Defective Oleophobic Coating? (with photo goodness)

[Rodimus Prime]

It could very easily be nothing wrong with the phone and it is not defective but something wrong with the users.

The problem is OP skin could be more acidic than the normal population and as such eats away at the covering faster than it should normally. For example my girlfriend has very acidic skin and will pit jewelry very quickly and I am not talking about cheap jewelry but 18k gold stuff will get pitted in a matter of month or 2 where it touches her screen. The stainless steel watch I got her for Christmas already has pits in it.

It nothing wrong with the phone but at the same time it failed under normal use so chances are they will warranty replace it.

 

[ouimetnick]

Remember people, the iPhones own owners manual states that coating is not permanent and will eventually wear off.

What page in the manual states that?

 

[TMar]

The wear pattern is what catches my eye, very odd. The streaks also shouldn't be there with a rubbed off coating. I don't see how the edges off screen would wear faster then the middle.

 

[Rodimus Prime]

The wear pattern is what catches my eye, very odd. The streaks also shouldn't be there with a rubbed off coating. I don't see how the edges off screen would wear faster then the middle.

What you are seeing is the middle is worn off. With out that coating the light reflects differently so to looks clearer.

 

[Veinticinco]

This guy seems to have been obsessed with Flick fishing.

Good call

 

[Surely]

It could very easily be nothing wrong with the phone and it is not defective but something wrong with the users.

The problem is OP skin could be more acidic than the normal population and as such eats away at the covering faster than it should normally. For example my girlfriend has very acidic skin and will pit jewelry very quickly and I am not talking about cheap jewelry but 18k gold stuff will get pitted in a matter of month or 2 where it touches her screen. The stainless steel watch I got her for Christmas already has pits in it.

It nothing wrong with the phone but at the same time it failed under normal use so chances are they will warranty replace it.

Sucks for your girlfriend. Is this your girlfriend?

I assure you that I don't have acidic skin. I wear high-quality platinum (ring), gold (white gold necklace), and stainless steel (watch) jewelry, and there is no pitting on any of it.

Why is it so difficult for people to believe that something could actually be wrong with something that Apple manufactured?

What page in the manual states that?

I decided to take a look, and the reference I found is on page 9:

Please note that the ability of this coating to repel oil will diminish over time with normal usage, and that rubbing the screen with and abrasive material will further diminish its effect and may scratch your screen.

I interpret that as meaning that the coating will lose its effectiveness, not that there will be a large area of smudge on the screen from normal usage. And for the record, I have not rubbed an abrasive material on the screen.

 

[Surely]

So to update.....

I just got back from the Apple Store, and they replaced my iPhone.

When I first showed it to the Genius*, he told me that they would either give me a new one, or replace the screen. He took it into the back, and wiped it down while he was back there. He brought it back, and said: "Oh, it was only dirty, the screen is fine." But then I showed him how it smudges in the same pattern every time after rubbing it with my finger, and he understood that the coating had worn off.

They didn't have any replacement screens in stock, so he gave me a brand new iPhone. He let me look it over before taking it, and it seems just as perfect as the one I was replacing. Hopefully the battery et all turns out to be as good too.

The Genius told me that he's seen one other iPhone that had the coating worn off.

Hopefully this won't happen to my new one! I'm doing the restore right now.....


A side note.... while I was in the store, some crazy guy was yelling at the manager because he wanted them to honor a price of $150 for Microsoft Office (which costs $400) that one of the sales reps mistakenly told to him when he asked the price. The sales rep thought he was asking about the Home & Student edition. The manager apologized, and offered him a slight discount, but would not sell it to him at $150. He was yelling, everyone was looking. It turns out, coincidentally, that the sales rep that gave him the bad info was the girl I sold my 1st gen iPhone to!

