DOME GLASS Whitestone GEN Film Screen Protector for Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 (2021) Anti-Bubble HD Clear Hard Coated PET Film Screen Guard

So my screen protector that came with the phone started getting bubbles on the crease at the very top and bottom and over the course of a week the bubbles got larger and larger till they went down the entire crease. Knowing there was no going back, I just peeled it off and admired the bare screen and the added clarity. Rocked it nude for a few days as I researched good screen protector replacements on reddit and google. Low and behold this is the one I found that had good reviews. This protector unlike the other cheap junk on Amazon actually comes with a bunch of tools and a jig to basically idiot proof the installation (not idiot proof enough it seems looking at the reviews lol). But I REALLY recommend watching the installation video - either here or on Youtube where it’s a higher resolution video. It took me a few days to muster the courage to install it onto my nude fold 3 inner-screen but I decided to go for it. Loaded up the video, followed the video step by step and occasionally paused and in under 5 minutes I had it installed. I couldn’t believe how good it looked and how precisely it went on (Thanks Whitestone Dome engineering team <3) it looks like a brand-new OEM installed protector. I’ve open and closed it a hundred times and it’s not lifting in the middle or anywhere else. I then ran to my wife like an excited little schoolboy to show her my work (she also has a fold 3) and bragged to friends with folds. This protector seems too good to be true, but it’s not. As long as you follow the video guide step by step and don’t rush steps you’ll be golden. I am SO GLAD I didn’t have to send this into Samsung to do it and been without my phone for weeks. There’s a few tiny bubbles on the left side, but they are the sort that disappear after a day or so (I hope) there’s no debris under them so shouild be fine. Will update this review at some point in the future if it fails or whatever :)

I bought two of these screen covers for a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. I had a hydrogel cover, and this one seemed like a better option. Big mistake. First of all, the plastic system that comes with it to make it easier to put on seemed excellent to me, but not the quality of the cover. Once I cleaned the surface and started to stick the cover on (so far so good), it was time to remove the excess on the edges. It turns out that the cover was not cut well, and I should have used a knife to finish cutting it, I couldn't remove the excess cover even using the plastic placement system. I opened the second package to see if it came with something extra, or if it suddenly had the same fault, and, indeed, it had the same fault. And not only that, but when I went to check if it came off or not, the cover cracked (see photo). So, I simply decided to take out the cover sticked on the phone screen, and that's where everything went wrong. The cover was so well attached that it pulled the screen in the middle, ruining it. Not only does a black line appear down the middle of the big screen (see photo), but the right half of the screen is no longer touch sensitive. Thank you very much for nothing. I do not recommend this product or this brand at all. Rated 1 star because the system does not allows to rate 0 stars.

Honestly the screen protector is really good. It feels better than the original screen protector and was fairly simple to install. My only complaint is that the instructions really exaggerate how simple removing the original screen protector cab be. The way it sits under the frame can be really difficult to get to and I could see how it could be easy to damage the inner screen itself during removal. Also the screen protector leaves behind a severe amount of residue. The single alcohol pad that was included in the kit was not nearly enough to remove all the remaining adhesive on the screen. So if you are going to install this yourself buy a high quality microfiber cloth, compressed air, and a flashlight. To remove the inner screen protector I would recommend starting from the middle using a plastic pry tool or a guitar pick if you have. You have to gently pry up til you see a bubble forming. Once you see that bubble forming make sure to turn on the screen to ensure you aren't below the oled screen. Once you confirm you are above the oled work back and forth from left to right to expand the bubble. One you can grab gently start to peel it away while using your free hand to hold the phone in place. Once fully removed use some rubbing alcohol (preferably 90% or higher) and the included micro fiber cloth to remove the old adhesive. Then use your personal micro fiber cloth to clean the screen. Use a flash light directly above the screen while sitting away to ensure dust does not fall onto the screen. Use the compressed air to blow off all the dust and particles and use the included dust remover to get rid of any hard to remove pieces of dust. After ensuing it's fully clear follow the remaining instructions in the video to apply the screen. Make sure to follow it exactly as they do. Including putting pressure on each side while removing the mounting holes. After removing the outer plastic make sure to use the smaller side of the spudger to push out any remaining air bubbles. Then make sure to let it sit open for 15 min for the adhesive to fully stick. Then fold and open your phone a few times to ensure no bubbles have formed. If following these steps exactly you should have a perfectly seated screen protector with no bubbles or dust. I'll attach a photo of mine later to show how I will look when done properly.

