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Need Screen Protector for M9P ?


Flyfisherman

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Sapphire is one of the hardest substances in the known universe, 9 on the Mohs Scale, where diamond is 10 and window glass 7. It is a form of aluminum oxide, corund, which is also known as ruby and emerald, depending on small levels of other metals. Low grade corund is known as carborundum.

 

So all you have to worry about is to keep your diamond rings away from it.

 

LB

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whilst it is scratch resistant how about impact resistance? Could these covers potentially shatter if poked with a point- or dropped hard? Could they even shatter more easily than the standard screens? I don't know- just genuinely interested.

 

would one of the hard screen covers offer a type of 'sacrificial shield' against blunt force trauma?

 

I put a protector on my m9 on day one- but so far the p has gone neked...

 

but if it offered some impact protection I would stick one on...

Edited by jaques
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I used one on the M9 but I have not on the M9P. Part of the reason I like the M9p is the lack of a need for a plastic screen on the LCD. Makes it clearer to see the screen. I figure I don't put a plastic screen on my watch sapphire and I'm not going to put one on my camera.

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whilst it is scratch resistant how about impact resistance? Could these covers potentially shatter if poked with a point- or dropped hard? Could they even shatter more easily than the standard screens? I don't know- just genuinely interested.

 

That screen is probably the most shock and impact-resistant part of your M9. More so than the metal. Stop worrying.

 

would one of the hard screen covers offer a type of 'sacrificial shield' against blunt force trauma?

 

It would make no difference whatever. It's like putting a band-aid on the front of your car for collision protection. Stop worrying.

 

LB

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Let me just relay my experience with my sapphire M8u. Wanting to show a friend with a plastic-screened M8 how well worth the money the sapphire upgrade was, I demonstrated by scratching at it vigorously with my house key (made of metal BTW, not diamond ;). True enough it didn't leave a mark. Or so I thought. Later when I breathed on the screen to clean off fingerprints, I could see a mass of scratches from the key. The scratches weren't in the sapphire glass itself, but rather in whatever anti-reflective coating they put on it. They were only ever visible if the glass was fogged, so as such I considered them a non-issue.

 

Like sapphire watch crystals, it is susceptible to cracking upon impact (or too much pressure, which is why dive watches have thicker ones). I've never heard of a Leica sapphire screen cracking though.

 

One thing I think would be an interesting thing for Leica (or an aftermarket company like Giottos) to consider is the technology which Invicta Watch Co uses which they call "Flame Fusion". It's a mineral crystal (which has superior impact resistance to sapphire) with a thin sapphire laminate outer layer to offer superior scratch resistance. Invictas aren't expensive watches, so no doubt the technology is also cheaper than full sapphire.

Edited by bocaburger
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  • 2 weeks later...

I just payed Leica 960 € to replaced a shattered LCD screen cover on my m9p. Saphire cracks and shatters just like any other glass when impacted. For my unfortunate camera, it was by swinging into a car door while hanging from my shoulder. Stupid and expensive. Having said that, it is a beautiful camera.

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I just payed Leica 960 € to replaced a shattered LCD screen cover on my m9p. Saphire cracks and shatters just like any other glass when impacted. For my unfortunate camera, it was by swinging into a car door while hanging from my shoulder. Stupid and expensive. Having said that, it is a beautiful camera.

 

Welcome to the forum.

 

Mistakes happen; the only regret should be not having insurance. There are many threads here on the topic (search box).

 

Jeff

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I used LCD protector, I use the flip-up hood.

1. I hate to clean my nose print and finger prints. The flip-up hood keeps me from that.

2. The hood also protect it from any impact. Even if it's made of diamond, there is still limitation on the impact proof.

3. The hood may also protect it from thieves, it covers the LCD so that it is not obvious a digital camera. ... although an analog M is still attractive.

 

The cost? $6 plus S&H. Ask B&H.

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Personally, I would not put a screen protector on an m9p as I do not have a protector on my watch crystal which has yet to be scratched (knock on wood).

 

Also, I second the insurance comment-I just recently fully insured (drops, theft, fire, water damage, etc) my m9 and 50 lux asph as an addition to my renters insurance-paying $180/year 11k replacement coverage 0 deductible through geico (in the US). Peace of mind is deff worth it...

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Even watch crystals are known to break if they get abused hard enough. What makes them more solid is that they are much smaller than a camera screen and probably even a bit thicker (most also have to be pressure-resistant, if we are talking about divers watches).

So I am not sure, a sapphire screen, how nice it may sound, technically is the best solution. Actually I liked what Olympus did with the E-1: it had a clip-on plastic cover for its screen out of the box. Close to impossible to shatter and if it gets scratched, a replacement part costs just a few dollars. As it was designed for the camera, it looked less awkward than any other aftermarket solutions.

 

Peter

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The way I see it is that the screen is such a poor resolution anyway that putting a 20 quid giottos or a plastic LCD guard over it can't make it much worse and just keeps it nice and printine. I know it's not sapphire on my M9 but my Giottos protector is scratched to hell due to the camera hitting zips, buttons and things on jackets I wear when I hang it around my neck.

 

I also think it does help impact protection because it's not sitting flat on the LCD but a mm or so away so the chances are that the protector would take th brunt of a direct impact and shatter but leave the screen under ok. There's quite a few users on here who that's happened to I think and I'm sure there's images to show it.

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I agree with Satureyes logic- and went ahead and covered mine as I had a spare GGS cover glass lying around. To my mind it is very cheap insurance- and it really doesn't change the view much at all. I also agree strongly that there is a chance at least that the protector would have saved the LCD in the example above. They are raised from the surface of the LCD- and mounted uniformly around the edges which are no doubt more solid/stiff- distributing any impact force evenly where it can be absorbed into the body of the camera... And they are quite impact resistant (more so than sapphire glass?) themselves being made of composite layers...

Edited by jaques
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