Why You MUST Use a Case on the Galaxy Note II and S III

July 30, 2021 by TEAM MOVALUATE

While we stand behind our products completely, we cannot attest to the design of Samsung’s Galaxy Note II and Galaxy S III displays:

Although the Movaluate 7 Tempered Glass Screen Protector survived this drop without damage, the underlying display itself was shattered by the impact. Due to the sloping and rounded edges of the Note 2’s display, glass screen protectors could not offer bezel-to-bezel coverage. This leaves the edges (particularly the corners) susceptible to damage:

As you can see in the image above, the cracks are underneath the glass screen protector. This type of catastrophic display failure can be prevented quite easily with any type of case which offers a slight, wrap-around lip for the device’s bezel.

Luckily for us, Samsung has parted with the “Nature UX” design language which resulted in such design failure. Now our Movaluate 7 Screen Protectors offer complete, bezel-to-bezel protection from scratches, chips and impacts. Take 20% off your Movaluate Shop order now with coupon code SUMMER20.

5 Things To Consider When Choosing a Screen Protector.

July 23, 2021 by TEAM MOVALUATE

We’ve already covered why having screen protection is so important (Why Should You Invest In A Screen Protector?), now let’s take a look at what details to consider when purchasing one for your smartphone.

Having to choose a screen protector from the thousands of options on the market might sound like a crapshoot, but as our research has found, there is a method to the madness. Here are the 5 most important things to consider when purchasing your screen protector:

1. Clarity

The latest smartphones sport the highest resolutions displays we have ever seen on handheld devices. This means that any optical aberrations will be easily noticeable—and annoying. Different screen protector materials and finishes result in different levels of clarity. Glass is clearer than plastic. Matte finishes are less clear but resist dirt and oils. There are even mirror-finished protectors. If clarity is of utmost importance, glass will always be the best (hence their use in the OEM display assembly).

2. Durability

Glass as we mentioned above, is the most optically accurate but also the most likely to crack. Although plastic doesn’t crack, it easily accumulates scratches which can make your display unclear and dirty more easily. Different thicknesses of glass or plastic film improve durability but can create a sensation of distance from the display when inputting touch commands. However, if the screen protectors are too thin, they can be compromised easily.

3. Texture

We often take for granted how amazing touchscreen technology has become. Capacitive touchscreens are leaps and bounds above the resistive touchscreens of yesteryear—think Palm Pilots. Touchscreens are now perfectly smooth and responsive thanks to capacitive digitizers, Gorilla Glass and oleophobic coatings. Depending on the material covering these screen protectors, their performance can be altered. Even a subtle change in texture might be a significant annoyance to the user. For the closest to stock feel, a glass screen protector with an oleophobic coating will be best.

4. Price

Price is more important to some than others, but it’s always better to “buy once, cry once,” especially when the value of your smartphone is on the line. Plastic films can vary in price from $0.25 to $25 but the quality can differ greatly. Same goes for glass protectors, which depending on country of origin, can vary significantly in quality.

5. Material

The combination of all the previous considerations will determine what material you will use. If you can afford it, the glass screen protector is the way to go with its premium texture, clarity and protection. Plastic films are still much better than using a bare screen, especially if you have budgetary restrictions.

Our Recommendation

We believe that all phones should have display protection—pick the type that is right for you. If you want the best optical clarity and feel, choose a glass protector like the Movaluate 7 Glass Screen Protector. If you are on a budget and would prefer a cheaper alternative that offers good protection at the cost of clarity and fingerprint resistance, plastic films are the way to go.

Remember, the best screen protector is the one that is actively on your phone—if it’s naked, cover it up! Save yourself the pain of a cracked display and an empty wallet now with Movaluate 7 Glass Screen Protectors.

5 Free (Easy To Remember) Tips To Protect your Smartphone Display

July 19, 2021 by TEAM MOVALUATE

Protecting your smartphone’s display from damage doesn’t have to cost you money. While the peace of mind that comes with guaranteed protection in the form of Movaluate 7 Glass Screen Protectors is nice, if you are on a tight budget, we have some easy to remember tips to keep your device looking like new without costing you a dime!

1. Keep Your Phone Out Of Your Lap

When we are driving, we like having quick access to our phones, and nothing is quicker than having it in the natural pocket created between your legs. The trouble is, it’s far too easy to forget that your precious device is one car exit away from catastrophic failure. As you exit the car, you will sweep the phone right out onto the cold, hard pavement where your fragile display will meet its end.