The OEM inner screen protector for my Z Fold 3 started to peel at the center so I figured it was finally time to try replacing it. Samsung doesn't seem to sell their OEM protectors anywhere unfortunately so Whitestone was the next best thing. I didn't have high hopes since the OEM protector feels so nice and is always installed perfectly and bubble-free (I mean I would hope so for a factory installed protector). And installing dry films just involve lining up the film and praying the bubbles squeegee away right? Not with Whitestone. Out of the box, you get 1 inner screen protector, a standard cleaning kit (microfiber, alcohol wipe, and dust remover), a crazy looking jig, and equally crazy looking squeegee, a screen remover, and an anti-slip pad. This is the part where you stop touching the pieces and open the guide video using the QR code on the back of the box. Seriously. Don't waste your time trying to figure it out, messing up, putting up a 1 star review, and invalidating the developers' hard work. These guys don't mess around. The video instructions are in Korean, but just follow along with what the person is doing and you'll be ok. After installation, I just found a few bubbles on the very edge of the screen that I gently pushed out, no problem. But other than that, it looks and feels OEM. It's actually incredible how much a little creative engineering can eliminate the problem of bubbles stuck in the middle of your screen. And with a Z Fold 3, you have a long way to go to push those bubbles out. For $20, this is a steal. If your OEM protector is starting to peel like mine (I bought mine on release day so it's been around 11 months), just get this. Super easy, and it'll make your phone look and feel brand new again.

Once you work out what the awkward instructions want you to do, the guides and jig keeping everything aligned and the 'squeegee'-like tool ensured I ended up with a flawless protector install. The end result actually looks even better than the stock Samsung one did when it was new, and is practically impossible to see the edges of unless you both know to look for it and look incredibly closely. My only major criticism is about the installation process and lack of spare protectors. Installing it isn't particularly intuitive, the instruction video is a little unclear in a couple steps, and watching it and double checking steps midway through performing them felt a little harrowing. If even one thing goes wrong, you're likely to end up with a screen protector that can't really be aligned and installed properly, which happened with the first protector I ordered. With my original order, the protective film on the protector tore midway through peeling it off, and the guides practically fell off while trying to gently coax the remaining film off. This left only the bare protector to attempt to align and install without tools. Perhaps someone like a neurosurgeon with insanely steady hands could have accomplished this, but I certainly could not. Thankfully Whitestone Dome's customer support was helpful and sent me a replacement unit, but this did take a couple weeks of back and forth. Honestly this whole process could have been avoided if the package came with more than one replacement protector to install like the glass front protector I also purchased from them. It seems rather wasteful to me to have an entirely new jig sent out when the one that came with the defective protector would have worked just fine, particularly when the jig is useless for anything other than installing this particular protector. I'm not super environmental myself, but even I have to raise an eyebrow at how wasteful the single use plastic jig is even outside of a customer support claim causing me to have two. The end result of all that effort was easily worth the headaches. No bubbles or misalignment issues to distract and annoy me until the end of time. I'm hopeful that because it looks better than the stock Samsung protector did at purchase that it will last longer than the original, but only time will tell if that's true or not.

