Ghost Armor giveaway and review

The American dream. People from all over the world have flocked to the shores of America in search of it and the tech world is full of examples of that dream becoming realized. Stories of people like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Larry Page, Serge Brin, Mark Zuckerberg, and much more. People who took an idea and turned it into something great.

This is a story like that. A story of a few friends with an idea. At the time, they had no idea how big the idea would become. Only that there was a need that no one else was filling. This is Ghost Armor.

Ghost Armor overview

Working in the mobile phone industry, they would often see Blackberrys come in with deep scratches and broken screens. People would buy cases, but the cases would obscure the device’s natural beauty and would often cause scratches to the devices themselves. Dirt and debris would get in between the case and the phone and would scratch it over time. All the while, the device owner was oblivious until the case was removed. Ghost Armor had an idea to take translucent aircraft film, which was used to protect aircraft, from erosion and paint chips caused by wind, sand, ice, rain, snow, and other airborne particles, and apply it to a phone’s surface. The idea for Ghost Armor was born.

In 2007, they opened their first kiosk at the Arizona Mills Mall in Tempe Arizona. It wasn’t long after, that Apple made the iPhone. Of course, we’d love to attribute their early success to Android, but unfortunately Android didn’t hit the scene for another 2 years. The iPhone’s popularity only fueled demand for Ghost Armor and before long, they opened a second kiosk in the Arizona Mills Mall.

Now, Ghost Armor has over 50 retail kiosks worldwide, including in South America, Canada, Europe, and even Dubai. They also have a large online presence that sells just about as much as their retail locations combined sales. They no longer use aircraft film, but manufacture their own special protective armor specialized for mobile devices.

They offer Ghost Armor for just about every device out there, including Android devices, of course, and they have expanded their product lineup to include matte armors, carbon fiber skins, DuraMatte skins, Armor Defender Bumpers, tempered glass, microfiber bags/cloths, and they are always looking for new way to innovate and bring new products to the market.

I recently had the opportunity to tour the Ghost Armor corporate offices in Gilbert Arizona and have an onsite demo of their application process. I’m not going to lie, I haven’t had the easiest time with screen protectors and I never seem to be able to things perfect. The screen protector on my Asus Padfone X had bubbles and seemed to attract more dirt and grease than the actual screen did. So, needless to say, I was excited that I was going to have the opportunity to get it professionally installed at the source.

Ghost Armor setup

Ghost Armor is a wet install, which I think was the most nerve racking part for me as I am always worried about water damage to my devices. One thing I learned is that the prep work is extremely important. Check out the instructions from their site.

PRIOR TO INSTALL:

1. Power off your device and/or remove battery.
2. Clean your hands, device and work area thoroughly to remove oils, dirt, and debris.
3. Identify each piece of the Ghost Armor film and visually align them with the device.
4. Add 1 drop of liquid dish soap for phones and 2 drops for tablets or laptops to spray bottle (we prefer lemon scented Joy), fill with water and shake gently (may skip this step if installing Carbon Fiber Armor).

INSTALLING CLEAR AND/OR MATTE ARMOR:

1. Spray a mist on your fingertips to avoid fingerprints on the adhesive side.
2. Gently peel Armor off of the backing (avoid touching the adhesive multiple times).
3. Begin applying larger pieces (i.e. screen and back) and work your way to smaller pieces (i.e. sides, edges, and buttons).
4. Spray the adhesive side of Armor until the surface area is evenly covered without dripping, moist enough to maneuver armor into position.
5. Quickly begin applying the Armor to your device by laying it down and align the Armor accordingly.
6. Spray squeegee with solution. Firmly hold Armor in place making sure it is still aligned and begin smoothing the Armor by squeegeeing the bubbles and solution from the center of your device to the edges. Apply solution to squeegee as needed to keep wet while smoothing Armor to avoid friction burns.
7. Be careful and avoid getting solution inside your device’s ports and speakers.
8. After the Screen has been installed and squeegeed, lightly tap out any excess solution in the earpiece speaker(s).
9. Let the large pieces of applied Armor dry before applying smaller pieces (It’s dry if it doesn’t move).
10. Do not spray solution on smaller pieces of Armor (i.e. side strips, buttons, edges, etc.). Simply apply the Armor dry by sticking it to the correct spot and then letting it hang down and roll your finger over it to avoid stretching (Sliding your finger will stretch it).

