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Apple Banning Screen Protectors in Retail Stores?

speedriff said:
I use the anti-glare screen protectors because they almost eliminate fingerprint smudges. Excuse me but...**** YOU APPLE !!! If I want to put a screen protector on my phone, so be it. WTF? Hell I'm a fanboy and this just irks me. I hope Google's Nexus 1 gets better and kicks the **** out of iPhone sales. SJ is starting to be one helluva Primadonna.
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Yes, you sound just like a fanboy. A Google fanboy.

That said, I think this move by Apple is lame. Far too many of their core consumer base at the Apple Stores are the exact same folks who want to feel that their $200/300/400 device is protected the best it can be. A lot of them are first time tech buyers, and they're rightly nervous.

Apple Stores being able to offer them a one-stop shop where they can get any accessories needed to allay their fears has always been a huge plus. Hard to see how any "durability" impression upside will outweigh this benefit, or beat the simple human need to protect expensive baubles.
 
opticalserenity said:
Good job Apple, I commend you. These things are a huge waste of money and totally make the experience of using an iphone just like all the rest of the crap phones out there (WM, BB, android, etc) that use touchscreen.

I like this move.
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I've never had an issue with them even once, and I've used them on all of my iPhones. Applied them once....no bubbles, and protected the screen great.
 
BryanLyle said:
Power Support non glare screen protector is the best thing I have bought for my iPhone. I guess I better stock up on them.
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I was going to write (nearly) the same thing. I bought a Power Support protector (the regular, not anti-glare) at an Apple Store on Day 1 with my original iPhone. It went on fine, and you'd never notice it was there. I bought another when I bought my 3GS. A week later something else was in my pocket, and it ripped the screen protector to shreds - but the screen underneath was fine. I'm sure it sacrificed itself, by design. Replaced the protector, all is fine since.

Good protectors go on fine without bubbles. Some are quite horrid.

I've been thinking of trying the anti-glare protector. I've been using the iPhone as windshield-mounted GPS (MotionX, works great). A bit too much glare right now.
 
muskratboy said:
especially since this perception is true. at least SOMEWHAT. they DO scratch, and not always from diamonds. :D
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Not that it means anything but I have had the complete opposite experience. I regularly put my phone in my pocket, occasionally it gets placed in the same pocket as my keys & coins, and yet I don't have a single scratch on the screen. My last phone with a plastic screen was scratched up so bad you could barely use it by the time I got rid of it.
 
this all stems from the old iPod days when the screen would scratch so easily. I have a clear film protector on my ipod touch and plan on using one in the next touch i buy. i can't afford to replace the glass on the touch or to buy a new one if i break my current one


for me, its better safe then sorry
 
I too don't use a screen protector. Just a sleeve. I haven't used those protectors since I had one on my iPaq years ago. With that being said, it's the Apple store and it's up to them what they want to carry. I really couldn't care one way or another. If you want to put one on your phone you can go just about anywhere and buy them... Best Buy, Walmart, etc. Not to mention they're probably cheaper elsewhere anyway.

Mike
 
Am I missing something??? Apple did not ban the protective screen...

They took them off their RETAIL store... Still available on the ONLINE store. So I agree with those of you that are talking about real estate to sell ipad and accessories and the possible high return rate...

No big deal IMO...

If you really need to see the box before you buy (silly you that open it!) then go to a phone store or best buy..
 
These things are pure scams and its nice to see Apple actually do something good for a change.

Unless you walk around with diamond rings in your pocket there are very few things out there that are hard enough to scratch the glass on the ipod/phone. You are likely to never have anything in your pocket that is scientifically capable of scratching the glass.
 
Unnecessary...

I decided not to use one when I bought my iPhone and after two years the screen doesn't have a single scratch or blemish. This after twenty-plus hard drops and hours upon hours in my pocket with car keys. Nice job Apple. Always advise people that the screen protectors are unnecessary and possibly even a negative for your iPhone.
 
coreybox said:
Mine fell about 3 feet, onto concrete. Now I have a spiderweb of cracks across the glass. Still functional, but looks terrible.

A casing would surely have helped, but even some additional "surface tension" from a clear screen-protector sticker may have helped. Maybe make it like pseudo-laminated glass.
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Laminate the glass so the shards stick together? Seriously, does anyone think these protectors do _anything_ to help a dropped phone.
 
as for the palm rest area, Apple Shouldn't have made the 2006 macbook palm rest area so crappy with stains. I finally went on ebay and replaced mine that was blotched to hell. the new one has a palm rest guard.
 
I object more to the case with screen protector included part that the no screen protectors thing. Mainly 'cause I'd rather look at a case in person than online. Still, cases will still be sold elsewhere.

And if people actually return these because they can't put them on without air bubbles (seriously, 90% of the time you'll probably get at least one bubble, deal) then I don't blame Apple.
 
I think screen protectors are needed. While they glass is pretty durable, but I've carried my phone in my pocket along with my keys. For a couple of weeks it didn't have the screen protector and the glass got scratched. Not too bad, but definitely enough for me to put another screen on. They way I handle the phone it's just worth it.

