How to choose a protective glass for your smartphone

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1. How to choose a protective glass for a smartphone: what to look for?
   
2. Main selection criteria
3. Top Producers
4. How to stick protective glass

How to choose a protective glass for a smartphone: what to look for?

The main criteria for choosing protective glass are:

1. Protective glass and smartphone compatibility;
2. Protective glass design (number of layers and types);
3. Thickness;
4. The presence of an oleophobic coating;
5. glass strength;
6. Type of glass (glossy or matte).

There are also special types of glasses, but you should choose them only if you plan to use them in any special conditions.

Main selection criteria

Compatibility

Compatibility is the most important criterion when choosing a protective glass. The fact is that in addition to the display, this accessory covers some other functional elements of the smartphone located on the front panel. For example, a proximity sensor.

1. The proximity sensor is designed to turn off the smartphone screen while talking on it and prevent accidental clicks. It works as follows – it sends out an optical or ultrasonic wave, and then measures the time it took for it to reflect from the object. Approximately the same work, for example, laser rangefinders.
2. The glass is recognized by the proximity sensor as an “object”. And it closes this sensor, the smartphone will turn off the screen immediately after pressing the call button. This is actually inconvenient, since you can only “hang up” on the active display. In addition, some modern smartphones use the proximity sensor to enable Always On Display or Ambient Display.
3. Therefore, all protective glasses have a special slot or hole for the proximity sensor.
4. Finally, the protective glass can sometimes cover the front speaker, resulting in reduced audibility of the caller.
5. Thus, by sticking an incompatible glass on a smartphone, instead of protection, you can get a lot of problems associated with the operation of the device.

You can learn about the compatibility of a smartphone and glass from the technical specifications of the latter.

In addition, protective glasses are not recommended to be “modified” in any way at home. Attempting to cut or saw the accessory will break it. As a consequence, it is very important to choose a glass that is compatible with the smartphone you are using.

Separately, it is worth mentioning glasses for smartphones with a 2.5D screen. They should also be 2.5D – that is, with curled edges. In this case, they will protect the ends of the display from side impacts.

Protective glass design

Usually protective glass for smartphones is a multi-layered canvas. It includes the following layers:

1. Glue. Most often, silicone is used to glue the accessory to the smartphone display. This material provides a sufficiently tight fastening, which, if necessary, can be easily destroyed by simply prying the glass at one of the edges. Accessories with a silicone mount are recommended;
2. Restraining. This layer is usually made of various polymeric materials and is a dense flexible film. It is designed to prevent the scattering of glass fragments in case of damage – for example, in the event of a fall;
3. Antiglare. This layer “enlightens” the screen of the smartphone, protecting it from reflections. Thanks to him, the display retains bright colors and readability even in direct sunlight;
4. Protective. As the name implies, this layer is designed to prevent scratches, chips, or other damage. When the strength of glass is specified, the strength of that particular layer is given;
5. Oleophobic coating. This is a special coating that makes it easier to slide your finger over the screen, as well as care for it – most of the contaminants from the glass surface are removed with a simple movement of a dry cloth.

This is the configuration found in most quality safety glasses because it provides the best performance.

Glass not equipped with any of these layers is not recommended for purchase.

Glass thickness

The mechanical strength of the glass partly depends on the thickness of the glass. However, this parameter directly determines only the resistance of this accessory to various impacts. The most optimal glass thickness is 0.2-0.35 mm.

1. Thinner glasses are designed to protect against small scratches only. Frontal (front) damage, these accessories simply do not survive. Even a light blow will damage the glass.
2. Thicker glasses protect well from various frontal impacts. Even severe damage does not damage the accessory. However, thick glasses do not survive side impacts very well and crack easily from seemingly light collisions at the ends.

To fully protect your smartphone, you can purchase thick glass and a bumper that covers the end faces of the front panel. Then the device will be able to survive the fall “face” on asphalt or similar surfaces without protruding edges. The thin protective glass is rather designed to prevent scratches.

