So you bought a brand new mobile device and it looks great and works great, not to mention it cost you a pretty penny also. But aren't you worried that the beautiful glass display on it might get scratched? Even with the scratch resistant glass they use these days, and with most Smartphone and tablets being protected by Corning Gorilla Glass, it might still be a good idea to protect your expensive investment with a screen protector.
There is nothing so annoying than pulling your phone out and finding a little scratch on that virgin screen. For some people who demand perfection, even a small unobtrusive, miniscule mark anywhere on the screen is enough to ruin their day.
Screen protectors are a relatively cheap way to put your mind at ease, and provide an extra layer of protection to keep your screen looking new for the life of your device. And even though Gorilla Glass is supposed to be scratch-proof, you may be surprised to find that even Gorilla Glass can sometime get dinged.
Gorilla Glass Is Great - But Can It Be Scratched?
Gorilla Glass has been around quite a long time, it was developed in 1960. Believe it or not, it has taken since 1960 for this super-strong glass to find a niche to fill. Only since around 2006 has Corning been refining Gorilla Glass to be used as a glass covering for electronic devices. And in 2010 it really took off and was used in approximately 20 percent of the nearly 200 million mobile hand-sets in the world.
Corning advertises it's Gorilla Glass by saying "...it enables your device to resist damage from the abuses that come with everyday use." They however, don't say that Gorilla Glass is scratch-proof or unbreakable. And it's not. Corning even admits that if subjected to enough abuse it will break, and that's pretty much the way most things are. If you try to break it, you will probably succeed. It seems that some knuckleheads (on YouTube) even try to test the scratch-proof claim of Corning by taking a key to their expensive smartphone to see if it's true.
Well you may, or may not be able to mark-up your phone or tablet by dragging a key over the face of it. Of course, please don't be a bonehead and try. But did you know that sand will readily scratch up your pretty Gorilla Glass display? Oh yes, let's say you're at the beach and have had a few adult beverages.
You drop your pricey smartphone face-down on the sand and then just happen to step on it. Now look at your Gorilla Glass screen, not so pretty is it? Or just slide your phone face-down over the table, floor, or other debris covered surface - it will mark. You may get away with it 100 times, but that 101st time you may not be so lucky.
To Use A Screen Protector Or Not - This Is The Question
If you are wondering if you really need a screen protector on a Gorilla Glass display... Well that would depend on how you use your device, and how carefully you treat it in normal real world activities. Here are a few questions that may help you make up your mind:
Do you carry your phone in the same pocket with your keys?
Do you leave it out on the table a lot?
Do you keep it jumbled up with all the other odds and ends in your purse?
Have you had problems with your previous devices getting scratched?
Usually this last question would be a good indicator of whether you need a screen protector or not.
Some people say screen protectors feel funny, and are hard to apply without getting imperfections under them (like bubbles). In some cases that may be true, because there are crappy screen protectors and then there are really good ones too. So it all depends on what you buy, as to the quality of the protector. But they are cheap (a lot cheaper than your phone), and they can provide an extra layer of protection that just might pay off.
Two question you should ask yourself:
Can I live with a few minor marks on my display screen?
Or will they drive me crazy and make me wish I had bought a protector?
If you're not sure, you should probably just go ahead and pick one up, give it a try for a while and see how you like it. And lastly, consider this... you can always take the screen protector off if you don't like it... you will not be able to take the scratch off.
