Nexus 5, screen protectors

[mikeymikec]

I haven't applied screen protectors many times before, and my previous phone was significantly smaller than the N5, but both my wife and I have tried to apply screen protectors on my N5 and it's pretty difficult to get totally right.

I've managed to apply one, but I've got a tiny hair caught under the screen that I notice when reading e-books especially. With the pack of screen protectors I bought we both had to spend ages trying to scratch off another hair that got caught on the sticky side before application, and yes, we're following the instructions.

Are some screen protectors easier to apply than others? Any tips?

 

[Yuriman]

Rent a clean room.

Seriously.

 

[mikeymikec]

ie. you find it a PITA as well?

 

[paperwastage]

go to bathroom. turn on hot water and let the steam form..

steam traps floating particles

perform screen protector installation.

have a roll of tape (scotch tape works really well) to allow you to lift the screen protector out of the screen. use a second piece of scotch tape to remove offending item from protector/screen. reapply protector


the screen protectors I use aren't sticky... they use static attraction to stay on the screen.

if you ever touch the screen-side of the protector, the oils on your hands void the static attraction and the screen protector is useless (that's why you use a piece of scotch tape to remove stuff)

 

[vshah]

put the protector down on the screen with both protective sides still on.

use a piece of tape to create a "hinge" on the top edge of the device

angle the protector up, and grab the pull strip for the bottom (screen side) protective layer
pull the protective layer back inch by inch & push the protector down on the screen, from top to bottom. only exposing ~1" of the protector at a time.

you should have minimal dust after this. if you do have anything, use tape to lift/remove as paperwastage mentioned.

youtube has lots of videos of this method.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Tip with the hinge method: If you center the protector and then attach the hinge, the hinge will pull the protector towards the hinge. You can test by lifting the protector, and letting it close on its own with the hinge. Unless you attached the hinge without adding stress, it's likely it will pull a little to the side. It's best to compensate a bit when you first lay the protector on before attaching the hinge.

Also, I used a rocketblower and the sticky tape provided to clean my screen and an eyelash got on. Ugh.

I broke my glass protector the other week so I've got a new one on order. I'm doing my next one at work in the cleanroom.

 

[shabby]

Are some screen protectors easier to apply than others? Any tips?

I always buy a 5 pack from ebay.
First one you always mess up
Second one has some bubbles you can't squeegee out
Third one is perfect... but with one spec of dust
Fourth one is just right
Fifth one you give to a friend and laugh as he puts it on and messes up.

 

[zerogear]

<3 Spigen Tempered Glass screen protector -- Just installed one today.

 

[dawheat]

Pretty much what everyone else has said

- steam up the room
- I first wipe the screen with a damp non-linting cloth, then microfiber, then adhesive (normally comes with good quality screen protectors). Really go over every inch a couple times with the adhesive as there are always dust particles and such you miss the first time.
- Use the hinge method and account for 'stretch'. Get it right the first stick.
- With tempered glass protectors, there are rarely any air bubble issues - once you lay it down, don't press yourself for 20 seconds or so as the adhesive naturally spreads. You can then easily push out any air bubbles in a few seconds

They cost a bunch, but I really like Mime Feather tempered glass screen protectors as they're only .15mm thick, which is half most protectors. Probably not a big deal for a phone with OSB, but with Samsung phones, they make a huge difference with the home button.

If the N5 is anything like the G2 screen, the curve of the screen at the edges is a huge PITA for screen protectors as they can't go to the edge. So I found it quite a bit harder to line up correctly as you're trying to eyeball equal distance from every edge.