Vincent Ferrari
06-25-2009, 05:00 PM
<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://gizmodo.com/5302097/giz-bill-nye-explains-the-iphone-3gss-oleophobic-screen' target='_blank'>http://gizmodo.com/5302097/giz-bill...eophobic-screen</a><br /><br /></div><p><em>"The new 3GS iPhone has a coating that helps you leave no, well hardly any, prints–-fingerprints. The glass screen is coated with a polymer, a plastic that human skin oil doesn't adhere to very well. People in the chemical bonding business like to call the finished surface "oleophobic." Such a lovely Greek cognate may sound like it means "afraid of oil." And, it does, but it also connotes (or carries with) "aversion" or "not-like-to-be-around-tivity," if I may. Instead of sticking to the bonded-plastic surface of your new phone, the oil from you fingers or cheekbone or tip of your nose stays more or less together as its own smooshed droplet."</em></p><p><img height="375" src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/at/auto/1245928294.usr18053.jpg" width="218" /></p><p>What sounds like the most gimmicky feature ever in a phone is actually really functional. My 3Gs has a screen that's only a small wipe away from cleanliness. My 3G would also get cleaned with a swipe of the shirt, but the smears and such would stick around or take a lot of effort to get rid of. Not any more, though, and it's noticeable right away the first time you use it.</p><p>Anyone else impressed with this barely-mentioned new feature?</p>