Why no quality side protectors?

[DSH7]

I'm kind of a screen protector nerd having tried many different styles and brands on my iDevices. By far my favorites are the static stick styles from Power Support and Spigen....If you're patient with the install they are damn near perfection. I love the look, feel, thickness, and smooth edges. I went with a wet apply from Armor Suit for the back of my iPhone 5 since the static stick doesn't adhere perfectly over the aluminum to glass transitions. It's pretty good, but definitely no Spigen or Power Support.

I've tried two side protectors, and they both suck. I can't remember the name of the first, but it basically looked and felt like precut (cheap) scotch tape. The second was Armor Suit full body. It provides added grip to the phone, but the cut sucked. It's too thin, the edges are sharp, and the cuts around the on/off button and sim card slot are horrible.

Does anyone know of any static stick side protectors? Or at least some good quality ones? and no I'm not looking for cases or bumpers. I hate how everyone advertises how thin theirs are....I want something with a slight thickness to it that doesn't have sharp edges and actually fits like its suppose to...Is that really too much to ask? I can't believe with the massive market for phone protection no one can come up with something better for the sides.

 

[meistervu]

Well, once you start asking that question...

Why no quality sofa clear cover?
Why no quality shoe covers for a wet day?

I have my answers, but they are probably different from yours. Most people probably don't care about those things, so the market is pretty small. If you can't make money creating a quality product, unless you love doing it, you wouldn't. I can't imagine saying I love making vinyl strips for the side of a mobile phone.

 

[Radiating]

I'm kind of a screen protector nerd having tried many different styles and brands on my iDevices. By far my favorites are the static stick styles from Power Support and Spigen....If you're patient with the install they are damn near perfection. I love the look, feel, thickness, and smooth edges. I went with a wet apply from Armor Suit for the back of my iPhone 5 since the static stick doesn't adhere perfectly over the aluminum to glass transitions. It's pretty good, but definitely no Spigen or Power Support.

I've tried two side protectors, and they both suck. I can't remember the name of the first, but it basically looked and felt like precut (cheap) scotch tape. The second was Armor Suit full body. It provides added grip to the phone, but the cut sucked. It's too thin, the edges are sharp, and the cuts around the on/off button and sim card slot are horrible.

Does anyone know of any static stick side protectors? Or at least some good quality ones? and no I'm not looking for cases or bumpers. I hate how everyone advertises how thin theirs are....I want something with a slight thickness to it that doesn't have sharp edges and actually fits like its suppose to...Is that really too much to ask? I can't believe with the massive market for phone protection no one can come up with something better for the sides.

I've tried 9 different brands of iPhone 5 side protectors. You cannot make a static stick protector FYI for a curved anodized surface it has to be silicone or rubber adhesive. In any case the one that was the best by far was the Spigen soft matte side protection, it has the second best cut and the best material (Spigen uses the same material for the iPhone 5 as Ghost Armor, but has a better more complete cut around the sim tray and lock buttons, but otherwise they are identical).

Sticker boy has the best cut, and is the only one that actually goes all the way around the speakers and the dock connector, instead of just offering partial coverage, but their company is run out of a small (basement?) sticker shop and they use automotive venture shield clear bra film material which doesn't look as good as Ghost Armor or Spigen. They also sent me half my order and then never shipped the rest of the $30 order 'due to hurricane Sandy'.

 

[DSH7]

I've tried 9 different brands of iPhone 5 side protectors. You cannot make a static stick protector FYI for a curved anodized surface it has to be silicone or rubber adhesive. In any case the one that was the best by far was the Spigen soft matte side protection, it has the second best cut and the best material (Spigen uses the same material for the iPhone 5 as Ghost Armor, but has a better more complete cut around the sim tray and lock buttons, but otherwise they are identical).

Sticker boy has the best cut, and is the only one that actually goes all the way around the speakers and the dock connector, instead of just offering partial coverage, but their company is run out of a small (basement?) sticker shop and they use automotive venture shield clear bra film material which doesn't look as good as Ghost Armor or Spigen. They also sent me half my order and then never shipped the rest of the $30 order 'due to hurricane Sandy'.

