I received this set a couple days ago, and decided to post some thoughts for people who are interested.
What's included:
The set comes with (1) front crystal film (dry install), (1) back film with matte finish (wet install), and (1) set of side film with matte finish (wet install).
Also included are (1) bottle of installation solution, (1) rubber squeegee, (1) cleaning cloth, and (1) instruction manual.
Installation:
If you're familiar with wet installs, this set is no different. I would say this is an easier install compared to ZAGG and other similar products, because of the different finishes. The matte, smooth surface in this set makes it really easy to squeeze out all bubbles, as opposed to the sticky-type surface ZAGG provides. While the film is still semi-wet, make sure you squeeze as many bubbles out as possible. After that the film might appear "foggy" in some areas, which should go away after a day or two. As a side note: I didn't use any solution on the side film and it installed just fine.
The front screen protector is a hard film with dry install. While I'm pretty skilled in installing this kind of stuff, it was a PITA to install the front film. The cutouts are really precise, which proves to be a "hindrance" to installation. It requires lots of patience to perfectly align the film. There are lots of air bubbles after the film lays down, which can be easily squeezed out with a credit card.
Performance:
Matte side/back: I love it. It has a really smooth finish which is very nice to touch. And because of this finish, it doesn't attract (or barely attracts) any fingerprints. The back film is made a little bit smaller to allow room for stretching. The camera/flash cutout is very precise and I experience no flash issues at all. The set does, however, make the phone more slippery, so be careful not to drop it.
Front: now this is kind of a disappointment. First of all it is a really clear film and you can hardly tell there is a film with the screen on. But other than that it just feels roughly the same as other cheaper protectors. I've noticed a slight "rainbow hue" under the light with the screen off, and the film does not feel very scratch resistant. I've aligned the film almost perfectly, but the earpiece/front camera cutout still produces air bubbles around, and there is no way to get rid of it. The bottom left corner of the film does not want to stay down at all and keeps peeling up. This seems to be a common problem to a lot of SGP crystal front films, and I'm surprised that it's still not addressed properly.
Final words:
The front film seems out of place compared to the side and back. I don't quite understand why SGP would include a "crystal" front film with "matte" side and back films - it just doesn't match. The quality of the front film is quite disappointing as well, which makes me wonder if I have received a defective piece. But then overall, it is a great product for people who don't really care much about drop protection (like me
), and would just prefer the original form factor of the phone.
Pics (sorry for the bad quality):
What's included:
The set comes with (1) front crystal film (dry install), (1) back film with matte finish (wet install), and (1) set of side film with matte finish (wet install).
Also included are (1) bottle of installation solution, (1) rubber squeegee, (1) cleaning cloth, and (1) instruction manual.
Installation:
If you're familiar with wet installs, this set is no different. I would say this is an easier install compared to ZAGG and other similar products, because of the different finishes. The matte, smooth surface in this set makes it really easy to squeeze out all bubbles, as opposed to the sticky-type surface ZAGG provides. While the film is still semi-wet, make sure you squeeze as many bubbles out as possible. After that the film might appear "foggy" in some areas, which should go away after a day or two. As a side note: I didn't use any solution on the side film and it installed just fine.
The front screen protector is a hard film with dry install. While I'm pretty skilled in installing this kind of stuff, it was a PITA to install the front film. The cutouts are really precise, which proves to be a "hindrance" to installation. It requires lots of patience to perfectly align the film. There are lots of air bubbles after the film lays down, which can be easily squeezed out with a credit card.
Performance:
Matte side/back: I love it. It has a really smooth finish which is very nice to touch. And because of this finish, it doesn't attract (or barely attracts) any fingerprints. The back film is made a little bit smaller to allow room for stretching. The camera/flash cutout is very precise and I experience no flash issues at all. The set does, however, make the phone more slippery, so be careful not to drop it.
Front: now this is kind of a disappointment. First of all it is a really clear film and you can hardly tell there is a film with the screen on. But other than that it just feels roughly the same as other cheaper protectors. I've noticed a slight "rainbow hue" under the light with the screen off, and the film does not feel very scratch resistant. I've aligned the film almost perfectly, but the earpiece/front camera cutout still produces air bubbles around, and there is no way to get rid of it. The bottom left corner of the film does not want to stay down at all and keeps peeling up. This seems to be a common problem to a lot of SGP crystal front films, and I'm surprised that it's still not addressed properly.
Final words:
The front film seems out of place compared to the side and back. I don't quite understand why SGP would include a "crystal" front film with "matte" side and back films - it just doesn't match. The quality of the front film is quite disappointing as well, which makes me wonder if I have received a defective piece. But then overall, it is a great product for people who don't really care much about drop protection (like me
), and would just prefer the original form factor of the phone.Pics (sorry for the bad quality
):
