iPhone 3GS Oleophobic Screen Coating Wearing Off?

hmmm..

that could be bad. could result in lots and lots of replacement costs for apple.

Looks like a Click Wheel

Next-Gen technology haha

Scratches like crazy!

my phone already has so many scratches on it! I do like the coating but I don't like how it scratches so easily!!!

It's going to have a finite life. If some saddo wants to twirl his finger 24/7 then he's to blame. I'm sure in normal use the coating would easily stand up to reasonable use for the life of the phone.

iHateMacs said:

It's going to have a finite life. If some saddo wants to twirl his finger 24/7 then he's to blame. I'm sure in normal use the coating would easily stand up to reasonable use for the life of the phone.

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That's crazy, that's like saying it's not the fault of the manufacturer when a mouse breaks if he's using the mouse to do some non-supported application.

Seems like this guy needs to pick up a different hobby

iHateMacs said:

It's going to have a finite life. If some saddo wants to twirl his finger 24/7 then he's to blame. I'm sure in normal use the coating would easily stand up to reasonable use for the life of the phone.

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no way he's used the iphone more in 2 weeks than it was meant to be used in 2 years. this is a problem.

Damn he must play that game a lot. I enjoy the peace of mind with a screen protector though.

How dare Apple not produce an indestructible surface that can withstand some German guy's OCD on a fishing game.

so some random fool in some random forum post a picture of i dont know what and it deserves a mention on macrumors... come on...standards relaxed today or something?

the screen's not the only thing "phobic"...

LOL...

iOrlando said:

so some random fool in some random forum post a picture of i dont know what and it deserves a mention on macrumors... come on...standards relaxed today or something?

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You should see some of the other slow news days.

I've had a few games kill my Gamecube controllers with repetitive actions.

who in ther right mind buys an iPhone and doesn't put a screen cover on it immediately anyway. i never even touched my screen to try out the coating b4 i put a cover on. My original iphone had the same screen cover on for 2 years

I wish they wouldn't mess with a design that wasn't flawed in the first place.

I had 3 iPhones since the very first version, passed one onto the missus and upgraded to the 3g.

I have never put so much as a screen protector on any of them, its not needed.

People get paranoid that they are going to scratch the phone or something with no evidence.

I saw a video when the first iPhone came out, around the time of the first "will it blend" video, drop testing the phone etc. The guy pulled out a set of keys and scrapped across the glass on the first gen phone and there was not so much as a mark!

Sure enough, my 3g which is now over a year old still looks like new, I knew I was never going to simulate intentional screen scraping with keys like that guy did even with the phone in constant pocket use!

Why people tarnish their phones with those horrible screen protectors is beyond me, they always peel a bit or get contamination in and make the phone look worse. As for that Oleophobic coating, I wish Apple would give the option not to have it because I'm not that interested in that when I come to the end of my 3g contract in a few months and plan to get the 3gs.
I may consider waiting for the next iPhone and skip the 3gs in the hope that Apple drops the coating too.

I am incredulous, oleophobic glass coatings are pretty thin residuals. My 3GS seems just as scratch resistant as the plain glass was and I've no signs of wear like this despite extensive playing of games with set control points.

But if it is happening there will be many more reports so I'll keep an open mind.

Rychiar said:

who in ther right mind buys an iPhone and doesn't put a screen cover on it immediately anyway. i never even touched my screen to try out the coating b4 i put a cover on. My original iphone had the same screen cover on for 2 years

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Who in their right mind would buy a screen cover for their iPhone when it shouldn't be necessary. I never even touched my screen with a cover on it and still it hasn't got a single scratch on it despite of heavy use for almost exactly a year.

I win?

Seriously. You. Do. Not. Need. Screen. Covers.
If you do, Apple has screwed up.

Here we go again.
Everyone panics, the media issues reports of massive recalls, Apple's stock goes down, and then next Monday someone will say "A level 3 engineer determined it was because of a 3rd party carrying case that the customer was using."

