The screen protector has long been hailed as a necessity, costing anywhere from $10 to $60.
Your screen protector may not be essential anymore.
You wouldnt be crazy for wanting to protect your screen.
Photo: Wild Carpathians (Shutterstock)
Cracking your screen isthe number one way to break your phone, followed by water damage and battery issues.
However, the glass in your phone has gotten significantly stronger in the last five years.
Soneiras company researches how to optimize your phones display.
DisplayMate found that screen protectors make your phone more reflective.
However,the phone community is mixed on this screen protector issue.
He calls them a no-brainer but admits theyre less essential than they used to be.
Even the liquid screen protectors have their issues.
Liquid wipe-on screen protectors are snake oil, said iFixit CEO Kyle Wiens in an email.
However, he sees fewer iPhones with broken screens than he used to.
There is an obvious argument in favor of screen protectors: they cost less than replacing your phone screen.
The multi-billion dollar screen protector industry would like to keep that on the down low.
Corning got it done, creating an especially strong, thin material calledGorilla Glass.
This material would be used in the first decade of iPhones and is still used in most Samsung phones.
Gorilla Glass is stronger than most glass, but it wasnt great at first.
Screen protectors for phones almost immediately popped up, as consumers raced to wrap their phones in protective materials.
Apple forumsin 2008 were full of peoplediscussing early screen protectors.
The first iPhone adopters quickly scratched their Gorilla Glass displays.
Some users found these early screen protectors were so bad they messed with the iPhones touch screen.
Screen protectors have gotten much better, but so have screens themselves.
Ceramic Shield was a major leap forward for screen technology.
The materials used in Ceramic Shield are much different from typical smartphone glass.
However, these major improvements have flown under the radar.
That may have something to do with the growth of the screen protector industry.
By 2030, the industry is expected togrow to roughly $85 billion, according to Grand View Research.
Its totally understandable why you might put your phone in a screen protector still.
It is a large investment, but theres more and more evidence that screens are getting better.
A good phone case alone may be sufficient.
So at what point do we ditch the screen protectors?
Screen protectors are slowly becoming a thing of the past.
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