iPad Do you apply screen protector on IPad?

[SigEp265]

I use a PaperLike screen protector on my 11” which gives a better pencil experience and reduces reflections. On my new 12.9” M1, I put a glass protector on it. Since I use it for photo editing, I don’t want to see the pixelation of the PET protectors.

The other day I was using the 12.9 to edit a couple photos. I got up and set it on the footstool in front of my chair. While in the other room, the dog jumped up right on the iPad. The protector got three scratches from her claws. I don’t know if the screen would have gotten scratched. But I’m glad I didn’t have to find out.

amazon link for a paper like screen protector ? ty ty

 

[sparksd]

Don’t understand all “the bother’ a screen protector is, and how they “ruin” the iPad appearance or experience.
You will develop micro scratches without one, especially if you use a pencil.
It’s just common sense.
After reading many of these threads, I see most of the naysers bought cheaper (cheapest) screen protectors.
Even a good one can be relatively inexpensive. If you’ve never applied a large protector, I recommend have it applied by a reputable installer.
I always use one whether on the phone or iPads. Never an issue with Apple Pencil or third party pencil.
As to one of the early responders that stated people that use one are irresponsible with their devices, he has no idea what your usage case is. He needs to broaden his stunted experience.

"The bother" for me with the high-quality glass screen protector I had on my 12.9 iPP was the significantly increased reflectivity of the screen, particularly when when watching videos with darker scenes in other than a dark room. So I'm a naysayer because I felt it degraded the user experience for me. YMMV

 

[harriska2]

Always on all ipads and phones (and even watch if I can get it to stick, which I normally can't). I use icarez cheapo ones and replace about every year or two or three. The pencil on my ipp from 2015 sure did a number on the screen protector!

 

[scotsmandc]

I always have a matte screen protector. I lose a bit of clarity but nothing too crazy but it beats constantly seeing a reflection.

 

[10-Dee-Q]

Here in Germany there is now way Apple changes your iPad under apple care+ just because of some ugly scratches.


I use the smart folio as well. And the magic keyboard. I love to easy swap between them thanks to the magnet. But in my experience that doesn’t prevent the scratches I mean. Those happen while using the iPad. I guess there are some hard particles in the dust. And when you use the iPad those get stuck between the finger and the glass and cause tiny scratches.

It is the second day now with a protector on my iPad. It’s awesome to not thinking about scratches anymore and on dark backgrounds like the macrumors page it really doesn’t distract me. But there still is this muddy mushy feel and look… White bright screen like YouTube is horrible. I think I can’t get used to it.

my country apple rep also said the same thing
they wont replace if it's only minor scratches as it's a cosmetic
but they teach me to just break the screen and they will replace the whole thing
with apple care + you have 2 "accidental" replacement per year, so make use of it ?

 

[ElDuderino91]

my country apple rep also said the same thing
they wont replace if it's only minor scratches as it's a cosmetic
but they teach me to just break the screen and they will replace the whole thing
with apple care + you have 2 "accidental" replacement per year, so make use of it ?

Sure that is an option, but if everybody starts breaking their iPads „accidental“ it won’t take long till Apple rises the prices for apple care+… And think about the environmental impact..

I would feel bad breaking a perfect usable iPad Pro to get it replaced because it has just some scratches…

 

[blkjedi954]

I always had screen protectors on my iPhones and sometimes they saved my day. Currently I use one from ESR which is very high quality and doesn’t affect the image quality of the iPhone 12.

I never had any screen protection on my iPads. My last iPad was a standard 6th gen. iPad with the pencil 1st gen. I heavily used it the last 3 1/2 years. I had it daily with me on movie sets and had no time to baby it. It didn’t took long till the first minor scratches and lots of micro abrasions were visible when holding it in the right light and angle. Then I took it with me to Sri Lanka where I traveled with just a backpack from beach to beach and from jungle to mountains. It had contact with sand and all kind of dust. More scratches happened. Using the iPad watching on it in normal angles, none of the scratches are visible or disruptive in any way. It just doesn’t look like new when screen is off.

Now I got myself a M1 12.9 iPad Pro 512gb with a pencil and magic keyboard. Total cost nearly 2000€. The mini led screen looks just amazing and the feeling using the pencil is way better than it was on my old setup. The display still looks like day one. First I don’t thought about using a protector but keeping the high price in mind and the fact that I just can’t baby it because I need it for my job, I bought the same ESR glass protector for it as I use on my phone. Well, the black isn’t black anymore, reflections are worse now and if you look closely you can see something I would describe as “multicoloured grain”. It’s best visible on white screen, a bit like the protector would break the light of the pixels into a green/red/blue grain all over the display.