*please keep in mind that I am aware that "Genius" is merely a job title (Although the guy that helped me seemed to know his stuff- for example, he suggested to another customer to not update to 3.1, and to wait until the next point update, because the OS is choppy)

 

[SFStateStudent]

The manager apologized, and offered him a slight discount, but would not sell it to him at $150. He was yelling, everyone was looking. It turns out, coincidentally, that the sales rep that gave him the bad info was the girl I sold my 1st gen iPhone to!:eek

I'm surprised the Apple Store Security didn't taser him and place a 30 day free trial of Mac Office and a 60 day free trial MobileMe on his limp and lifeless body.....lol

Congrats OP on the replacement 3GS iPhone

 

[vivithemage]

eventually.... but not on a product that is, at the most, 3 months old!

Yeah, that's a little fast.

 

[Surely]

I'm surprised the Apple Store Security didn't taser him and place a 30 day free trial of Mac Office and a 60 day free trial MobileMe on his limp and lifeless body.....lol

Congrats OP on the replacement 3GS iPhone

Haha nice.

Thanks..... I forgot how long it takes to Restore a 32 GB device! 1200 songs to go......


I forgot to mention- the other reason I went to the Apple Store was to see if they would replace the plastic bezel that surrounds the screen on my white MB. There is a crack above one of the raised lines that stops the screen from touching the keyboard. They are replacing it at no cost, but I'll have to go back because they had to order the part.

I must say, I do appreciate Apple's customer service.

 

[anjinha]

I'm glad everything worked out for you.

 

[Gathomblipoob]

I found these statements in the 3GS Important Product Information Guide:

1. Some iPhones have an oleophobic coating on the screen that repels oil left by your hands and face. If your iPhone has such a coating, contact with abrasive surfaces will diminish the effectiveness of this coating.

2. If your iPhone has an oleophobic coating on the screen, simply wipe iPhone’s
screen with a soft, lint-free cloth to remove oil left by your hands and face.
Please note that the ability of this coating to repel oil will diminish over time
with normal usage, and that rubbing the screen with an abrasive material will
further diminish its effect and may scratch your screen.

 

[Surely]

^^^^^ Yes, I already posted a portion of what you quoted from the iPhone manual in post #31 above.

I'm glad everything worked out for you.

Thanks

 

[ZipZap]

Did you use any cleaning solutions on the iphone screen?

Cause your phone looks worn in areas you would not normally be swiping with your finger.

And why is the wear so pronounced. Wouldn't you have done something about it at the first sign of wear?

I mean I never see reports of minor wear or blotchy wear.....its always a big and pronounced area.

Something facts are missing.

 

[rjohnstone]

I got two words for you... screen protector.
Buy one.

 

[Surely]

Did you use any cleaning solutions on the iphone screen?

Cause your phone looks worn in areas you would not normally be swiping with your finger.

Okay, ZipZap, just for you, I'll repeat myself:

I did not use any cleaning products on the screen. I am not an idiot.
The wear isn't around the edges. The wear is in the middle, in the clean area. That is the area where the coating is missing.

If you look at earlier posts, someone posted a link to an engadget article that reported on the same phenomenon with someone else's iPhone screen.

And why is the wear so pronounced. Wouldn't you have done something about it at the first sign of wear?

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have been really busy over the past month (assignments, final exams, visitors, etc.), and have not had time to go into the Apple Store to have this checked out. The iPhone functioned just fine, it was just annoying to have to deal with the smudge-area. I didn't see the need to drop more important things and rush to the Apple Store right away for this.

I mean I never see reports of minor wear or blotchy wear.....its always a big and pronounced area.

Something facts are missing.

I would describe the area on my screen as big and pronounced.

There really aren't any facts missing. For reals.

I got two words for you... screen protector.
Buy one.

A screen protector defeats the purpose of having an oleophobic screen.

I'm not the kind of person who buys a couch and then puts plastic wrap all over it.

 

[anjinha]

I got two words for you... screen protector.
Buy one.

I seem to be increasingly paranoid about my Apple stuff. My first iPod (B&W 4G) was dropped, scratched to hell, you name it. My iPod Video was treated like a baby. Even more with my iPod touch.

