droid finish scratches to easily

[timcity]

I wanna start out by saying I love my droid but on thing that bugs the crap out of me is the finish on the top of the thing. It looks nice and polished for a few weeks but then it starts to chip like crazy. The screen is holding up perfectly its just the corners of the bezel. I think they should have gone wth a matte or aluminum finish or even the soft finish like on the battery cover. What do you guys think?

 

[natediddy1120]

Yeah the black part around the screen does scratch VERY easily unfortunately....mine has a few knicks around the screen

But the actual screen has held up perfect! Lol and no screen protectors on mine either

 

[aaron5610]

Yea there are a few little scuffs around the black part of my screen too, but the screen is perfect lol that's the main thing. Overall I'm very impressed with how this phone has held up, it still looks fairly new and I've had it since day one...

 

[aclos3]

Mine did it within days of owning and I am very careful to keep it ALONE in my pocket. Very disappointing aesthetic design flaw in a device that is so expensive.

 

[skunkpbguy]

Really?? Mine is in my carpenter pocket all day in a warehouse, not one scratch. I've dropped it over a dozen times onto concrete, not a scratch. I'm not even using armor or a cover of any kind, only the stock screen protector.. what do you guys do, work in a quarry?!
I'm very impressed with my Droid, even a few dings, paint flakes and scratches later, I will continue to love my Droid.

 

[teschoen]

what are you guys doing to your Droids? I've had mine since Launch Day and other than the lint in the ear piece and fingerprints on the screen it looks brand new.

I use a holster during the week and my jeans pocket on weekends...cary it with me all the time.

 

[aclos3]

Well, we're referring to the tiny sliver of metal that acts as a rim around the screen (not even as thick as a butter knife). This area scratches VERY easily. They are small scratches, like tiny chips that look silver compared to the black that they should be. They are so tiny, that you may not even notice I suppose. I am so careful with my phone, but it does get a lot of use. I was dumbfounded when I noticed the chipping just days after purchase. I bought my phone within a few days of release, maybe they hardened the finish better on later phones?

 

[aclos3]

Here are some pictures I just took, hopefully they didn't become too compressed. Sorry for the huge size, but it's the only way to show what I am talking about.

EDIT: Damn my earpiece is nasty. I'll have to look into how to clean THAT too.

 

[gkny172]

I wanna start out by saying I love my droid but on thing that bugs the crap out of me is the finish on the top of the thing. It looks nice and polished for a few weeks but then it starts to chip like crazy. The screen is holding up perfectly its just the corners of the bezel. I think they should have gone wth a matte or aluminum finish or even the soft finish like on the battery cover. What do you guys think?

use black nail polish, i used it on my scratches and it worked like a charm to cover the nicks.

 

[sooper_droid12]

What the heck are you guys doing with your phones to chew it up so badly! I agree that scratches do happen, but it is what it is. Better than soft plastic and it gouging so easily.

 

[aclos3]

I promise I am not that rough on my phone. It stays in my pocket by itself, I get horrified if I drop my keys into the same pocket (I immediately remove them!). I always place the phone face up on my desk at work and use the car dock when I am driving.

Most of my chipping occured early (first few days in pocket with keys) and hasn't become much worse since I started keeping it by itself.

I firmly believe that a day or two in a pocket with some house keys should NOT significantly scratch paint off the metal bezel! I will try applying some black nail polish with a toothpick.

 

[messenger13]

I'm reading the words, but they don't compute. I've owned my Droid since mid-November and it still looks like the day I brought it home. The 'M' on the battery door is slightly scuffed, but that is it. Some of y'all just might not be as careful as you think you are. Just sayin'...

 

[kraze0g]

oh my :x that is something i dont want to see on my droid .. i was thinking about just pocketing the droid naked from now on (i have a sena leather sleeve i use now but its time consuming to remove and answer/use the phone) but after seeing that im scared! it looks like a dog got to it! the leather sleeve is great but if im on the run and i want to use the phone i need to stop for a few minutes just to remove it from the leather sleeve (to answer the phone/txt or whatever).. should i avoid pocketing it naked? (although i do have a screen protector on it but i had no idea about the 'chipping' in that picture)..

 

[aclos3]

Keep in mind that those pictures make it look far worse than it does in person due to their extreme zoom level.

If you put your Droid in your pocket, I strongly recommend never letting it share space with change or keys, even for a little while.

I should mention that I am an avid skiier and do carry the phone with me. It therefore gets used in very cold or cold / high humidity environments. Perhaps this makes the finish become slightly brittle while it rubs around in my chest pocket.

Here are a couple more pictures showing the good condition of the rear of the phone and showing the wearing of the paint on the camera button. This started about a month ago, well past the time of ever allowing anything to share the pocket with the droid. It started as a small chip on the top of the button and is now spreading.

 

[Crazy_J]

WOW... after I owned my phone for about a month, I decided I wanted to be able to clip my Droid onto my pocket, so I bought a body glove brand case. I love it, other than the extra thickness, the clip converts into a stand clock mode kicks ass while using the "stand" feature. My phone to this day looks brand new. I think my case has a lot to do with it. Black nail polish and a body glove case might be a good idea for you, active lifestyles tend to be hard on phones...

