Gadget Skins – Hate scratches on your shiny new gadgets?

bestskins I hate scratches on my toys but large bulky cases make an elegant slim device seem ungainly.  However, it seems extravagant to pay $25 for a sheet of plastic.  I found Best Skins Ever (www.bestskinsever.com), a company that sells pre-cut shields for your gadgets.  I ordered a pre-cut skin for my Blackberry and iPod Nano to try the skins out.  I also ordered an uncut sheet for my camera screen.

You get your skins in a envelope–unlike the fancier vendor you don’t get “application liquid” or a squeegee.  Instead, you can make your own application liquid with a drop of baby shampoo in 10 oz. of water and use a credit card as your squeegee. 

To apply, first clean your device perfectly–I used microfiber cloth and a drop of lens cleaning fluid from my camera bag.  Then, you peel the skin from the liner (I screwed one up in the peeling process), dip the skin in the application liquid and slid it into position on the device.  After you move the skin into place you squeegee the water and bubbles out.  The process went flawlessly on the Blackberry (I was just covering the screen), it took a bit more work to get it right on the Nano since it is a wraparound skin.  With a bit of work, I did get it positioned correctly and managed to get the bubbles out.  After letting it dry overnight, it looked flawless.  The skin is not invisible–you can see it.  However, it doesn’t blur the screen and removes the bulk of a case–my Blackberry is a lot slimmer in the pocket without a bulky case.

Does it fit?  Bestskinsever does a good job on cutting the skins to fit the device.  It was easy enough to cut the DIY sheet to fit the camera screen. 

Does it work?  I haven’t tried to intentionally scratch the screen but the Blackberry has been in my pocket with keys, coins, etc. for over two months and so far no scratches on the screen. 

Can you get rid of it?  Well the company says you can remove the screen if needed and it doesn’t leave adhesive on your device.  Frankly, I like them enough that I haven’t removed them yet.

www.bestskinsever.com