohol pad, the included cleaning cloth, and the anti-dust film. All together this process took less than two minutes and after that the TechGlass was placed on the phone. I had 0 bubbles and the TechGlass went on almost perfectly. There was some strange marking and discoloration but nothing severe and they went away after several hours. I followed the same process for my wife's phone and actually had to lift the TechGlass a couple of times. It still adhered to the phone perfectly. The same effects were on the edges of her protector but they also went away after several hours. These effects never bothered the image output by the screen though.
All in all I'd rate both of these products as a 5/5. Skinomi has a Lifetime Warranty on all of their protectors and I think it's a great investment at 14.99 with Prime shipping. The Commuter case is also well worth the money and Otterbox always stands by their products. I'll probably give Seidio and Incipio some money later on down the road because I also love them for the quality products they make!
TLDR: Commuter- Great case but more of the same. TechGlass- Awesome Awesome Awesome! Definitely a great purchase! Skinomi has a lifetime warranty and it was worth the few extra dollars over other tempered glass screen protectors.
I'm just concerned with that Skinomi being .33mm. I've currently got the .23 Spigen Glas Nano, and I can't imagine having a thicker protector. Does it begin to interfere with the fingerprint scanner at that gauge?
jpmcnown said:
I'm just concerned with that Skinomi being .33mm. I've currently got the .23 Spigen Glas Nano, and I can't imagine having a thicker protector. Does it begin to interfere with the fingerprint scanner at that gauge?
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No it does not. I was able to very easily add a new fingerprint with the case off and unlock the phone with the case on. The case was the biggest limiting factor to the fingerprint scanner. At .33mm the TechGlass feels like it is almost perfectly flush with the home button.
- Premium Tempered Glass Screen Protector
http://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00NV4TCF6/ref=pe_386430_30332290_TE_3p_dp_1
- i-Blason Unity Series 2 Layer
I just got these for my phone and wanted to share some pics.
For the tempered glass, I just bought one of the cheap ones. I was taking a change on haloing, and it has a halo. But, it is barely noticeable if the screen is on. The only other issue is that it barely covers the screen width-wise. I get what I paid for. Other than that, the visibility is awesome like any other glass screen protector. S-pen and finger touch have no issues.
After looking at many different cases, I again got one of the cheaper options. This case adds little bulk, but nothing like other similar cases. Plastic part has matte finish, so no finger prints. It is a little slippery, but rubber part does not catch dirt/lint and grip is good enough. The lip on the screen side is barely enough to clear the glass protector. I would have like a bigger lip, but as long as the screen is not touched when the phone is face-down, I can live with it. The only annoying issue is that feel for the side buttons are muted due to the rubber.
Overall, the case provides adequate protection and the fit is great. For the price, I may say that it is a better value than Spigen Slimarmor or other similar cases.
Looks very nice.
Looks like the case is two pieces that snap together? If so, does it easily split apart? I ordered the Unicorn Beetle SUPCASE because it seems to do just that, but (like most cases) there are a lot of mixed reviews so more options the better o-O;; Looks nice :good:
I've been using the Armadillotek case for my Note 9 for a couple weeks now. I really like the case overall but decided to switch back to my Defender for now.
First, the built in screen protector doesn't quit sit totally flush because of teh curved glass. This causes it to have a tiny bit of air gap which dust and dirt gets underneath and drives me nuts, plus with the Kickstand it leave the phone exposes a but when you use it allowing dirt to get in there.
Also, the sides of this case are raised which is great! gives more protection but also allows dirt and grime to collect on the sides.
I really like the case and eventually might just rip the protector out. I might try the Poetic Revolution and Supcase Unicorn Beetle out but I'm sure the screen protector will be crappy too and I'll just rip it out.
I can see why Otterbox ditched the built in protector for the curved phones.
They tried it with the S7 Edge. With the S7 edge it fit VERY snug to the phone so no dirt got under it BUT screen responsiveness was atrocious with it. Just terrible.
I might order the orange Armadillo because I like the color but for sure will rip the protector out on one of them and save the other for when I want a screen protector in certain situations.
I ripped the screen protector out as well. Very easy to take off and makes it perfect for me.
I ripped off the screen as well, worth it. I have the white glass dome on my phone, gives me protection already.
Thing I don't like about Armadillotek and "tough" cases like them is that too often their designs are so gaudy. That's why I like the Commuter (and even Defender). They're mature-looking. Pretty understated. Low-key, kinds of cases.
Thanks for the information...
I just simply rip off the plastic protector, and install tempered glass one.
Now I can it tough
I like the defender but I hate the holster. I've used the seidio surface holster for years now and it's far superior IMO. Wish I could find a holster like the surface one for the defender.
Sturdy, tough, and rugged. Very easy to assemble and disassemble. Keeps out dust quite well, too. The plastic cover works well with a tempered glass screen protector, which doesn't affect touchscreen functionality at all. Though there are light, barely noticeable "whorls" on it, seen at certain angles. Some people might prefer to just remove it entirely, but again, it's not very noticeable so I left it on as it keeps the tablet and screen clean. The rotating grip stand is a really nice feature, which allows you to position it at any angle, any side. I really like this case, I've had it for a few months and it's kept my tablet pristine and safe.
I got it on eBay, at the link HERE. Cheaper than Amazon.