<o></o> Hi Everyone, <o> </o> Since I recently got some HORI screen protectors for my DSI, I decided to give a quick write up as to the best method to apply them. Since the instructions are in Japanese, I spent about an hour or so playing with the screens to ensure they went on nice and neat without any air bubbles or dust particles. Naturally I will be talking about DSI screen protectors, but I assume there isn’t much difference between the others HORI makes. Ok, on with the show: <o> </o> First you will need the bare minimum: <o> </o> 1 x Roll of scotch tape (clear). 1 x One credit card sized plastic card. 1 x HORI screen protector pack. 1 x Soft cleaning cloth which won’t scratch the screen. <o> </o> Optional items you may need in case you mess up: <o> </o> 1 x Unbent plastic twist-tie. 1 x Thin or sharp metal object (like a pin) <o> </o> The steps: <o> </o> You will need an environment free from as much dust particulates as possible. In my situation, I used my bathroom and turned the shower on with hot water running for a while. This produced lots of steam and humidity which reduced the amount of dust particles floating around in the air. <o> </o> If your game console is new, you won’t need to clean the screen. If your game console is used, you will need to clean the screen by first removing any kinds of smears with your cleaning cloth, then using scotch tape to pick up any dust partials left behind. <o> </o> Once your screen is clean, apply some scotch tape to both sides of your screen, about 2cm deep. This will be used once you apply the protector to pull up the screen without bending them so you can remove the corner bits of air bubbles and dust which a single apply will never remove. <o> </o> HORI screen protectors seem to have two sides to them. One side is the sticky layer, one side is the top layer. In my case, the side which had the English “Peel Off” was the protective layer side. Peel this off now. <o> </o> Slowly pealing off the sticky side of the protector, face the protector downwards and align it to your screen. Once you’re aligned, use the plastic card to press, roll, and apply the protector to your screen. Make sure you roll the protector on straight and parallel or you will get air bubbles. <o> </o> Once you get close to the end of the screen, simply start to squeegee your card closer to the top right hand corner of your screen, or just attempt to squeegee your screen flat (which is hard to do in my opinion). <o> </o><o> </o> Once your screen is applied, you should now be able to see any dust particles or air trapped under your screen. Depending on which side you see them, pull up your scotch tape which you placed earlier and take a new piece of scotch tape and slide it under your screen. Slide it under the area you see dust and press the tape on the protector by flatting out the protector on your screen. Once done, lift your screen up again using your scotch tape and remove the piece you added. The dust particle should come off with your scotch tape without adding new particles to your screen. Remove your remaining piece of scotch tape and using your plastic card, squeegee carefully the protector back down removing any remaining air pockets. You can squeegee going to the top right of your screen to produce as little stress (bending) of the protector as possible. To keep the protector lifted after your tape is removed, simply use the side of your finger, like you would handle a CD-ROM. <o> </o> Repeat the process on the other side of your screen, or just remove the scotch tape and finalize your screen protector application. <o> </o> You are now finished. If followed correctly, you should now have a perfect apply of your screen protector! I know it sounds kind of trivial, but nothing bugs me more than having dust, air, and crap under a screen protector with no way of cleaning them off. (^_^); <o> </o> Q. What happens if the tape I put under the screen comes loose and I loose the ability to pull up the protector? A. Use a small or thin metal object and lightly attempt to pry a corner of the screen protector up. As soon as it lifts a little, slide a flattened twist-tie under it to prevent it from coming down again. Finish your work and proceed as normal. Q. Are HORI screen protectors really worth it? A. Yes. They are of very high quality and unlike regular protectors, you can re-apply them many times without wearing them out (I re-applied about 20 times before I figured out the best way to do it). Even after re-application, the protectors still looked good as new. Cheaper protectors tend to permanently leave air bubbles and defects after they are pulled up once because they deform as you pull on the cheap plastic.
Thanks for the kind words. Unfortunatly, I don't have a digital video recorder so I can't really make any kind of video tutorial, but hopefully the instructions were clear enough as to avoid any fustration when applying a screen protector. If anyone is planning to apply a screen protector and wants to try this guide out, please do post your comments so others can learn from the experience and/or correct errors in the original tutorial!
