$6.99 + shipping
As I mentioned in my blog recently, I needed to test a slip case from Proporta that required my iPhone to be removed from the Incase Slider I normally use. I couldn’t bear the thought of my iPhone completely naked, so I decided that I’d get a skin to at least protect it a little when it wasn’t in the case. I decided on a DecalGirl skin since they had the design I liked the best and they are pretty inexpensive at $6.99 + shipping.
I ordered the skin on March 28 and received it about a week later. It was well-packed in a stiff envelope to ensure it wouldn’t bend during transport. The skin comes in 2 parts, or 3 if you consider the matching wallpaper download as well. One part of the skin covers the front of the iPhone around the screen, including a small piece for the home button and cut-outs to avoid blocking the ambient light and proximity sensors to the left of the earpiece speaker.
DecalGirl also offers a free matching wallpaper image that you can download using a special code included with the skin. Using this will give the front of your iPhone a more “seamless” appearance with the skin for the front of the iPhone to continue the design, best illustrated by the picture below from DecalGirl’s site. I have downloaded this wallpaper but since I don’t use the part of the skin that covers the front around the screen, it doesn’t quite provide the intended effect.
Image courtesy of DecalGirl.com
Application
Applying the skin requires no liquid or special equipment, aside from what you need to clean the iPhone before application. I used iKlear to clean off my iPhone and a can of compressed air to periodically remove lint that got in the way during the application process. Lining it up properly wasn’t too hard using the camera lens hole as a guide.
There were a few bubbles, particularly at the edges where the rear of the iPhone was curved, but I was able to work them out with my fingers. The edges took a bit more pressing throughout the first day to make sure they adhered well and didn’t bubble or wrinkle and now they’re perfect.
Coverage
The skin covers the back of the iPhone and wraps around the sides and top only partially, leaving about 1/2 inch of the plastic exposed all around. This leaves all buttons and everything on the bottom of the phone exposed. As previously mentioned, there’s a cut-out for the camera lens and it’s perfectly cut, showing the just the metal ring around the lens and no more, unless you stretch it out a little during installation, which I did just a tiny bit.
As you can see, I chose a skin that’s mostly black with a flowery design in white (from among 324 different designs available!). It blends in well with my black iPhone so that the edge is hard to see from a distance. Of course, this would not be the case had I selected a skin with a contrasting main color. Also, the Apple logo is covered by the skin, so your iPhone can be a little incognito with one on. Having used one of these skins on my iPhone briefly before and then removing it, I can attest that the skin will NOT remove the logo or any of the lettering on the back of the iPhone when you take it off.
Material
DecalGirl’s site states that this skin is made of premium-grade vinyl with a high-gloss clear protective coating, promising to be re-positionable and easily-removable without leaving any residue. Its thickness isnt mentioned, but it’s not substantial enough to be annoying in any way - I can still fit my iPhone into the OEM dock and my iPhone iP9 alarm clock. It will still fill into my Incase Slider, but it’s a very, very tight fit and it’s almost impossible to remove it afterward, so I wouldn’t recommend using this skin in combination with a fitted hard case.
Using the skin
I knew that my iPhone would spend a fair bit of time outside of the Maya case during testing and I’d likely be resting it on its back most of the time. With this, I was concerned that the back would get scratched from grit on a table or if it was slid accidentally across the table’s surface. While I’m using the Maya case, this is indeed how I handle my iPhone when it’s not in the case and the DecalGirl skin provides exactly the protection I was looking for.
In the few weeks I’ve been using the Skin, it has protected the back of my iPhone from scratches well. I have set my iPhone down everywhere without worrying that it will get scratched. Of course, some parts of my iPhone are still at risk from scratching since the skin doesn’t cover everything not already covered by the screen protector. Combining the skin with the Maya case, or any other slip case, is a very good combination since the Maya case protects it more when it’s in my bag with my keys and other scratchy items.
The skin shows a little bit of wear on the flat parts of the rear of the iPhone, but I have to hold it an angle to reflect light off of it to see these, so it’s holding up pretty well. It provides a little bit of extra grip compared to a completely naked iPhone, which is helpful.
Summary
I like the DecalGirl skin a lot - it’s done exactly what it’s supposed to, I really like this particular design, and my only issue is that it doesn’t offer more coverage, but I knew this when I placed the order. The skin is also priced reasonably at just $6.99 plus $2.95 in shipping, compared to a full-body invisible skin from Zagg for $24.95 plus shipping. Of course, Zagg’s skin covers the entire phone and it is transparent to show off your iPhone without hiding it. But if you’re looking for something a little different for your iPhone for protection only against scratches on the back, the DecalGirl skin is ideal, and it’s cheap enough to be a temporary change to the look of your iPhone and is great in combination with a slip case.
Click here for iPhone Skins from DecalGirl!
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