Tempered Glass Vs. Plastic Screen Protectors: Which One Is Better?
While buying a new smartphone we make sure to accessorise our phone well. We doll it up and take care of it like a baby. Screen guards or screen protectors are very essential while ensuring the well-being of your phone screens. They will help you shield your phone screens from everyday scratches, breakage or any other damage.
All it does is add an extra layer of protection over your regular phone screen. Especially, if you are accident prone or clumsy, you need to cover up your phone screens right away using the screen guards. Investing in a good screen protector is probably the best way to reduce the chances of getting damaged screens and thus letting your phone have a longer lifetime. Replacement or repairing a damaged screen could cost you a fortune. One can not afford to risk it. Better safe than sorry, no?
Choosing the right screen protector for your smartphones could be a tricky one. Having a debauched quality is deadly. It is similar to wearing gloves to escape dirt and expecting it to protect your wrist bones against fracture. There are many varieties to choose from. We will assist you appropriately so that you make an informed decision. You might be confused about whether to go for a tempered glass protector or the plastic one. Let’s go through various aspects you need to pay attention to, by cautiously weighing their cons and pros so that you make an exemplary and smart purchase.
PLASTIC SCREEN PROTECTORS
Cracked or broken touchscreens are very commonly seen these days rather than an intact one. Plastic screen protectors are universally found in the market. Just like a coin, they have both pros and cons. Let’s analyze them.
PROS
- Plastic screen guards are very resilient in making them last longer. Experiments have shown that hammering or even dropping it from a height onto rocks has no effect on the plastic screen protectors.
- Another pro linked with the plastic screen protectors is this that they are reusable. At any point, you can take them off, store it and use it again later. This feature ensures their long-term usage. In case you need to put on a waterproof case, you can take the plastic ones off and put the other one on.
CONS
- There are many downsides which come along the plastic screen guards. Due to being made up of plastic material, over time these protectors lose their clarity. That often results in haziness and looks repulsive while one uses them.
- You can easily spot the scratches if they are on the plastic screen protectors. The marks on them are usually visible clearly.
- It is relatively thinner than the glass tempered screen protectors. The thicker the screen guard, the tough it is and thus affording our screens resistance against damages.
- These are not fingerprint resistant and leaves them on your screen after you use your smartphones. It doesn’t look so pleasant. You need to often wipe them off your screen after usage.
- Plastic screen guards fail to give the full- coverage which ends up making it less scratch resistant than the tempered glass alternative.
- If you’ve been ignoring small scratches for a long time, they tend to cause larger cracks in case of a plastic screen protector.
- These protectors don’t cover the curved edges, leaving them vulnerable to damage.
- Tracking your fingers and navigating over a plastic screen protector may not feel as smooth as when you are using the tempered glass screen protector.
TEMPERED SCREEN PROTECTORS
In one line, these are everything the plastic ones aren’t. They are the exact opposite of what we mentioned above. They are the more traditional choice for those who wish to cover their phone screens without harming the edges. Tempered glass screen protectors are made by extensively heating the glass and then quickly cooling it. As the glass endures both extreme heat and then rapid cooling, they end up being incredibly stronger.
Tempered glass screen protectors contain multiple layers, which includes an oleophobic nano coating, anti-shatter film and a penetrable silicone coating on top of the tempered glass. These compressed layers add on to the heat and scratch resistivity of the tempered glass as much as five times stronger than normal glass.
PROS
- They may be a costlier alternative than the plastic ones, but it safeguards your device better. Tempered glass screen guards are much sturdier and robust in nature than the former.
- Tempered glass is made up of oil and scratch resistant gorilla glass.
- It enhances your usability experience as your fingers glide more smoothly on these screen guards.
- They prevent excessive fingerprints and oil smudges.
- You might not even notice they are on the top of your mobile screen. It doesn’t make your phone look hideous by not compromising with the look of your smartphone. They provide you clarity as much as your smartphone would without any screen protector over its screen.
- The cleaning becomes much easier on the tempered glass surface as it very smooth.
- In case if your tempered glass breaks, it breaks into small, blunt chunks and that doesn’t compromise with the safety it was providing to your phone screen.
- Tempered glass screen protectors are sleek, giving you the maximum image clarity and has the ultimate touchscreen sensitivity.
CONS
- You need to be very cautious while using the glass tempered screen guards, like the moment you crack it, they are done.
- Since it is a glass, chances are you might cut yourself after a bad chip. You shouldn’t reuse a cracked tempered glass screen protector, unlike the plastic ones.
- Tempered glass screen guards don’t offer as much impact protection as promised by a plastic screen guard. The hammer experiments we mentioned above are not meant to be run on these tempered glass screens.
COMPARISON: Tempered Glass Vs Plastic Screen Protector
PRICE
A plastic screen protector is comparatively a lot cheaper than the tempered one. You can buy multiple plastic protectors at the price of a single tempered screen protector. This is chiefly due to the quality of the plastic or glass.
LOOK
The plastic screen guards are not as sleek and modish as the tempered glass screen protectors. The tempered glass gives you a pleasant look to your smartphone.
INSTALLATION
Installing the plastic screen guards on your phone screens is quite tedious than the tempered glass ones. There are various kinds of glass protectors when it comes to tempered glass screen protectors such as full or bezel-adhesive.
FEEL
You can feel the difference between both plastic and tempered glass screen protectors. Your fingers glide smoothly over the tempered glass and it’s amusing to use. They feel more like the original screen.
DURABILITY
Tempered glass is always more robust and durable than plastic. Plastic protectors get scratched easily and are around 0.1mm, while the glass protectors are generally 0.3-0.5 mm in thickness.
Screen protectors can safeguard your smartphone up to a limit. No matter which one you opt for, you need to be careful while dealing with your smartphones. While this is entirely your choice which screen protector to go for, in our opinion a tempered glass screen protector is a much valid, resistant and solid alternative. In a nutshell, the plastic one gets dull over time but the tempered glass one is modish.
High quality tempered glass screen protectors for phones are a great add-on for your phone cases. If you’re worried about the screen, these protectors will protect it from scratching as well as impacts.
Our recommendation if you have a back case for your phone, is to add a tempered glass screen protector, as it’s a lot easier to replace a screen protector than a whole screen!
We have these for all phone versions!