I used phone without tempered glass for a year and it was an eye opener

I used phone without tempered glass for a year. To be frank, there was no other way. I purchased the OnePlus 8 last year and this phone has a curved display. The only type of tempered glass I can get for this phone is the UV glass and you can my bit on this over-hyped and not-so-safe UV tempered glasses in this other post. Instead of wasting money on these UV tempered glasses, I decided to apply a simple thin film old school screen protector and see how it goes.

Before you read further, you must know this! I am terrible at keeping phone display safe. I broke two review unit displays, I broke display panels of my past phones on regular basis. When I used tempered glasses, I would break one every two months. This is how bad my handling of a phone is. I am the ideal case when it comes to knowing how sturdy a phone display is.

Preparation for the worst

These new generation displays are very costly to replace. The first thing I did when I decided not to pay for these tempered glasses is getting accidental damage protection and extended warranty. My OnePlus 8 has 2 year accidental damage protection and extended warranty (a bit like Apple Care Plus). In these two years, I am entitled to get my phone repaired at minimal hardware cost (only labour cost is applied) if there is any damage. I paid 5,100/- INR for this plan. This means that even though I end up with display damage, I can get it replaced at minimal cost. Do note that this accidental damage also covers damage due to liquid spilling on phone or phone falling into water.

A strong back case

Though the OnePlus 8 came with silicone back case, I use Ringke Fusion X case, which I purchased for 1,200/- INR. This case is super sturdy and protects the phone and display very well. The only case this will fail is if the display comes in contact with a sharp object (like a rock on the road). For a normal fall on a floor, the case will absorb the impact. Moreover, the case looks very good, does not turn yellow in color after a while.

Super cheap thin screen guard from AliExpress

Before GoI banned AliExpress in India, I purchased pack of 4 thin film screen protectors for $4 (about 300 rupees). These screen protectors are very good at preventing scratches on display panel. These did their job very well till now. I have used two of these till now. As these are thin plastic screen guards, I have to replace one every few months and they will show too many nail marks and scratches.

Extra care

When I had tempered glass on my past phones, I never handled the phones with care. I was like ‘tempered glass is there, my display is safe’. I used to continue to use my phone even when there is a very good chance of me dropping the phone and end up dropping my phone.

Without a tempered glass, when I face such a situation, I keep my phone aside or in my pocket in such cases. Only when I am sure that I will not drop the phone, I would hold my phone in my hand.

End result

I purchased my OnePlus 8 in the first week of September 2020. More than a year passed since I started using this phone. Number of times that I dropped this phone in a year is less than the number of times I dropped my past phones each month. Number of times I changed screen protector is 2. Number of times I went for display replacement is 0. This constant reminder that my phone is brittle made me handle the phone with lot more care. This has also made me keep the phone away in environment where using a phone is not recommended. I have not paid for a single tempered glass in this year. In the same period, I have changed the tempered glass of my wife’s K20 Pro thrice. I paid 1299/- for Spigen tempered glass for my iPad that I purchased two months ago and the tempered glass has cracked already.

Do I really need a tempered glass? Not really. Will I apply a tempered glass for my next phone if I buy a phone with flat display. I may not. I have learned how to use a phone without a tempered glass and I will stick to this routine as long as the phone comes with Apple Care like accidental damage protection.