I started using it without any protection for the screen (just a case for the back half) cause of the new coating. Big mistake.
I now have a couple minor hairline type scratches. My pockets were clean and I never used anything but my shirt to clean it (making sure to only use the cloth-only part of my shirt and not parts that had any stitching or designs).
They are not very noticeable, in fact you can only see them if you put it at a certain angle to the light, but being a tech junkie who takes care of his stuff it still bothers me a bit.
So I went on eBay and ordered 9 screen protectors for $2.97 or so shipped (sure beats paying $19.95 for just 2 at retail).
They didn't come with one of those cardboard things to get rid of air bubbles, but I just used a piece of cardboard I had laying around. The trick is to only put the bottom on and then use the cardboard/credit card or whatever to apply the rest by sliding it across the entire width. That way you get virtually no air bubbles.
In fact, I got 0 air bubbles.
Also, when you try to squeeze air bubbles out, make sure you squeeze them all the way to the edges. That's how I managed to get my perfect application of it.
It also helps if you got a quality protector that is designed to be "bubble free" because if it isn't then the air bubbles will be trapped (I think the adhesive quality of the protector must be not too strong in order for the air bubbles to escape when you massage them out, the crappier protectors with a stronger adhesive quality to it will not allow air bubbles to escape).
Here is the screen protector I got:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...o=CRX&its=S%2BI%2BSS&itu=SI%2BISS%2BUCI&otn=4
Not sure if the link will work well. If not, then go on eBay and type in "3x LCD Screen Protector Guard Shield iPhone 3G 8GB 16GB"
It says its bubble free and finger print resistant, which it is to a degree I suppose but its not anywhere close to the iPhone's coating. The bubble free thing is definitely true as its easy to squeeze bubbles even from the middle of the phone all the way out.
Now that I have the protector on, the scratches are less visible because of the coating, and I feel safer with it in my pocket. The only problem is obviously you don't get the awesome coating on it, so it leaves some streaks /fingerprints when cleaned, but I prefer that to having a scratched up screen on a phone that I will have to keep for at least a year or more before I can upgrade. Maybe toward my last few months I'll remove it, lol.
Good luck!