Then I got my iPhone 3G. Although I treated it carefully I didn't use a case or screen protector, just an iPod sock. Now my 3GS has a case AND screen protector and I keep looking for better stuff to protect it.

Apple is making me OCD.

 

[rjohnstone]

A screen protector defeats the purpose of having an oleophobic screen.

I'm not the kind of person who buys a couch and then puts plastic wrap all over it.

The coating is a gimmick.
I haven't noticed any difference in it's ability to repel fingerprints any better than my 1st gen iPhone's screen.

Bedside the screen protector does more than keep prints down.

 

[Consultant]

eventually.... but not on a product that is, at the most, 3 months old!

That's what the included 12 month Apple Care is for.

The coating is a gimmick.
I haven't noticed any difference in it's ability to repel fingerprints any better than my 1st gen iPhone's screen.

Bedside the screen protector does more than keep prints down.

Nope. Put it in the pocket when you are done. When you take it out of the pocket again it's brand spanking clean.

 

[trssho]

I called bs on the post from the engadget report when it first came out(flick fish). Of the tens of thousands people posting on ipone forums, this is the first live person I have ever heard reporting this. I call it a fluke, not a problem.

 

[Surely]

I called bs on the post from the engadget report when it first came out(flick fish). Of the tens of thousands people posting on ipone forums, this is the first live person I have ever heard reporting this. I call it a fluke, not a problem.

It certainly was a problem to me.

I never claimed that this is a wide-spread issue. I just reported that it happened to me.

Besides, did you ever stop to think that perhaps it is a bit early in the life of the 3GS for it to be considered a more common problem? The 3GS has only been around since June 19. People haven't had the 3GS long enough for more cases like this to have been reported. In fact, I think one person (or two people?) in this thread posted that they didn't realize that it was happening to their screen until they read my original post. What if my example, the engadget example, and the Genius' other sighting are just the early signs of it being a larger problem?

I hope it was, as you called it, a fluke occurrence.

 

[BergerFan]

I seem to be increasingly paranoid about my Apple stuff. My first iPod (B&W 4G) was dropped, scratched to hell, you name it. My iPod Video was treated like a baby. Even more with my iPod touch.

Then I got my iPhone 3G. Although I treated it carefully I didn't use a case or screen protector, just an iPod sock. Now my 3GS has a case AND screen protector and I keep looking for better stuff to protect it.

Apple is making me OCD.

Tell me about it. I went through the same process. With my 3rd Gen iPod, I didn't baby it at all. Then I got a 30GB Black iPod Video and put a screen protector on it, but that was it.
Next, I got a Sony PSP, did the same with that(screen protector), but eventually got bored with babying it. The OCD began in earnest, when I got my first iPhone, back in February 2008.
All previous phones I've had over the past 10 years, were never so fortunate to receive such love.

 

[nippyjun]

The coating certainly is not a gimmick. If you compare sliding your finger on the 3gs screen versus the screen of the previous gen phones there is a big difference. Your finger slides a lot easier and more smoothly on the one with the coating.

I think this is just an isolated case nothing more.

As for using a screen protector, i haven't used one since my handspring visor days and won't use one again. it's like wearing latex gloves or other latex coverings ; ) It just doesn't feel the same... especially with the new coating.

 

[maflynn]

This is probably the one big fear I have with the 3GS and the chance I took. I don't like being on the bleeding edge. I think the coating in theory is a good idea, but it all boils down to the durability and scratch resistant of the coating. I think its still too early to say if the coating is a success or not.

 

[ZipZap]

I am still not convinced that you didn't some how cause this to happen (though not intentially). The wear on your screen extends outside of the normal center area.

Either you cleaned it with something that reacted with the coating, or you have something in your pocket that caused the damage.

The fact that you have no pictures of the damage as it progressed is also suspect. I would have chronicaled the wear.

Regardless, there have only been 2 reports (that I have seen) of this damage since July so this is not a systemic problem (and I am not referring to scratching).