As someone who works with cell phones daily, I've always known Whitestone to be a reputable brand. Now I've never personally used them before, but I've had plenty of my customers use them before with nothing but praise. So, when dozens of z fold 3 users and myself had their pre installed screen protectors bubble up, I was rocking the phone for a while without a replacement protector. So, after kicking around the idea for a bit, I decided to get Whitestone's protector because of all the positive reviews I read and saw on videos. Now this is where things start to go bad. I don't know if this was UPS or Whitestones fault, but it did look like this was a returned product. The package was partly mangled and resealed with tape on the bottom. After inspecting the contents, my belief that it was a return was begining to hold strong because the alchohol wipe and micro fiber cloth were missing, and the plastic topper piece that sits on top of the screen protector was abscent as well. I personally have a micro fiber and alchohol wipesnat the ready, but the plastic holder left me worried. However it wasn't needed causd I was able to do the installation without the protector popping outnof its holding pins. The protector though did cause some problems. The first was the creation of some bubbles that wouldn't go away. I was going to ignore them, cause I thought I wouldn't notice them when the screen was on. Nope, those bubbles were there and not hidden in the slightest. The other big problem was the adhesive. I gave the phone a few hours to sit so the adhesive had time to settle, and after a few folds, I heard a familiar crunch sound that I heard with the last protector, and the adhesive failed to hold. So, at the end of the day, I'm out 20 bucks, I obviously can't return it, and my faith in this brand has been tarnished. Sorry for the harsh review, but I need to makensure I'm recommending a good product to my customers.

Galaxy Z Fold 3. I've used this product no less than 4 times on my Z Fold 3 and twice on my wife's Z Flip 4. They last about 6 to 12 months before they start cracking at the fold. The first couple times I bought them they were about $20, now they're about $12. I'll gladly pay that every 6-12 months for a new screen protector. Don't rush the removal of the old protector and the installation of the new one. Take your time and get under the old protector at the fold (I use tweezers) . Don't damage the screen. Once you get under it, slowly lift up on the protector as you slide the the tweezers down the edge. Once you get enough of the protector off the screen, you can grab it with your fingers and slowly peel it off. Make sure you use the lint remover on your screen after cleaning it. Any lint that gets under the new protector will have to stay there until it's time to replace it again. Go slow when applying the new protector with the jig. I've never had bubbles, so go slow. I highly recommend this product.

Original Review Jan. 2024. 4 stars I have had the Galaxy Fold 3 for almost two years (May 2022) and this is the third inner screen I have had on it. The factory screen was replaced in March 2023. It lasted less than 10 months! Started with a bubble at top in the crease that morphed into full line pull away top to bottom near the crease. I had this replaced by a certified technician because Samsung foots the bill for the first replacement ("we know we don't have a quality product, so here is a freebie"). The replacement one lasted 4 months!!! Same story as the first time, bubble at top, full top to bottom pull away. I put the phone away and used my S22+ for a month because I was so frustrated with the Fold. (FYI, the LCD died on the S22+ which had a total use time of about 12 months which forced me back to the Fold 3. Look it up, it is common on the S21 and S22) I have to admit, after reading forums I questioned the durability of ANY screen protectors and the need to even have one. Many people state that they take it off and run it naked without issue. I paid a lot of money for this phone and don't want to screw it up. Further research and comments led me to this replacement screen. I am always dubious, but for the price (even cheaper now) I figured I would give it a shot. The repair place I took it to first time said another replacement would run around $80 out of pocket. I decided to go for it. Installation was easy as long as you pay attention to detail. Peal the old screen off slowly to not damage the actual phone. Place it in the provided cradle, clean the screen, and follow the directions. There are even "How To" videos online. So, purchased in August of 2023 and it is still holding in January 2024. I do notice that there is some bubbling in each top corner and the bottom near the crease, but given the durability of ANY screen cover I have personal experience with, this is par for the course. I am going to go ahead and purchase a backup for when (not if) this one decides to fail. In short, I don't think any of the screen protectors will outlast the device. This is more the nature of the device design and not the quality of the product. As far as it goes, this one seems better than the one I got from the specialist, and might even hold up longer than the factory. Only time will tell. Update April 2024. 3 stars Shortly after my original review, my self installed protector bubbled from the bottom halfway to the top, and all the way within a couple of days. I had another protector on standby and replaced it around January 21st while also ordering a backup. This cover has bubbled halfway up the crease yesterday (April 15th 2024). That is 3 months of use. Mind you, I don't open the phone everyday. I will be using my backup protector, however I ordered a different brand to use when this one fails. Hoping I get more time out of it. I love my fold 3, but this inner protector is terrible. I am nearing the point of removing altogether and taking my chances. If it quits working, time to get an Ultra. Dropping to 3 stars for extremely poor life expectancy. However, great application method.