I hardly can think about anything else… I must decide and set priorities. With the screen protector I don’t care about scratches, micro abrasion and the annoying dust possibly causing all this. But the display quality looks bad, cheap and just not what I bought this device for… Should I just rip the protector off and enjoy my wonderful iPad like I did in the past without worrying about scratches? Probably the scratches and micro abrasion that are coming with normal usage wouldn’t even be visible under normal conditions. It’s just the little voice that keeps screaming “the next time you touch your unprotected iPad could result in the first minor scratch!” And I just want it to stay so wonderfully flawless.

I mean I know that all those little scratches time would bring, wouldn’t affect my usage and overall quality of the display but I still try to avoid them and ruin the display with a protector instead. Stupid isn it?

I guess I will keep the screen protection until I made peace with the fact, that the future scratches won’t affect my experience and the non protected screen image quality makes me happier than a protected screen looking cheap.

I am ashamed that such a first world problem bothers me so much….

Try a different brand of screen protector if your current screen protector appears to diffract the light. There are so many options.

 

[adib]

Do you apply screen protector on IPad? If yes then which one?

does it in any way reduce iPad’s functionality?

Yes. Tempered glass ones, for a Mini and a Basic (2020) iPad. There's no noticeable functionality apart from increased peace of mind.

Experience dictates that protectors are needed if minors are around. They are cheap and easy to replace as compared to the screen itself.

 

[bigdog5142]

I use the AmFilm from Amazon. It’s a tempered glass protector that is barely noticeable. Keeps scratches off of the main screen and if/when I sell, it’s brand now. If scratches get on the screen…peel it off and put on a new one! Reasonable price too.

I also use the Apple Pencil and have liked the “paperlike” screen protectors, but they do effect screen clarity. I like the anti glare, but it gets to be a lot in a normal room. If you want to try any, I loved the actual Paperlike (but it’s expensive) or the iCarez Matte on Amazon. I was REALLY impressed by the iCarez.

I ended up finding a matte screen protector that gives me the best of both worlds. I keep the AmFilm on my iPad 12.9 all the time, but the Stary Matte Screen protector actually has MAGNETS on it that allows me to slap it over the AmFilm when I want to really have an Apple Pencil session or for anti glare and then pull it off to have the glory of the new mini-LED screen! I love this thing. Wasn’t sure how well it would work, but it is excellent.

BOTTOM LINE: Great protection and functionality. I don’t feel as though my iPad is at all hindered by my screen protectors. In fact, I use it more because I’m just not worried about babying it.

 

[Digitalguy]

Sure that is an option, but if everybody starts breaking their iPads „accidental“ it won’t take long till Apple rises the prices for apple care+… And think about the environmental impact..

I would feel bad breaking a perfect usable iPad Pro to get it replaced because it has just some scratches…

Yeah, that's a terrible behaviour, can't believe anyone at Apple would suggest to do something like that... there is a fee for Apple care accidents, so it's not free either, but regardless, that's equivalent to stealing to me...

 

[Expos of 1969]

No I do not.

 

[Tagbert]

Do you apply screen protector on IPad? If yes then which one?

does it in any way reduce iPad’s functionality?

No, though if I'm going anywhere with it, I keep it in the Smart Keyboard cover. beyond that, I don't stress about micro-abrasions that you can't except under special conditions. I've never gotten a noticeable scratch on an iPad and I've had several.

 

[PennyThought]

I have an iPad 2 that I still use, believe it or not, and I have an anti-glare/anti-fingerprint film on it. I remember the installation effort to apply the film (while keeping the screen dust-free) and then chasing out the resulting bubbles under the film.

My 6s has a glass protector...also rather painstakingly installed by me. Good thing I had ordered 2 glass protectors as the first application was a bust.

If I were to eventually get another iPad, provided it was the smaller <11" model, I would try to apply a film to it and see if I had any luck. I do know that with my Surface Pro 6, after 2 failed attempts with film..I gave up.

 

[LFC2020]

No screen protectors on my iPad and iPhone for a while now, no need for them.

