Aaah! Scratches in the middle of my display!

[Guest phAn]

So here's my punishment for not buying either screenprotectors or a leather case for my c500... scratches in the middle of my display :D Strangely enough carrying around my c500 in my (pants) pocket with keys and pocket knife every day is no problem - however having my BT GPS receiver and c500 together in my front pocket for at most half an hour resulted in disaster...

So... what do I do? I ordered a c500 suitable case right away to prevent further damage. Is there any way I can get rid of the scratches in my display? They're right in the middle and annoyingly distort my screen. It's not like they're the "entire-screen-wasted" kind of scratches, but annoying nonetheless.

I've read about Displex, stuff that somehow removes the upper layer of a plastic displaycover (and thus gets rid of the scratches). Does this work on a c500? And if so, how good or not good does it work? I don't want my screen to become even worse then it already is...

Second option would be to have my displaycover replaced. I live in Holland and I think "sending it to HTC for repairs" would involve high (transport) costs and a long waiting time. I do have some sort of Orange insurance thingie, I don't think Orange will replace my set for my "few scratches". I could send my phone flying off some high building, but I'm not really ready to do that either.

Third option I can think of is to take the thing apart and find a way to replace the scratched plastic myself (if that's at all possible, I'm not sure it's attached to the LCD unit). Then again I'm not a real handyman and I don't want to void my warrenty, I might need it some day.

I guess my best bet is Displex. Any experience with this stuff on c500 displays, anyone?

[Guest userone]

Displex works just great on the c500 screen. Beware not to touch the silver edges of the screen though...

[Guest pietta]

i really im not sure about displex, it ruined my k700i screen. i applied it on and when scrubbing it around the screen (as per instructions) the screen became dull grey and rough, i couldnt barely see anything. id say use it with caution

[Guest tsutton]

i really im not sure about displex, it ruined my k700i screen. i applied it on and when scrubbing it around the screen (as per instructions) the screen became dull grey and rough, i couldnt barely see anything. id say use it with caution

That usually happens if you use it too much.

Just little and buff it carefully & round if I recall correctly.

[Guest Alex_le_brit]

I scratched my display on my old SPV and tried to find things for it. I didn't know about displex, so went to the local jewellers/watch makers. They gave me a little pot of jeweller's rouge, and explained how to do it. They also said that toothpaste works surprisingly well, and even rubbing the scratches with newspaper.

I was a bit scared of the rouge so tried it on an old Swatch (remember those). It does get the scratches out but you have to be gentle. What worked well was sitting there mindlessly rubbing the scratch with newspaper for an entire evening (watch out for repetitive strain injury), and voila the scratch had gone.

I can also tell you that toothpaste works well to.

[Guest nickcornaglia]

Wow. I have used displex in the past with decent success, but the newspaper thing is a new one! Toothpaste also makes your phone minty fresh.

[Guest Alex_le_brit]

Wow. I have used displex in the past with decent success, but the newspaper thing is a new one! Toothpaste also makes your phone minty fresh.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It does, just don't get it down the speaker hole, or things could go terribly wrong. A friend recommended teeth whitening powder, but not with bleach in it.

Both these methods take a long time to do, but they're worth it in the end.

[Guest phAn]

Thanks for the reactions! I tried the newspaper trick, it seems to have helped a little (I rubbed my screen for about an hour). The scratch is somewhat less obvious, however far from completely gone. I think I'll order a tube of Displex and use just a little on my screen. Somehow I have the feeling that using toothpaste will only result in more scratches.

[Guest sidebp]

I had a small (but annoying) scratch in the middle of my screen. I used Brasso (im from the UK - not sure of its available elsewhere) metal polish and it removed it completely - have to be careful though as its fairly abrassive.

[Guest dpickup]

"Brasso" aka DuraGlit, Jewelers paste and T-Cut all work on essentially the same principle.

I restore antique watches and the lens is sometimes difficult / impossible to replace on pre 1950's watches (usually plastic of some sort on the really good ones) so as previous post, enjoy a mind numbing evening with a tin of duraglit !

Toothpaste and T-cut would work on a hard surface but the SPV has quite a soft plastic so I would (and have used myself) duraglit / jewelers paste (compund 3 or above only) will give a safer and clearer finish.

Newspaper ?

Dunno the wife swears blind this is the best smear free way to clean glass, but never tried it on a watch / mobile screen !

If it works it will probably take a long time.

Also as before, use a tiny amount, but no need to rub gently, as long as you do a circular motion and spread out beyond affected area.

As you are erasing part of the surface this will only work a number of times and depends how deep the scratchis. That said I have a 1960's Omega that I wear every day and have to duraglit the lens about once a month - been doing this for 5 + years and no obvious signs of problem !

Good luck