Today, I went to Best Buy Mobile in hopes of finding a decent screen protector for my HTC Desire.  I am not a fan of cases, as they unnecessarily bulk up your phone and in my opinion, are useless.  If you’re that prone to dropping your phone that many times to warrant buying an ugly case for a $500 investment, then just get a crappy flip phone.

The reason why I was interested in a screen protector is to maintain the resale value of the device, especially for pricier phones like the Desire or the iPhone 4.  People really care if the phone is severely scratched, front or back, and that will set you back at least $50 in terms of resale value.

I set my eyes on the ZAGG invisibleshield front screen and back cover protectors.  In terms of price ($24.99), it was fairly reasonable compared to similar options.  I got to admit though, I kinda fell for their whole marketing gimmick.  ”We used these on military grade helicopter blades to protect them!”.  Yeah, that kinda caught my attention.  Plus, I remember watching a series of tests where Engadget or Gizmodo scratched an iPad with nails, keys, and rocks to test its durability.

The installation process was lengthy, and involved using their special spray on both the front and back side of the screen protector, which I found kind of odd.  But it did make sense, because the light amount of liquid was used to make the process of aligning and shifting the protector to fit the screen much easier.  Once the screen protector is applied, you use ZAGG’s squeegee to remove any excess liquid and air bubbles from the device.  After that was done, there were still some minor air pockets/bubbles, but ZAGG assures you that these will disappear after a week or two due to heat making them go away.  Let’s see if that holds true.

Initial Impressions:

Besides the fact that there are still air bubbles on the screen and backside, ZAGG’s invisibleshield holds up to its promise.  I purposely put my phone in the same pocket where I keep my keys, and after shuffling them around for about ten minutes while walking around, there were no visible scratches on the screen.  I believe it will serve its purpose in the long run, but I guess only time will tell.  Below is a cool video on how effective the screen is actually supposed to be.