 

[blkjedi954]

Don’t use them on either iPad or iPhone. Never had a scratch on any of the screens. Unless you’re really careless with it the iPad is unlikely to get scratched. For the iPhone I never put it in my pocket with keys or other stuff. I’ve used an iPad with a screen protector and didn’t like the feel or responsiveness.

Sound like a generic “look at me” declaration. Micro-scratches happen even in the best care from dust getting between your fingers and the glass and the Apple Pencil itself has been documented as a culprit in scratching the iPad’s screen. So re-inspect your screen protecto-less iPad/iPhone with unbiased eyes at an angle and re-submit your honest experience. I’ll be here all week..thank you.

 

[clarencek]

Yes. Matte protector and I like the more grippy feel vs the glass like feel of other protectors. Also reduces a ton of glare which is helpful for work.

 

[Heat_Fan89]

I've been using screen protectors since my very 1st iPad in 2012. I swore by them even though I could never get them to apply without dealing with bubbles. Then tempered glass screen protectors became mainstream and I used them instead. One day the glue started to wear on a corner and I began developing a bubble.

Because the iPad was an original Air I purchased in 2014 I decided to just remove it and use it without a screen protector. I am so glad I did. I noticed there was at least a 95% reduction in fingerprints. The feel with and without a tempered glass screen protector was about the same i.e. no noticeable change in finger drag.

Since then I have removed all the screen protectors from my two other tablets. I just ordered a 2021 iPad 9th gen and I won't put on a screen protector on that as well. An iPad because it uses gorilla glass can hold up pretty well to most uses minus abuse.

So now I am finally in the anti screen protector camp.

 

[Yr Blues]

Since I just bought a Pencil 2, I'm wondering if I should to protect the screen from the tip.

 

[BigBlur]

Since I just bought a Pencil 2, I'm wondering if I should to protect the screen from the tip.

I've been using the Apple Pencil 2 on a naked screen for about a month now, and no scratches so far. I do make sure the screen and tip are clean before using it though.

 

[Expos of 1969]

Since I just bought a Pencil 2, I'm wondering if I should to protect the screen from the tip.

I don't have a pencil but do you not find it a bit odd that you are contemplating adding something to your screen to protect it from a device that is specifically designed to be used on that screen? But I would not put it past Apple that they would design a pencil that does damage to the screen.

 

[Yr Blues]

I don't have a pencil but do you not find it a bit odd that you are contemplating adding something to your screen to protect it from a device that is specifically designed to be used on that screen? But I would not put it past Apple that they would design a pencil that does damage to the screen.

It is odd, but I'm paranoid. One thing I absolutely hate is repairs. What a waste of time.

 

[tonie walker]

Nope even on my iphone.

 

[Howard2k]

Never. I use a case though.

 

[Heat_Fan89]

I don't have a pencil but do you not find it a bit odd that you are contemplating adding something to your screen to protect it from a device that is specifically designed to be used on that screen? But I would not put it past Apple that they would design a pencil that does damage to the screen.

Whew, I can't see Apple maliciously doing something like that. That's asking for trouble if word got out that they purposely did that. I had an iPad 2 and before I gave it away I tried to see how tough the glass was to scratches. I took my car keys and as hard as I could I tried to scratch the living hell out of the glass and I did this several times. Not a single scratch or mark on the glass.

Btw, I love your Avatar, it brings back Baseball memories when I was growing up as a kid. My favorite team at the time were the NY Mets when I lived in NYC back in '69.

 

[Expos of 1969]

Whew, I can't see Apple maliciously doing something like that. That's asking for trouble if word got out that they purposely did that. I had an iPad 2 and before I gave it away I tried to see how tough the glass was to scratches. I took my car keys and as hard as I could I tried to scratch the living hell out of the glass and I did this several times. Not a single scratch or mark on the glass.

Btw, I love your Avatar, it brings back Baseball memories when I was growing up as a kid. My favorite team at the time were the NY Mets when I lived in NYC back in '69.

Yes, doubtful Apple would do it purposefully but don't forget they knew there were serious issues with the butterfly keyboard yet sold it for 3 or 4 years.

Baseball....great memories for me as a 10 year old attending many games at Jarry Park during the Expos first season in 69. The park held 28,000 and the atmosphere was tremendous. Rusty Staub, Mack Jones, Coco Laboy, Maury Wills, Ron Fairly, Bob Bailey, Bill Stoneman, etc. Good times indeed.