Saturday, 9 October 2010

Skinomi Techskin - captivate, protector


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Overall it's a pretty decent cover with a couple of serious issues.

1) Biggest issue is that the material used for the screen cover is not crystal clear - it is slightly textured. This results in some subtle artifacts when viewing the screen.

This appears to be true even when the screen protector has been allowed to dry for several days.



2) Carbon skin on the face of the phone seems to cover some sensors causing some problems. There needs to be a cut-out for the sensors. In fact, they should do away with carbon on the face and just have a clear protector for the whole front.



3) As mentioned by others, the application instructions on packaging don't match this skin - luckily there's a little sticker on the bag that tells you not to use the spray with this skin.



Contacted the manufacturer about issue #1 and they at least responded - they may send out another screen cover but unless it is made from another material, I suspect it will have the same issue.



Update: Well, after decent initial follow up, there has been zero response from the manufacturer.

I'll likely try to return. At $20 for a bunch of stickers, you'd expect that they'd at least be very nice stickers. Skinomi TechSkin - Black Carbon Fiber Skin Protector Shield Full Body + Screen Protector for Samsung Captivate

I have installed products like these before, but this one is a pain.



Instructions are unclear-first there is a tube of adhesive to use included in the box and mentioned in the directions, but then a warning label on an internal sleeve says not to use it with the carbon fiber kit. Battery cover piece will not install at all, without or with adhesive.



Covers are not shaped properly for the area around the screen. I was unable to install the screen protector without noticeable bubbles, and I tried the humid trick, etc.



However, the shields appear pretty durable, and they add a little roughness to the phone which keeps it from falling out of my scrubs when I am on driving. May be a negative to some.



Would not by again, but some protection is better than none. I am looking into an Amzer cover whenever they begin shipping.

Please note. This is not a case. The details and other descriptions were vague. I understand that there was some type of screen protector that required a film and some type of liquid. This comes with some type of carbon fiber stuff that you stick onto the phone. I see no benefit from that except from stopping the phone from getting scratched. While the screen protector may do a good job, I don't know as I am returning this product unused.

In response to other reviews- although install was tricky, I managed to get ALL pieces on my phone. It was necessary to adjust the pieces a few times to get the proper coverage, but as long as you have clean hands and avoid touching the adhesive too much, all of the pieces provide decent coverage. I would also make sure that your phone is clean. Also, DO NOT spray the carbon fiber skin or the phone!. It tells you not to on the plastic that the carbon is in. However,the instructions definitely need to be updated for this phone (captivate). They seem to be generic instructions for plastic protector material. The carbon fiber has actual adhesive that sticks w/o need for the spray. I actually put the carbon fiber on first and then installed the screen protector. Again, DO NOT spray the phone! I am surprised that that one person didn't trash their phone! When installing the carbon fiber, think of it like putting decals on a model airplane( I am almost 40 y.o. and haven't done that in like 30 years), but just try to line things up as good as you can and if you need to remove and try again you can. I did this with multiple pieces and everything is still sticking fine almost 2 weeks later. For the screen protector, get you fingers wet with WATER, spray both sides of the screen protector, and then, making sure you put the adhesive side down, start with ONE side (if you start with top or bottom it is easier to handle) and slowly lay it down, you should get minimal bubbles. Use the tool to get as many bubbles out as possible and you should be good. I didn't wait 24 hours- (maybe 2 minutes)after I used the same lint free towel they tell to clean your phone off with to wipe all excess moisture from phone. Any remaining bubbles were gone a few hours later.

Also,if you look at the picture shown on Amazon, it is not the Captivate but one of the other models of Galaxy S. The Captivate has much more square edges.

One more thing- you will need to use scissors to cut out a small piece of the carbon fiber on the face piece. They didn't leave a hole for the sensors at the top of the screen( right next to the earpiece) that senses when you move the phone away from your face. If you don't cut a hole the screen will not reappear.

I can't tell you what other company's installs are like but overall I wasn't exactly impressed with this one's. I plan on contacting Skinomi and maybe they will try to improve the design and instructions.

This install was definitely not the easiest, but this was the first time I've ever done anything like this before and I did it in like 10-15 minutes.

Btw, my phone looks awesome! - Captivate - Protector - Case - Samsung
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