DLO introduced their Anti Glare Surface Shields for the 3G iPhone recently. A 5 pack retails for the same price as a 2 pack of Power Support shields...$14.95. I picked up a pack of 5, to see what I could see. And feel.
I've been using the anti glare Power Support protectors since last year on the 1st gen iPhone. I've been pretty happy with them, as many people are. They're durable, relatively clear, and almost smudge free.
One of the reasons I picked up the DLO was because the PS shields seem to have changed formulas since the 1st gen iPhone. The 3G model seems a bit more prone to rainbow halo effects. This is especially apparent when wearing polarized sunglasses.
The other reason I wanted to try the DLO was the price. 5 for the price of 2 is nothing to scoff at, especially when we're talking about something that costs ounce-for-ounce as much as platinum.
Alas, the old adage that you get what you pay for holds true even for something as seemingly simple as a screen protector. A 5 pack of screen protectors for the same price as a 2 pack sounds like a better deal. Ultimately it is not.
Here's the rundown.
At the outset, the DLOs look pretty much identical to the Power Support. They are both full screen protectors (no gap below the home button like some), and both work via static cling...no messy liquids to apply.
For 2 things that look the same and attempt to serve the same purpose, these shields are very different.
Granted, a 5 pack of ANY screen protector is very nice to have. You get 3 more shots at putting it on straight with no dust. Despite what these companies say, these things are not easily washable, unless you are blind and can't see the dust that covers them when you attempt to dry them. My feeling (and I am admittedly anal about this kind of thing), once you touch it, or get a moderate amount of dust on it, you may as well toss it and try again.
Power Support could sell a 5 pack for $20, still sell a ton, and still make 3000% profit. We are all in the wrong business.
The DLO is a different material than the PS. It's slightly less rigid, thinner perhaps. One of my shields came with a dent already in it...maybe too thin? The thinness does seem to help in applying it a little more quickly, which is key to keeping dust out of the equation.
The texture is somewhat smoother; not good. Because it's smoother, it doesn't hide streaks, AT ALL. Finger streaks cover the screen in minutes. And unlike the PS, they do NOT come off with a cursory wipe. It takes several deliberate wipes. Streak wise, it's nearly as bad as having no screen protector. Even after wiping it clean, there is visible finger oil, in the form of a hazy smear. The PS by comparison wipes pretty clean in 1 or 2 quick passes.
The DLO does not exhibit the rainbow moire in preliminary testing. However, it does appear "grainier". The effect is an overall more pixelated look to the screen. Again, not good, and perhaps worse than a slight rainbow.
It's odd that it would look grainier but feel smoother to the touch. My theory is that they inverted the rougher side, or coated the sheet.
Fit wise, the 2 protectors are a tiny bit different, but in a big way. The Power Support is cut with a slightly wider opening around the home button and earpiece. This is nice because not only does it allow for a bit of room for error when installing it, the edges of the circular cutout don't rub against your finger on the home button.
The DLO is the exact opposite. They've tried to cover every nanometer of the glass, to the very edge of the home button and earpiece. Sounds good on paper, but in practice, I found myself quickly annoyed by feeling the edge of the protector every time I touched the home button.
I also think DLO's finish/precision is a bit off. When installing the shield, I carefully aligned the top of the protector, using the oval shape of the earpiece as my guide, as I have done with all the Power Support screen protectors I've installed...but no matter how many times I tried, there was a slight overlap over the home button. This goes to show why a millimeter of forgiveness is very useful. Finally, I gave up, on aligning to the earpiece, and aimed for the home button instead. The corners lined up, the button cutout lined up, but this time the earpiece was slightly overlapped. A miscut shield, or user error? Hmm. Never had a problem with the PS.
Once I layed down the shield as close as possible to perfectly centered as I could, I noticed a slightly jagged edge around the earpiece. Definitely not user error.
All told, it took me 3 shields to get 1 placed close to perfect. Minus the one that came pre-dented, and I'm down to one shield. Maybe that's why they come in a 5 pack. So much for saving money.