The presence of an oleophobic coating

Oleophobic coating, as the name implies, is designed to prevent oily prints. In fact, it does not provide complete protection against glass contamination, but it greatly simplifies the care of them. Prints and other “stains” are easily removed from the surface of this accessory simply with a special dry cloth.

In addition, the oleophobic coating makes sliding your finger across the screen smoother and more enjoyable. Therefore, if you are used to typing with a swipe on the keyboard or often browse long lists (for example, social media feeds), such an “addition” is more than recommended.

Unfortunately, the oleophobic coating is prone to abrasion. Over time, it is spontaneously removed from the glass surface, especially in the keyboard area (if the user types a lot). It is impossible to restore the oleophobic coating, you will only need to replace the accessory.

On average, the oleophobic coating “lives” for about 3-4 months, even for the best glass models.

Glass strength

The strength of glass is measured in special units called H. However, it determines its resistance not to impact, but to “scratching” mechanical stress. So glass with a high hardness value – such as 8H or 9H – can also break easily if it comes into contact with a sharp object. But such an accessory is quite difficult to scratch, even if you carry a smartphone in the same pocket with keys and your favorite nail.

glass type

Protective glasses can be glossy and matte. This parameter largely determines the performance of the accessory.

1. Glossy protective glasses are the most common type. In fact, almost all such accessories are of this type. Glossy glass has high transparency (up to 98% for the highest quality models) and does not change the perception of the image on the screen. However, it is less protected from glare, and therefore, in direct sunlight, the “picture” on the display may lose readability.
2. Matte protective glasses are less common and in most cases are more expensive than glossy ones. The main advantage of such accessories is that they better resist the action of direct sunlight, and therefore the image on the display remains readable even on a summer afternoon.

However, low-quality frosted glasses tend to appear grainy – at a certain angle, the image on the screen is visually deformed, “crumbled” into separate elements.

Choosing the type of glass – matte or glossy – is based on your preferences and the planned use of your smartphone.

Top Producers

Among the manufacturers of protective glasses, there are several companies that produce sufficiently high-quality accessories:

1. Mokolo;
2. Ainy;
3. Luxcase;
4. Brando;
5. Nillkin.

How to stick protective glass

The procedure for gluing protective glass is quite simple. This will require only a little care.

1. Choose the least dusty room. Even a tiny speck that has fallen on the screen during the glass gluing process can significantly spoil the appearance of the attached accessory;
2. Take a plastic card. Suitable banking, discount, etc. You can not worry, in the process of gluing it will not be damaged;
3. Thoroughly wipe the screen or the entire front of the smartphone with a damp cloth. If this comes with a protective glass – use it. If not, you can take some other one, and preference should be given to alcohol-impregnated wipes;
4. Thoroughly wipe the screen or the entire front of the smartphone with a dry cloth. It is recommended to choose “cleaners” that do not leave lint or similar “debris”. Often a dry wipe comes with a protective glass, but if it is not there, then you can use any optical one;
5. Make sure the screen or front of your smartphone is completely clean. Contamination should not remain either on the main surface or on the edges;
6. Peel off the shipping film from the protective glass on the adhesive side. It is usually marked with the symbol “1”. Attention! Do not touch the adhesive side – prints cannot be removed from there;
7. Starting from a corner, lean the glass against the screen or front of your smartphone and start gluing. In order to squeeze out the air, lean the plastic card outside against the attached “corner” and move it in the direction of gluing. Attention! Avoid bending the glass too much as this can lead to cracks;
8. After sticking the glass on the front panel or smartphone screen, remove the second transport film from its surface (usually marked with the symbol “2”).
9. Ready! To remove the protective glass, it is enough to pry it from one of the edges with some thin and sharp object, and then gradually lift it, not paying attention to the cracks that appear.

In the following articles, our experts will tell you how to choose a smartphone case and the secrets of choosing a phone battery.