2. Don’t leave your phone on the kitchen counter

If you cook a lot, you know how dangerous it can be to leave the phone on the kitchen counter. Crushed by heavy pots, splashed by all sorts of liquids or knocked off the ledge, the kitchen is no place for a phone. Keep your device in your pocket, or in an exceptionally safe location—difficult for foodies who like to keep recipes handy.

3. Don’t use your phone while eating soup

Yes, believe it or not, the good ol’ soup dunk tank has claimed far more phone lives than there should ever be. Even worse than water damage because of the difficult to clean residue which leads to corrosion. Related tip: be extra careful when taking pictures of food for the same reason.

4. Always check your phone is secure before taking your seat on the throne

What’s worse than bricking your phone because of water damage? Bricking your phone because of toilet water damage. Make sure your phone is deep in your pockets when entering and exiting the stall, lest we have an embarrassing story to tell tech support.

5. Use an old phone as a stunt double

Going hiking? Boating? Bachelorette Party? Do your new phone a favor and leave it at home. It’s a beautiful day, you are out on the water with your friends when you are playfully pushed into the lake. A refreshing dip for you, and a destructive cataclysm for your smartphone’s circuit board. 100% of these accidents are preventable by simply using your old phone for these precarious situations.

If you have any other free tip ideas, give us a holler over on our Facebook Page.

How Do Movaluate 7 Glass Screen Protectors Work?

July 7, 2021 by TEAM MOVALUATE

How do Movaluate 7 Glass Screen Protectors Work? Well, simply put, they add an extra layer of glass to your device displays. But the real question is, why do they work so effectively? To answer that, let’s look at the mechanics of glass smartphone displays.

WHY DO OUR DISPLAYS GET DAMAGED?

Glass is great for smartphone displays because it is optically accurate, scratch resistant, and optimally textured for extended use. Unfortunately it is very brittle and susceptible to all sorts of damage.

There are two types of protection every owner needs: daily wear-and-tear and impact protection. As the smartphone travels from purse, to pocket, to hand, to table and so on, it encounters multiple opportunities to receive damage. Anything from the edge of a countertop to a grain of sand in the pocket can create the beginning of the end. Scratches and chips can propagate into cracks, which will require screen replacement.

Even if you happen to be extra careful (or lucky), one bad exchange from pocket to hand, or the dreaded “forgot in lap while driving,” can lead to an instant and catastrophic end to your display’s life.

HOW MOVALUATE 7 PREVENTS DAMAGE

So how do we nullify the effects daily wear-and-tear? Not surprisingly, smartphone manufacturers have already done us a big favor by using the best type of glass available for this application—chemically strengthened tempered glass.

Although the display is inherently quite strong in this aspect, it is still weak in the impact protection department, which is why we use plastic films to aid in shock absorption. The issue with this solution is that it counteracts two of the main reasons manufacturers used glass in the first place: optimized optical clarity and touch response.

Movaluate 7 Glass Screen Protectors are able to match clarity, smoothness, and damage resistance of the stock glass panel, while offering impact protection surpassing any plastic film.

THE TECHNOLOGY OF PROTECTION

Movaluate 7’s Glass Screen protectors inherently offer excellent protection through redundancy, but the science of this protection is more than skin deep:

The glass used in Movaluate 7 Screen Protectors undergoes an ion-exchange process, which is a chemical strengthening process where sheets of glass are dipped into a molten potassium salt bath, causing the smaller sodium ions to leave the glass and be replaced with the large potassium ions. As the glass cools, these larger ions are more tightly packed together, creating a layer of compressive stress deep into the glass.

This deep compressive layer is very resistant to damage and when combined with the inner-tension, prevents scratches from propagating into cracks.

CONCLUSION

Movaluate 7 Glass Protectors can give you peace of mind like no other protector can. It possesses all of the benefits of the stock display, none of the downsides of plastic films, and only costs a fraction of the price of screen replacement. So whether you have an iPhone 5S, Galaxy S5 or Galaxy Note 3, head over to the store and get the highest quality protection for your device now!

Why choose a Glass Screen Protector over a Plastic Film?

May 21, 2022 by TEAM MOVALUATE

We still remember when screen protection meant buying an uncut piece of film and trying to fit it to your display. Now we have all sorts of protectors, ranging from peel & apply films, to wet-apply films, all the way to tempered glass protectors. What’s the difference and why do we believe tempered glass ones are the best? Take a gander and you’ll find out!

PET Film Protectors

You are probably familiar with the plasticky screen protectors that can be found all over the web or at your local mall kiosks (for exorbitantly high prices). They are made from PET, the same kind of stuff that your soda and water gets bottled in. Can you guess what their number one feature is? They are very cheap for the manufacturer and resellers—not necessarily for you, the consumer. Although they may “protect” your screen, they are not nearly as purpose-built and cutting edge as the merchants would like you to believe.