Note to the person who took this photo: Maybe you shouldn't carry abrasive objects in the same pocket of your pants that you keep your iPhone in.

Sayer said:

How dare Apple not produce an indestructible surface that can withstand some German guy's OCD on a fishing game.

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LMAO !!!!!!

healeydave said:

I have never put so much as a screen protector on any of them, its not needed. I saw a video when the first iPhone came out, The guy pulled out a set of keys and scrapped across the glass on the first gen phone and there was not so much as a mark! Why people tarnish their phones with those horrible screen protectors is beyond me, they always peel a bit or get contamination in and make the phone look worse. As for that Oleophobic coating, I wish Apple would give the option not to have it because I'm not that interested in that when I come to the end of my 3g contract in a few months and plan to get the 3gs.

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Same here. My 3G phone, which I have now had for 12 months has zero scratches on the screen and I do not have a screen protector. Also, I'm not extra careful with my phone. To me, function comes before fashion. I wish Apple had stuck with the same screen for the 3GS that was on the 3G. They can then sell oleophobic screen protector sheets as an option and make more money ... or at least, put the protector in the box and let the customer make the decision whether they want to put it on their phone.

Beklim said:

Who in their right mind would buy a screen cover for their iPhone when it shouldn't be necessary.

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Yeah I was thinking the same thing - its glass - its 'nigh indestructible' unless you work as a diamond cutter or way too much bling on your hand grabbing for it.

I will see if I can make my coating 'defect' - I mean obviously it would be covered under warranty - I'm still skeptical though - glass coating technology is pretty far along - if the coatings on my glasses doesn't wear after years of wiping I doubt a properly done one on the iPhone will either.

Beklim said:

Who in their right mind would buy a screen cover for their iPhone when it shouldn't be necessary. I never even touched my screen with a cover on it and still it hasn't got a single scratch on it despite of heavy use for almost exactly a year.

I win?

Seriously. You. Do. Not. Need. Screen. Covers.
If you do, Apple has screwed up.

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I agree. You don't need screen covers. No issues at all with my ipod (almost 2 years) and my iphone (almost 2 weeks). I keep them in my pockets all the time (making sure there are no keys or change in the same pocket, of course.)

Beklim said:

Who in their right mind would buy a screen cover for their iPhone when it shouldn't be necessary. I never even touched my screen with a cover on it and still it hasn't got a single scratch on it despite of heavy use for almost exactly a year.

I win?

Seriously. You. Do. Not. Need. Screen. Covers.
If you do, Apple has screwed up.

Click to expand...

Agreed. I had original iPhone for 2 years and have had 3gs since day 1.

No screen covers. No cases. No scratches on either screen for me.

The back of the original iPhone was a different story...definitely had a few scratches and dings, but the screen was still immaculate.

There have been plenty reports of scratching in comparison to the 3G. Plenty.

I put a Power Support Crystal Shield on ours and I can't tell the difference IMO. In fact, this shield seems to glide better.

Our 2 3Gs were totally babied and there are hairlines in the glass when looked at under light.

Rychiar said:

who in ther right mind buys an iPhone and doesn't put a screen cover on it immediately anyway. i never even touched my screen to try out the coating b4 i put a cover on. My original iphone had the same screen cover on for 2 years

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it wasn't designed for a cover so "who in ther right mind " is a bit strong. And if you must no, I have owned iphones from release day, never used covers, and never had scratches, and I think I am in my right mind...

I didn't trust the coating from the get-go.
Mine still looks spectacular with it's anti-reflective screen protector.

This would be a problem. It looks like it's something that is only visible when the phone is turned off, so at least there's that. Still, it shouldn't be happening, period.

I hope that this guy just got a defective unit.

And my original iPhone has just two teeny scratches on its screen, after a couple years with no protector used. Needless to say there is no wear pattern on the glass, either. The scratch-resistant glass is really excellent.