Do iPhones Need Screen Protectors?

I have had my iPhone for over a year now, and ever since I first bought it, I had a screen protecting film defending my precious iPhone against scratches. I have had good and bad experiences with different brands of screen protectors. Yes, they all worked as promised and my iPhone screen looks as glossy as the day I bought it, but some protectors applied easier and sealed better than others. As a perfectionist bordering on obsessive-compulsive disorder when it comes to how my electronics appear, I can not stand any bubbles or misalignment in my screen protecting films.

I had a terrible experience with the Rocketfish screen protectors I bought from Best Buy. I cheaped out and thought they were a better bargain. When it comes to screen protectors, I can say you definitely get what you pay for. The Rocketfish films were impossible to apply without bubbling around the top edge. It was so annoying, and I was relieved when I finally finished the last one in the pack and could get better quality screen protectors.

Last weekend, I went to the Apple Store to buy the Power Supply Film Set they carry. This was the brand I used when I first bought my iPhone and had great success with. They are not the best price on the market, but they are most certainly the best quality in my experience. When I arrived at the Apple Store, I was semi-shocked to find that they no longer carried screen protectors for the original iPhone and only supplied the store with accessories for the 3G iPhone. I say "semi-shocked" because I feared this would be the case even before making the trip to the Apple Store. I even asked one of the guys working there if they carried screen protectors for the original iPhone, and he confirmed they did not and said I could go online and buy them directly from the manufacturer. What he failed to mention was Apple still carries them on their website, so the Apple employee basically gave me information that could lead me to spend my money else where.

Apple's online store charges an extra $4 for shipping and Power Supply charges and additional $7 for shipping for a product that weighs next to nothing. Being the penny-pincher I am, that is just unacceptable.

After doing a little online searching, I started to question the necessity of the screen protecting films in the first place. The iPhone screen is made of glass similar to a car windshield. That is pretty durable and resistant to scratches.

Here is a video of the stress test PC World put the iPhone through. It's pretty brutal, so I'm warning those who have weak stomachs when watching perfectly good gadgets get tortured to not watch the video. Basically, the conclusion was if you plan to abuse your iPhone, you may want to invest in a sturdy case. However, they did not advise one way or the other on needing a screen protector. The scratch test in this video proved the screen itself was amazingly resistant to scratches.

I also found numerous forum postings of others asking about the necessity of the iPhone screen protector. Some replies strongly advocated using a screen protector and a few brave souls argued against it. Usually, most comments said they put a screen protector on their iPhone "just in case".

I think we justify the extra protection because of past experiences with many products getting damaged and dinged up very easily, and that is what we are used to. However, the iPhone is a high quality product unlike any other phone or PDA I owned in the past. At first, I thought I needed to baby my iPhone, but I am learning it is very durable and maybe the screen protectors are a little over kill. So I am boldly stripping my iPhone and letting it be bare. Well almost. I did get a GelaSkin to apply to the back since that is the most vulnerable spot. I must say, it is taking some getting used to. I went from a silicone case and screen protecting film to only a GelaSkin. That is quite a difference.

So now, I am curious how many other iPhone owners out there swear by their screen protectors or think it is an unnecessary accessory?

UPDATE: Poll Results 10/20/08 - 10/27/08

Do iPhones need screen protectors?
50% It's a must
00% Just in case
50% Not necessary
00% I'm unsure