Registered: Jul 2001
Location: Montreal
Posts: 1

** Broken Screen & Screen Protectors **

Have any people had the following experience?
Changed your WriteRight protector and found within 1-2 days your screen was broken!!!

The next day after changing my Write Right(2nd one). This is what happened. Unit was in a heavy duty Visor leather case. Not dropped, banged etc.
Went to use unit and found that glass was totally shattered. Unit has always been kept in my pocket, without keys, coins etc.

HYPOTHESIS: 1) When you apply the protective coating you are forming a bond between two different types of materials.

2) Any torque applied to your visor, such as movement in your pocket sets us a stress. Pulling on the glass by the protective sheet may be uneven, thus causing a fracture in the surface of your visorif any slight torque is applied(ie a slight twisting of the unit)

I spoke to Handspring and they indicated that the unit was not tested scientifically for the types of stresses that might occur when a material is added to the Visor's surface.

Please provide feed back via email if your Visor Delux has had the same type of experience with the Fellowes WriteRight product or other screen protectors.

There might be a legal action here as I believe the manufacturers of these surface protectors do not have test results to demonstrate torque effects on handhelds with and without the protectors in place.

Ron Cayne
[email protected]


Please advise if you have had a similar problem or thoughts on the matter.

Last edited by rcayne on 07-12-2001 at 01:35 AM

Registered: Jul 2000
Location: Mesa, AZ USA
Posts: 50

I've had the screen broken on two Visors in different ways.

The first was a Visor Deluxe (Orange one) which was knocked off the counter outside of it's normal padded case by one of our Cats. Almost a former cat... except for the fact that I had purchased upgrade insurance for the unit at CompUSA who replaced the unit no charge, no questions asked. They did not want the cat though...

The second one was a bit more complicated. I had my Visor Prism in the cradle and I was moving things around the desk. One of those long handled Mag lights was on the desk and got knocked over. I didn't see it actually hit the unit, but apparently that is what did it.

This one cost $100 - $65.00 covered by the Insurance for a total of $35. I had the unit covered by the PDA Lost and Stolen Insurance and the screen replacement is the same as replacing the unit with a $35 deductable. I had never intended on using the insurance for that, I figured I would lose the unit or have it stolen before I actually broke it.

Handspring offers a $45 extended year warranty when you buy the unit that covers one, screen replacement for free.

As to the cause of your PDA's screen being broken because you used a screen protector, I really have a hard time with that.... I don't think you would get enough torque to have an effect unless the unit was exposed to wide fluctuation of heat like we have here in Arizona.
I don't see where you are going the get any movement of the screen while it is just stitting there.

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Kevin Reed
TNET Services
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Registered: Aug 2000
Location: Glen Burnie, Maryland
Posts: 205

Considering that I have been using WriteRights for over a year, changing them every month, and have yet to have a cracked screen (knocking on wood), I don't think that is what caused the problem. Haven't seen anything on the boards here about the WriteRights causing this kind of problem either.

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Sven

If at first you do succeed, try not to look astonished.

Registered: Apr 2001
Location: Atlanta, GA
Posts: 708

I have used WriteRights for about a year now as well. Started on the Visor Deluxe and now have a Prism with WriteRights on them. My dad has the Deluxe and he is still using WriteRights on it. Neither of us have experienced problems with them.

I just cannot see how a WriteRight would cause a screen to shatter. I understand what you are saying, I just do not think that it is the likely culprit for breaking your screen.

I certainly do not believe it would have happened enough to warrant a lawsuit against Fellowes. Everybody wants to sue. Sue, sue, sue. Man that annoys me.

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Registered: Feb 2001
Location: Them Twin Cities
Posts: 1758

I'm trying to think about :

quote:

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HYPOTHESIS: 1) When you apply the protective coating you are forming a bond between two different types of materials.

---

Yep. But in this case, there's no real stress on the glass as a result, b/c the WR is flexible. Attaching two different material that respond to flexing differently could cause one of them to crack, but they would have to both be relatively inelastic.

quote:

---

2) Any torque applied to your visor, such as movement in your pocket sets us a stress. Pulling on the glass by the protective sheet may be uneven, thus causing a fracture in the surface of your visorif any slight torque is applied(ie a slight twisting of the unit)

---

While I have watched a Writeright tug on the screen in a rather disconcerting way, I would tend to doubt that it would literally shatter it. If it did, I would guess it would do it right away as you're removing it and you wouldn't need a poll to surmise the cause.
The idea that the tug somehow weakened the screen is more interesting, but I still think it's a bit of a reach

quote:

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I spoke to Handspring and they indicated that the unit was not tested scientifically for the types of stresses that might occur when a material is added to the Visor's surface.

---

Who'd you speak to? I'm guessing they answered your question more in the deer in headlights mode ("What, Huh? No, we didn't do that.") than in actual informed mode ("Hey, go get the product manager!").

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Re: ** Broken Screen & Screen Protectors **

quote:

---

Originally posted by rcayne
Have any people had the following experience?
Changed your WriteRight protector and found within 1-2 days your screen was broken!!!

The next day after changing my Write Right(2nd one). This is what happened. Unit was in a heavy duty Visor leather case. Not dropped, banged etc.
Went to use unit and found that glass was totally shattered. Unit has always been kept in my pocket, without keys, coins etc.

HYPOTHESIS: 1) When you apply the protective coating you are forming a bond between two different types of materials.

2) Any torque applied to your visor, such as movement in your pocket sets us a stress. Pulling on the glass by the protective sheet may be uneven, thus causing a fracture in the surface of your visorif any slight torque is applied(ie a slight twisting of the unit)

I spoke to Handspring and they indicated that the unit was not tested scientifically for the types of stresses that might occur when a material is added to the Visor's surface.

Please provide feed back via email if your Visor Delux has had the same type of experience with the Fellowes WriteRight product or other screen protectors.

There might be a legal action here as I believe the manufacturers of these surface protectors do not have test results to demonstrate torque effects on handhelds with and without the protectors in place.

Ron Cayne
[email protected]


Please advise if you have had a similar problem or thoughts on the matter.

---

Last edited by on 07-24-2001 at 04:26 PM