My previous cell phones got scratched screens too for the same reason but those didn't double as portable media devices so I didn't care.
 
What everyone seems to be missing is that most of these protectors require you to spray the screen with solution to wipe out bubbles.

Unless professionally done (and often even then), this is a VERY dangerous practice on an electronic device. I also bet it's creating a lot of the "false positive" warranty rejections my friends have been running into lately, where the water sensors are triggered (turn red) even though the phone has never encountered water.
 
I think it's a good move and bold statement to show their confidence in the iPhone's screen.

Other than those decorative mirror films, I really feel bad for those that feel the need to add a layer of plastic to their screen, taking away the responsiveness and some of the contrast of the beautiful screen.

I've had a 2G and 3G, I was very protective of my 2G, but learnt it was very hardy, so have been less careful with my 3G, and will throw it in pockets full of keys and coins, and all that jazz, and apart from some minor little superficial scratches that are only visible at odd angles, the screen is spotless.

Add to this the 3GS screen is meant to be even better.. there really is no point getting a screen protector, unless you plan to use it in a knifefight, and even then i bet it wouldn't get a knick :-D
 
sanPietro98 said:
I put one on my iPhone 3G more for reduction in the fingerprints than its anti-scratch function.
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If I were to put one on my phone, this would be why. I just never have gotten around to it.

But when I worked at the apple store, these were a pain, though maybe it's because it was a time when we'd actually put them on for customers. We were nice.

I developed a great method for these (though I'm sure I'm not the only one). If you bend them along the long axis, you can line them up easily. Then you use a credit card to smooth out the protector as you place it on the screen. It works out all of the bubbles and goes on perfectly.
 
HONDAxACURA said:
Don't you guys buy accessories online? It's a rip-off buying it instore.

I do go browsing in the Apple Store and look at the accessories to see what's cool. Then buy it online. I guess I can't do that.
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Not only that, but at our Apple stores they really only carry a few of the more popular cases and accessories. Last time I was there they had about 3 different case types in various colors.

In addition, most apple stores are in malls and almost every mall I have been too has a kiosk that sells cell phone accessories for popular cell phones such as the iPhone.

In fact at our mall, the ATT kiosk is across from the Apple store and next to the ATT kiosk is a kiosk that only sells iphone accessories including Chinese knock off docks and cables. All for a fraction of the cost of similar accessories 20 feet away in the Apple store.
 
Indeed these screen protectors are useless. I use my cutton on iphone screen to demo the durability everyday at work. If you damages the screen with minerals or hits, it would be damages anyway with a screen protectors.
 
easy4lif said:
as for the palm rest area, Apple Shouldn't have made the 2006 macbook palm rest area so crappy with stains. I finally went on ebay and replaced mine that was blotched to hell. the new one has a palm rest guard.
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I don't have this problem, but know others who do. That actually is a more legitimate product then the screen protectors. I guess you will have to go elsewhere (or wear latex gloves). I suppose Apple doesn't want to sell anything that adheres to their products. This probably has more to do with botched adhering. They may also be concerned about heat dissipation.
 
DoNoHarm said:
these protectors are completely unnescessairy. I applaud Apple for this decision. Unless you have sapphire or diamonds hanging out in your pocket, your screen will not scratch from keys or other metal objects. If there is an impact of sufficient force to crack glass to begin with, there's not that much that a thin screen protector will do - the force of impact will likely be transferred to the glass anyway.
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Why don't you speak for yourself? I always had a Power Support screen protector on my first gen iPhone and when I got the 3GS, I decided that I would forego one this time around. Well, after 2 months of ownership, I had 2 scratches that were toward the middle of my screen. It's not generally noticeable but against a white background, it's very annoying. Having a screen protector just adds another layer of protection for those who are a little more "rough" with their phone. What the hell is wrong with that? If Apple insists they are unnecessary, they should stand behind their claims and replace any phone that gets a scratch, nick, or chip, etc. with no questions asked. How 'bout that?
 
mattster16 said:
I am using a screen protector on my 3GS though...only because I was worried about the oleophobic coating.
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Apple has done a really poor job of explaining what the oleophobic is. They make it sound like it's similar to that stick-on window tinting you get at cheap places in the Valley.

So I googled it up. You can too. It turns out the "coating" is really just a chemical polymer that's bonded to the glass. It's not held on with electrostatic force; it's an actual chemical bond. And the "coating" averages only 50 nm thick. It's cliché to describe things as being thinner than a human hair, but that's a lot thinner than a human hair. A human hair is about ten microns thick. That's fifty thousand nanometers. The oleophobic coating, then, is a thousand times thinner than a human hair.

The oleophobic coating can't be removed by rubbing on it, any more than you can rub salt until it becomes sodium and chlorine. And even if you did manage to remove it from a spot, you would never be able to see the gap without expensive lab equipment.

EDIT: D'oh. Of course 10 microns is not 50,000 nm. I was typing faster than I was thinking. It's 10,000 nm. Adjust the math accordingly.
 
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