This video will show you the entire process. It’s important to note that the dry box shown in the video is not a necessity. It simply helps speed up the installation process, which is extremely helpful at their retail kiosks.

I had my PadFone X phone armored up while I was there. Unfortunately, they didn’t have the Ghost Armor for the PadFone’s tablet dock at the corporate office, so they sent me one in the mail a few days later. This was great because I had the opportunity to try installing it myself at home. I was a little nervous about doing it by myself, but it was actually very easy. The one thing that I would recommend, based on my experience, is to install the ghost armor in a very well lit area. I installed mine at night and I didn’t notice that there was a very small piece of debris under the film. It was impossible to see in the light of my kitchen at night, but I noticed it in the morning. Had I noticed it that night I could have fished it out. It’s not like it’s very noticeable and it’s way less noticeable than the bubbles that were under my previous screen protector.

 Ghost Armor usage

The Ghost Armor is very thin. It did not interfere with the docking function of the PadFone into its tablet dock. Despite how thin it is, it’s very resilient. they demonstrated how resilient by trying to puncture it with a pen. The Ghost Armor conformed to the pen and pulled down around the point. It wasn’t until the edges had pulled all the way around to the opposite end of the pen, that the surface of the Ghost Armor had stretched thin enough to allow the tip of the pen to puncture the material. Needless to say, this material is strong and will protect your device from 99.9% of whatever life will throw at it.

Of course, the thinness also that also means that you can still use whatever case you like on your device. The cases can still provide additional protection against impacts. As good as Ghost Armor is it won’t be good enough to protect the inside of your phone from damage.

My wife once dropped her Samsung Galaxy Vibrant and while the glass did not break, the lcd screen inside the phone did. It may still be a good idea to use a case to protect against impact and shock. To this end, Ghost Armor also sells bumpers that surround the edges of the device. Unfortunately, their selection is much more limited and they did not have one for my PadFone X, so I am unable to include it in this review.

The DuraMatte is a pretty cool way to customize the look of the phone while also providing protection to the device’s body. They also work with local artists to feature their art on the DuraMatte. The artists get a kickback from every design sold.

One of the things that I love about Ghost Armor is that they have a lifetime replacement. Not only is the product guaranteed against defect, but they also guarantee your satisfaction. If you get the matte installed and regret it later, they will install the standard Ghost Armor or which ever you prefer for a small upgrade/re-installation fee.

Another thing that I like is that the film does not seem to attract grease like my previous screen protector did. Because of that, its very hard to tell that there’s a screen protector on the device at all. The feel of the material is superb and is only rivaled by the actual screen itself.

What we liked

• Customizability
• Lifetime replacement
• Device Protection

What could be better

• Lower price point

Ghost Armor summary

Anyone that has a device with a screen will enjoy Ghost Armor. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve scratched or broken a screen on various devices. Many times this could have been avoided with a quality screen protector. Ghost Armor can be little expensive when you compare it with $2 protectors from eBay and the like. However, this is a prime example of you get what you pay for. When you consider their lifetime replacement and the fact that they have actual locations with actual people to help with the install, the value compounds even further.

If you’re interested in Ghost Armor you can check things out at their web page www.ghost-armor.com. Use the coupon code “androidguys” at checkout for 20% off your total order.

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Ghost Armor giveaway

Ghost Armor has been generous enough to offer a free Ghost Armor set for any phone on their website. Just reply in the comments “I want Ghost Armor for my {insert device name}. We will be selecting one lucky reader at random Monday August 10th to receive their Ghost Armor for free.