Now we will give them credit for their ability to offer protection from scratches and sharp impacts, but as time goes on, they will become unsightly from all the scratches, dings, and divots due to PET’s softness. To compound this issue, many films (especially the self-healing ones) do not come coated with an oleophobic, anti-fingerprint coating, making smudges and fingerprints more frequent and difficult to wipe off. This means your screen clarity as well as touch responsiveness will be significantly reduced.

Chemically Strengthened Glass Screen Protectors

Glass isn’t the first material that comes to mind when considering durability. We’ve all been witness to a wine or dinner glass shattering, but the glass used in smartphones is a whole different animal. Even in the world of toughened glass, chemically engineered glass is especially resilient due to its unique treatment:

Glass is submersed in a bath containing a potassium salt (typically potassium nitrate) at 300°C. This causes sodium ions in the glass surface to be replaced by potassium ions from the bath solution.

This replacement of ions causes the surface of the glass to be in a state of compression and the core in compensating tension. The surface compression of chemically strengthened glass may reach up to 690 MPa.

The resulting glass is extremely hard, making it difficult to scratch. In addition, the physical properties of this glass allow it to absorb catastrophic impacts while still protecting the underlying display, something that PET films cannot do.
Protection isn’t glass’s only forte, in fact, our favorite feature is its superb texture and smoothness. For the same reason that glass is used in the first place on your device display, the benefits hold true when used as a screen protector—optical clarity, touch responsiveness and smoothness. In addition, an oleophobic coating resists fingerprints, smudges while making it easier to wipe clean when the display does get dirty.

Real World Comparison

To get a candid look at the performance difference of these two technologies, we took two devices that we had at our office—one with a PET protector and the other with glass—and compared them:

The Nexus 5 is protected with a PET Film. The protector itself was laden with smudges and scratches:

As you can see, the soft nature of the PET results in all sorts of marring, swirling and scratching. These are compounded by the smudges left on the display which create distortion in the output of your smartphone screen.

The iPhone 5 with Movaluate 7 Glass Screen Protector had some dust particles and lint on the display, but was otherwise in pristine condition:

Final Thoughts

When it comes to preserving your device’s value, PET films beat having nothing on at all. However, if you can pony up a few extra dollars (and you should, here’s why), you can get superior function and feel. In addition to excellent protection, Movaluate 7 protectors are backed by Movaluate’s 60 Day Money-Back Guarantee and customer support! Pick yours up now with Free Shipping:

For a limited time, get a free Movaluate NFC Tag as well!

Movaluate 7 Official Launch Event: Buy one, get $10 to use at Amazon!

April 26, 2022 by TEAM MOVALUATE

This is a special broadcast to all of our awesome Movaluate fans! To celebrate the launch of our Movaluate 7 line of Tempered Glass Screen Protectors, we will be offering $10 Amazon.com gift cards to any fans who purchase protection for their iPhone 5s/5c/5, Galaxy S5 or Galaxy Note 3 by May 2nd!

Getting your $10 Amazon reward is easy! Just follow these simple steps:

1. Purchase your Movaluate 7 Tempered Glass Screen Protector from our official Amazon Shop:
- iPhone 5s/5c/5
- Galaxy S5
- Galaxy Note 3
2. Message us on Facebook with your order number (http://www.facebook.com/movaluate)
3. We will message you back with your $10 Amazon Gift Card code once your order ships!

Yes, it really is that easy to get $10 and the best feeling, glass screen protector on the market! This is a limited time offer that expires on May 3rd or while supplies last!

Movaluate 7: Who We Are and What We Do

April 14, 2022 by TEAM MOVALUATE

What’ve we been up to?

Value has been the lifeblood of Movaluate since its inception in 2012. If you have used or are interested in Movaluate, chances are that you too are interested in value as well. When we launched Movaluate, our goal was to help users maximize the value of their devices. With the fair market value of over 400 devices at hand, we gave buyers and sellers the information necessary to make a confident and equitable transaction. As the sales transaction data began to stack up, one thing became clear: we could maximize our user’s value even more.

What decreases your device’s value?

The largest decrease in sales price was from damaged displays—cracked, chipped, shattered and more. Repairs typically cost around $150 plus labor, representing a large portion of the device’s value and thus resulting in a significantly reduced selling price. We knew that preventing this type of catastrophic damage was relatively easy, affordable and had no impact on the device usage—if anything, it improved usability. Our experience with mobile devices had led to a deep research of the screen protector market, one that started even before Movaluate itself.