 

[aclos3]

Good advice on the body glove case, it looks like a nice product. My problem with cases has always been the added bulk. This is especially detrimental to me on a large phone like the Droid. Also, I use my media and car docks frequently and I don't think any of these cases fit with them.

I just wish this expensive, flagship model phone would not be so fragile in terms of holding up to an active lifestyle. Active is the keyword here, I do everything I can to avoid doing anything ABUSIVE to the phone. I have never dropped it!

 

[Shadowtech]

Had mine for about 2 1/2 months now and it still looks new. Don't use a case or anything and just toss it in my cell pocket of my pants/shorts. I lay it down on it's face often at home and have yet to see any kind of scratches on the bezel. Even accidentally kicked it a couple feet across my garage floor and it still had nothing on it.

 

[kkwan77]

I wanna start out by saying I love my droid but on thing that bugs the crap out of me is the finish on the top of the thing. It looks nice and polished for a few weeks but then it starts to chip like crazy. The screen is holding up perfectly its just the corners of the bezel. I think they should have gone wth a matte or aluminum finish or even the soft finish like on the battery cover. What do you guys think?

I've noticed that as well and in addition it's easy to get nicks and small dents on the corners as well.

 

[Schyler]

I managed to nick my Droid before I'd ever touched it.

I get the feeling Verizon had removed it from the box for a firmware update or something along those lines before sending it to me.

As I lifted the Droid's box from the shipping container, I picked it up by the outer sleeve. Unfortunately, the inner package was no longer taped to the outer package, so it slipped out and fell to my desk. The phone itself was not sheathed in plastic or attached to the inner tray at all, so it immediately tipped out of the inner box and fell face first onto the leg of my chair, chipping the paint slightly on the side of the screen.

As upset I was with the poor repackaging and the scratch, I was so excited to start using my new phone that I never complained to Verizon.

But three seconds out of the shipping container and before I'd ever laid a finger on the phone, it was cosmetically flawed. That's still the only fall or damage it has suffered.

<sigh>

 

[wricks]

The feelings are similar to those you have for anything you have wanted, saved for (for some) and value.
Like my Vette.
You wash it, wax it and take as good care of as you can.
Then it gets the first (of many) scratches, dings, paint chips and/or parking lot damage.
You curse, moan and curse some more. Then you realize, Hey - it's just a
(insert phone, car, etc. here) then end up using it like you are supposed to.
A Vette is just a car and a Droid is just a phone (a really advanced phone, but it still applies).
I try to take care of the "stuff" I have but I refuse to not use it for fear it might get scuffed or dinged.

OK, off my soap box and flame suit on.

Oh, and the full BSE for the Droid is on it's way via the mail. Why not - I have a Bra for the car!

 

[cdodge]

My phone brand new from Verizon also had some nicks around the screen. I always hated the quality of the Droid from day 1 but unfortunately it was still the best phone available. I remember telling people how bad the quality of the droid was and people jumped on me like crazy, at least people are finally understanding that the droid is not built very well. Yes they used high quality parts but they executed on it poorly.

Don't get me wrong i love my droid and it serves its purpose but the droid quality stinks.

Here are the things i do not care for on the droid

1. Scratches easy
2. Battery cover falls off easy
3. easy to puncture the speaker grill with the finger.
4. gold on the button flakes off
5. volume rocker feels cheap
6. Hate the physical keyboard. (wish i could get myself to like it because ei know physical keyboards are usually faster)
7. The Keyboard rattles when it vibrates

 

[Jceinc]

Really?? Mine is in my carpenter pocket all day in a warehouse, not one scratch. I've dropped it over a dozen times onto concrete, not a scratch. I'm not even using armor or a cover of any kind, only the stock screen protector.. what do you guys do, work in a quarry?!
I'm very impressed with my Droid, even a few dings, paint flakes and scratches later, I will continue to love my Droid.

I'm calling bs on that!! Dropped on carpet maybe

 

[YankeeDudeL]

Mine scratched pretty quickly (I've had my Droid since day one). I bought the Body Glove case as well as the docking station with the phone, not realizing they don't play nice with each other. Since no case fits in the docking station, taking it off and on scratched it. So, ppr gone bare since, I haven't scratched it any further. I just recently bought a new case that comes off pretty easily and hasn't scratched it any worse (it's a Mobo).

 

[Psychokitty]

The feelings are similar to those you have for anything you have wanted, saved for (for some) and value.
Like my Vette.
You wash it, wax it and take as good care of as you can.
Then it gets the first (of many) scratches, dings, paint chips and/or parking lot damage.
You curse, moan and curse some more. Then you realize, Hey - it's just a
(insert phone, car, etc. here) then end up using it like you are supposed to.
A Vette is just a car and a Droid is just a phone (a really advanced phone, but it still applies).
I try to take care of the "stuff" I have but I refuse to not use it for fear it might get scuffed or dinged.

So true.

 

[potatolover1102]

Mine looks like I put it in a blender lol. My camera button and back look great though. One thing is the d-pad like a week in starting peeling away where it lights up and looks like a piece of the light is gone because it is black in spots now! I am very nice to my electronics and this is the first I have ever owned that showed such use. I dropped my storm on concrete a lot and never had issues like this.