Handhelditems.com Matte Screen Protector Review

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5/22/10 Update: after using it for a few days my enthusiasm has waned. It's decent for video, but it blurs text just a shade enough to be annoying.

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I received the anti-glare screen protector from Handhelditems.com. It was a shade under $8 shipped for 3 with code ipadmatscreen.

I'm glad I bought the 3 pack b/c the first one was def. a practice sheet -- haste makes waste. With the first one I made the dumb mistake of wiping down my iPad screen w/ a paper towel. Tiny, nearly invisible paper towel fibers remained and when I put down the sheet they stuck to the sheet which caused immovable bubbles.

Take 2. This time I pulled out a new microfiber cloth to clean the screen. I think slowly applied the protector going up, pressing out the major bubbles going along. There were some bubbles left on the sides, but nothing in on the viewing portion. Those bubbles dissipated by themselves after a few hours.

The protector itself works as advertised -- it cuts down glare by about 50%. The penalty is that you lose the glossy vibrancy. Same debate you find b/t the Glossy vs anti-glare laptop screens. The protector also has a slight sheen to it, similar to an anti-glare screen. I still like it better than my original glossy protector.

I tried it outside in full sun and brightness on high. There was no appreciable glare, but the screen was still barely visible.



As far as quality goes, I can't imagine these are any worse or better than "name brand" ones. A couple things I really like about these are 1) they don't attract finger prints and 2) the face feels great to scroll and swipe.
For $8 shipped ($2.66 each) I think it's a pretty good deal. A protector is a protector as far as I'm concerned.

 

Yeah, I'm noticing the distortion/blurriness now that I've played w/ it more -- but only with my glasses off. Odd thing is I don't usually need glasses when I read, but wearing my glasses makes it sharper. It's really apparent on websites with lots of text & also in iBooks. Hmm. Now I'm wondering if some protectors have better optical quality. No matter. I'm not spending anymore money on screen protectors.