How we found a solution

We witnessed the evolution of screen protectors from cheap sheets of PET film that required users to cut out an appropriate shape, to what we believe to be the pinnacle of screen protector engineering today—tempered glass screen protectors. These screen protectors fit like a glove, are hardly noticeable and feel even better than the stock displays due to their specially formulated oleophobic coatings.

Others took notice of this technology and the glass screen protector market exploded with competitors, offering either chip/crack prone, cheaply manufactured knockoffs with laughable customer support, or premium products with a premium price tag. We didn’t want our users (and their wallets) to have to suffer through this same experience while trying to find protection for their device. We believe that maximizing value should be easy, and that’s why we created Movaluate 7.

This is what’s next:

We experimented with a plethora of different screen protectors and when we found the best one, we went straight to the manufacturer to the best price for our valued customers. With Movaluate 7, our mission is to offer premium quality tempered glass screen protectors and customer service, at reasonable prices. We are confident that our screen protectors will deliver top notch protection and impeccably smooth display feel.

Movaluate 7, screen protection evolved.

Why Should You Invest In A Screen Protector?

March 26, 2022 by TEAM MOVALUATE

Since 2007, Apple has sold over 100 million smartphones worldwide. In just the past 5 years, customers have spent an estimated $5.9 billion repairing these devices. Throw in the 1 billion or so Android devices and we are talking national GDP-sized repair costs.

If you are ever worried about misplacing your phone or having it stolen, don’t—you are 10 times more likely to break or damage your iPhone. With ever increasing screen sizes and thinner, laminated digitizers, smartphone displays are more prone to scratching, chipping and cracking than ever before. Save yourself the $149-$249 cost of repairing a dropped device by investing less than $30 in a screen protector!

According to SquareTrade, 30% of all smartphone owners experience accidental damage within the first 12 months of owning their devices. For those under 35 years of age (yes, you), that number skyrockets to near 50%. Who hasn’t found themselves performing the infamous smartphone crotch-tuck while driving, and then exiting the vehicle and jettisoning their smartphone straight into the cold, hard pavement. Worse yet, 17% of owners become repeat offenders, which makes sense; at first you baby your device, but as soon as it gets that first love mark, it’s all downhill from there.

Our own data corroborates these findings, with a whopping $200 price drop to the value of an iPhone 5S with a broken display. The same echoes for other popular devices such as the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and S4. As a matter of fact, due to their relatively lower popularity, repairs cost even more as parts and dealers are not as readily available.

Save your fingertips from glass shards (11% of iPhone owners continue to use their cracked displays) and your wallet from weight loss with a screen protector. In addition to its guaranteed damage protection, the specially formulated oleophobic coating gives an unmatched smooth, better-than-stock feeling to your gorgeous display while giving you your peace of mind. Stay tuned to our blog for discounted pre-sale information and launch dates of the Movaluate Store!

SquareTrade via 9to5Mac

Official Movaluate Device Testing and Appraisal Application for Android Devices

May 20, 2022 by TEAM MOVALUATE

Hey guys, we’ve recently released the official Movaluate Device Tester application. It’s available for free on Google Play.

Movaluate Device Tester helps buyers and sellers in the secondary market (eBay, Craigslist) appraise their smartphones and tablets to make sure that they are properly functioning before a sale. Movaluate Device Tester can appraise the functionality of all aspects of your phone or tablet, including:

-Sensors: accelerometer, gyroscope, light and proximity
-Display: touchscreen and multi-touch
-Wireless & Telephony: WiFi, Bluetooth and cellular
-Camera: front facing, rear facing and LED flash
-Sound & Vibration: microphone, speaker and vibration motor
-USB connectivity

You can use these test results to diagnose the functionality of your device and appraise your device’s resale value. Movaluate Device Tester’s unique built in price-appraiser (powered by Movaluate.com) gives you the ability to instantly appraise the value of your device.

Let us know if you have any questions or comments, we’d love to hear your feedback.

How Do Each Manufacturer’s Flagships Compare in Resale Value?

February 25, 2022 by TEAM MOVALUATE

Every 2 years we spend our hard earned money on what we hope is the best phone around. Sometimes however, what we thought was going to be the flagship device of our hearts, merely turns out to be a dinghy. What are we to do then? Sell it so we can fund our device lust but of course!

Which flagship devices have the best chance of getting your money back? We took a look at all the flagships from the major OEMs available in the U.S. and found some interesting results:

Continue reading →

Used mobile device and smartphone priceguideline