Screen protector problems

[rosbif]

I bought some Belkin screen covers for my ipaq 4150 in Radio Shack - when I put the first one it went on looking almost 'frosted'. I presumed I had not put it on straight but trying another it did exactly the same.

To give Belkin credit I emailed them via their website, wondering if maybe these were old stock to see if they could replace them. They emailed straight back and within a week I had a new packet sent to my home address. :clap:

Trouble is, these ones seem to be doing exactly the same. I have now wasted four covers, all giving the same 'frosted glass' effect. Am I doing something wrong?

[Darius Wey]

The frosted glass effect is probably attributed to the little air bubbles that appear underneath.

Trust me, as hard as you can try, you will get this there. I know from experience. I've used every card possible to flatten it out, and applied it as slowly as possible, but they will still be there. But it doesn't end there.

The positive thing is that with use (give it a couple of weeks), the air bubbles disappear and within a few weeks, you will find that they have all disappeared. If you get really bored, just run your stylus up and down the screen in your spare time, as this can help push little bubbles out. Your screen will look nice and flat and unfrosted in no time. By the way, you can leave your screen protector on there for a year if you want. The advice of changing it every couple of months is not necessary IMHO.

[CEGiven]

It takes about a week for the tiny bubbles to disappear, and then the protector is a lot less noticeable. I'm going to try BoxWave after I've used up the package I've got (too expensive to just throw them all away). Even after the bubbles disappear, I end up with a slight mar 1/3 down where the sheet, as it peels from the card, does something to the adhesive. Four very careful tries and I still can't avoid that not-so-horizontal line.

I'm glad I've got a protector at least. When the iPAQ is turned off I can see wear-and-tear in three locations: upper right (the close/ok button), lower left (menus), and lower middle (program icons?). When the iPAQ is on, all I see is a slightly prismatic effect as I angle the display. But I've already resigned myself to the off-center yellow cast, so what's a little twitter?

[Jereboam]

I can really recommend the G2 (http://www.pdascreenprotectors.com/) screen protectors. I have one on my iPaq 5450 that has been in place for over a year. No bubbles, no wear, perfect fit with no gaps around the edges (because it slips under the frame) and very reasonably priced.

Not to mention that they are absolutely crystal clear.

Try them. The manufacturer is also great with support...he is very responsive to problems.

J'bm

[jpjehu]

the 'clear screen' screen protectors from Boxwave out of Hong Kong are BY FAR the best I've ever used, and I've used every protector on the market (I think). I'm using one on my e805 and it's clear as water - in my opinion, as clear as the nonadhesion plastic overlay types (G2 I think?), but much more maintenance free (no dust accumulation).

[jpjehu]

OOPS - make that Brando Workshop out of Hong Kong - and the screen protector is called 'ultra clear'. Again, it's definitely the best I've ever used.

[rosbif]

Thanks for that - I guess I shall just have to perservere, especially as I now have two packs of the things!! I did have another make for my old palm that I never had any problems with, can't remember the name but they came from CompUSA in a yellow packet..

[gregmills]

Belkin - I can't recommend them. I had one of their protectors on my screen for a few months and when I went to remove it I thought I was going to tear my screen off. I don't know if it's gotten any better but I won't put another one on my computer. Belkin's customer service is great though. If you are having trouble with the protectors let them know.

G2 - I bought these after the Belkin ones. I've not had good luck with them. They were extremely difficult to install on my device (Toshiba e750). Their recommendation is that you go into a bathroom and run the hot water so that the room steams up to control static and dust when you are installing the protectors. After going through all that dirt worked in between the screen and the protector after only a couple of days. Shipping took 2-3 weeks. I contacted the company twice and never got a response. I even posted my experience on "The Gadgeteer" where the company seemed pretty active and haven't heard any response (Gadgeteer Reader Response (http://www.the-gadgeteer.com/ubb/Forum406/HTML/000001-2.html)).

I will say that if you have a new PPC then the G2 might work for you. I'm guessing that the dirt was already under the edges of the screen when I installed the G2. I had carried the device for about 6 months before I installed the G2. I don't know of any way to get in there and clean it out. G2's recommendation to use compressed air didn't work.

Next I'm going to try a protector with a "gentle" adhesive.

[gregmills]

I did have another make for my old palm that I never had any problems with, can't remember the name but they came from CompUSA in a yellow packet..

Those may have been WrightRights. I loved those on my Palm Vx. Unfortunately their glare reducing texture looks really bad on a PPC. They probably have a new version for high res color screens by now.

[Jereboam]

G2 - I bought these after the Belkin ones. I've not had good luck with them. They were extremely difficult to install on my device (Toshiba e750). Their recommendation is that you go into a bathroom and run the hot water so that the room steams up to control static and dust when you are installing the protectors. After going through all that dirt worked in between the screen and the protector after only a couple of days. Shipping took 2-3 weeks. I contacted the company twice and never got a response. I even posted my experience on "The Gadgeteer" where the company seemed pretty active and haven't heard any response (Gadgeteer Reader Response ).

I will say that if you have a new PPC then the G2 might work for you. I'm guessing that the dirt was already under the edges of the screen when I installed the G2. I had carried the device for about 6 months before I installed the G2. I don't know of any way to get in there and clean it out. G2's recommendation to use compressed air didn't work.


Weird. No dirt under mine, and similar to you I had it a while before I installed it. I did bend the first one I tried to install, but with perseverance I got it in perfectly. So did a friend I recommended them to.

And I spoke with the main guy behind G2 and he even offered to cut samples for my XDA and send them to me, because at the time he didn't offer them for that model...kind of like a beta test for screen protectors.

I guess it can be the luck of the draw...I had a totally different experience.

J'bm

[rosbif]

Those may have been WrightRights. I loved those on my Palm Vx. Unfortunately their glare reducing texture looks really bad on a PPC. They probably have a new version for high res color screens by now.

You're right that was them - they were great... Maybe I should just wait for them then. Am a little concerned about the G2s being not easy to fit...

[Jereboam]

What I like about the G2's is that, while they are hard to get right, once they are in they are like an integral part of your Pocket PC.

For me, it's worth a little extra effort.

J'bm

[gregh2000]

I have used screen protectors on my old palm, and was always glad they were there because i could see wear on them. then when i got my 4155, i was like, no i will not use them. my main reason being it blurs the screen. also working at compusa and seeing the pdas on demo for 8+ months with no damage leads me to believe that if a pda touched by hundreds of people, and maybe one of them used a stylus, everyone always just uses their fingers, could be fine then screen protectors aren't necessary, so i went without a screen protector. no damage to my 4155 so far. i use some lcd monitor screen cleaner and a 3m microfiber cloth to clean it about once every few days, but other than that i won't waste my time or money on the screen protectors. if you don't believe me, go to a store where pdas are on demo, look at their screens, if you wipe off the finger prints, the screens are almost mint.