Unless you like difficult to install screen protectors that look fairly grainy and become covered in oily streaks almost immediately, stay away from the DLO Surface Shields.
I've been using the anti glare Power Support protectors since last year on the 1st gen iPhone. I've been pretty happy with them, as many people are. They're durable, relatively clear, and almost smudge free.
One of the reasons I picked up the DLO was because the PS shields seem to have changed formulas since the 1st gen iPhone. The 3G model seems a bit more prone to rainbow halo effects. This is especially apparent when wearing polarized sunglasses.
The other reason I wanted to try the DLO was the price. 5 for the price of 2 is nothing to scoff at, especially when we're talking about something that costs ounce-for-ounce as much as platinum.
Alas, the old adage that you get what you pay for holds true even for something as seemingly simple as a screen protector. A 5 pack of screen protectors for the same price as a 2 pack sounds like a better deal. Ultimately it is not.
Here's the rundown.
At the outset, the DLOs look pretty much identical to the Power Support. They are both full screen protectors (no gap below the home button like some), and both work via static cling...no messy liquids to apply.
For 2 things that look the same and attempt to serve the same purpose, these shields are very different.
Granted, a 5 pack of ANY screen protector is very nice to have. You get 3 more shots at putting it on straight with no dust. Despite what these companies say, these things are not easily washable, unless you are blind and can't see the dust that covers them when you attempt to dry them. My feeling (and I am admittedly anal about this kind of thing), once you touch it, or get a moderate amount of dust on it, you may as well toss it and try again.
Power Support could sell a 5 pack for $20, still sell a ton, and still make 3000% profit. We are all in the wrong business.
The DLO is a different material than the PS. It's slightly less rigid, thinner perhaps. One of my shields came with a dent already in it...maybe too thin? The thinness does seem to help in applying it a little more quickly, which is key to keeping dust out of the equation.
The texture is somewhat smoother; not good. Because it's smoother, it doesn't hide streaks, AT ALL. Finger streaks cover the screen in minutes. And unlike the PS, they do NOT come off with a cursory wipe. It takes several deliberate wipes. Streak wise, it's nearly as bad as having no screen protector. Even after wiping it clean, there is visible finger oil, in the form of a hazy smear. The PS by comparison wipes pretty clean in 1 or 2 quick passes.
The DLO does not exhibit the rainbow moire in preliminary testing. However, it does appear "grainier". The effect is an overall more pixelated look to the screen. Again, not good, and perhaps worse than a slight rainbow.
It's odd that it would look grainier but feel smoother to the touch. My theory is that they inverted the rougher side, or coated the sheet.
Fit wise, the 2 protectors are a tiny bit different, but in a big way. The Power Support is cut with a slightly wider opening around the home button and earpiece. This is nice because not only does it allow for a bit of room for error when installing it, the edges of the circular cutout don't rub against your finger on the home button.
The DLO is the exact opposite. They've tried to cover every nanometer of the glass, to the very edge of the home button and earpiece. Sounds good on paper, but in practice, I found myself quickly annoyed by feeling the edge of the protector every time I touched the home button.
I also think DLO's finish/precision is a bit off. When installing the shield, I carefully aligned the top of the protector, using the oval shape of the earpiece as my guide, as I have done with all the Power Support screen protectors I've installed...but no matter how many times I tried, there was a slight overlap over the home button. This goes to show why a millimeter of forgiveness is very useful. Finally, I gave up, on aligning to the earpiece, and aimed for the home button instead. The corners lined up, the button cutout lined up, but this time the earpiece was slightly overlapped. A miscut shield, or user error? Hmm. Never had a problem with the PS.
Once I layed down the shield as close as possible to perfectly centered as I could, I noticed a slightly jagged edge around the earpiece. Definitely not user error.
All told, it took me 3 shields to get 1 placed close to perfect. Minus the one that came pre-dented, and I'm down to one shield. Maybe that's why they come in a 5 pack. So much for saving money.
Unless you like difficult to install screen protectors that look fairly grainy and become covered in oily streaks almost immediately, stay away from the DLO Surface Shields.