Thanks for the info. I'm going to try Sticker Boy....that cut is amazing if it actually fits. Also, you specifically mentioned the soft matte with Spigen. Is that the only one you've tried, or is that your favorite from them? They advertise the Ultra Coat as slightly thicker....I would lean towards that as long as the thickness doesn't make the edges sharper.

 

[Radiating]

Thanks for the info. I'm going to try Sticker Boy....that cut is amazing if it actually fits.

You can't get the one with the holes in it on the clear screen protector, just the one with a rectangle for the speakers, no clue why. The material is really not as good as SGP stuff it looks much lower quality. I was thinking of mixing the two but either way.

Also, you specifically mentioned the soft matte with Spigen. Is that the only one you've tried, or is that your favorite from them? They advertise the Ultra Coat as slightly thicker....I would lean towards that as long as the thickness doesn't make the edges sharper.

The ultra coat which is the same as Skinomi (I forgot if the cut is worse or better) is incredibly terrible. It probably does provide more protection than average but it really looks terrible. Especially on the back. It looks ok on the side.

Here's an example of the issue I found on the web:

So on top of looking wavey (not necessarily what you would call orange peel) it is also glossy which will look really bad on the iPhone 5. I would sooner get a thin clear plastic case than use the ultra coat material. To me that wavy effect is just cheap and nasty.

I've also tried the Spigen dual fine protector, it lifts around the logos and is clearly defective (Spigen mentions this issue in one of the technical pictures in the page for it) though some people have been able to get it to lay flat with a wet application. Either way I dislike the dual fine rear protector due to the fact that it is prone to fingerprints, and is only slightly matte on the rear body cover.


The soft & matte matches the iPhone texture better than anything else, you can almost not tell it's there.

Currently I am running the following setup:

Front: SGP Oleophobic (3M oleophobic was better than the Spigen oleophobic one for my 4S but hasn't been shipped yet)

Sides: SGP soft matte

Rear: SGP soft matte cut using a razor blade so that it's only on the body with the glossy dual fine 3 pieces protectors on the top and bottom glass.

I then bought a set of iPhone 5 sized logos from Spectra Wrap and told them not to remove the outer material so they shipped me a set of stencil stickers for the iPhone 5 logo (which is slightly smaller than the 4S logo, so be careful to get the right ones). I then put the stencil on the soft & matte protector and sprayed it using Valspar glossy clear coat (you want to use the cheap kind from a home improvement store or walmart because they put tons of solvent and little paint in them to enable them to spray at low pressure and they go on in very thin layers, real clearcoat is designed to be thick and you'll have to sand and polish it) so that the apple logo is now glossy again.

My phone aside from the word "iphone" not being glossy looks like there is absolutely nothing on it at all. It's really nice.

My next step is to trace the top and bottom 3 pieces SGP glossy rear glass protectors onto an oleophobic screen protector because they show too many fingerprints.

Hope that helps.

 

[spring]

^That sounds like a really good setup! Could you snap some pictures, would love to see them?

My current set up is Green Onions supply oleophobic screen protector (which I think is better than the SGP one), ghost armor matte sides (was thinking about **********), and the SGP ultra mix three piece for the rear (it does create bubbles though around the logo), but I'm thinking of copying your setup for the rear.

 

[Kenjichaz808]

I was in the same boat as you... after LOTS of searching I came across a new company called Digiskins. They are based out of singapore and I believe its just a man and his wife. BUT from the pictures I have seen these skins fit are PERFECT! they even cover the CHAMFERED EDGES!!! as of right now they have a lot of girly colors and the only one that appealed to me was the new "brushed metal" skin. I placed my order and am patiently waiting for it to come in. once i get it installed ill do a review on the forums for everyone. Im really hoping these skins will look as good as it does in the photos. The price is kinda high ($40) for the brushed metal ones and i think 30 for the regular ones but hey if it fits like I hope it does then im not gonna complain.