Do phone skins damage your phone?

No, phone skins don’t damage your phone. Phone skins and wraps are made from super-soft durable vinyl, which guarantees a perfectly safe application to your device that causes zero damage. Phone skins are easily removable and use neutral adhesives that ensure no residue is left when the wrap is removed and that the device remains in pristine condition. Phone skins are ultra-thin and excellent heat conductors, which removes the added risk of device overheating by allowing heat to be transferred through.

Evidently then, phone skins and wraps don’t damage your phone. In fact, they do the complete opposite of damage your phone: they protect it. Nevertheless, we get asked this question a lot, so we’ve put together this blog to explore the topic in detail. There are five important concerns that people raise in relation to phone skin damage, and we’re going to explore each throughout this blog post. The five areas of concern are:

• Does the adhesive damage your phone?

• Do phone skins cause overheating?

• Are phone skins safely removable?

• Do phone skins cause damage when removed?

• Do phone skins leave residue?

Does the vinyl adhesive damage your phone?

All of our iPhone skins and other device wraps are made from premium vinyl materials that use exclusively neutral adhesives for sticking to the target surface. The neutrality of these adhesives prevents them from chemically reacting with surfaces, allowing the vinyl to be applied without causing any damage. For peace of mind though, the vinyls we use have been extensively tested for compatibility on a vast range of surfaces including phones, laptops, and cars - all without doing any damage. These results, combined with the decades of shared experience from our vinyl suppliers, enable us to confidently say that our phone skins and wraps are completely safe for your device. A reassuring proof point for this is the automotive wrapping industry, where these exact same vinyls are used to wrap extremely expensive supercars. If the vinyl is safe enough to wrap a £200,000 supercar without doing any damage, it is safe enough to wrap your device. Actually, when your phone is wrapped in vinyl, it is better protected from scratches, scuffs, dirt and staining, which will instead reduce the risk of damage. We’ve created an entire blog post on this specific topic: do phone skins protect your phone? You should have a read if you’re in any doubt.

Do phone skins cause overheating?

The simple answer to this is no, phone skins and wraps do not cause overheating - but let us explain why in a few short sentences. Phone skins and wraps are ultra-thin and while they have fantastic heat resistance potential, being able to withstand the very high temperatures a car bonnet reaches, they have poor heat retention properties. Scientifically, the polymer from which vinyl is made is essentially useless at insulating high temperatures - particularly when the polymer is ~0.2mm thin. The result is that heat passes through vinyl almost as if it wasn’t there, meaning phone skins do not trap heat or cause your device to reach higher temperatures than normal.

Are phone skins removable?

Yes, phone skins are removable. To remove a phone skin from your device simply pick at the vinyl edge until it lifts away from your phone (see image below). If your nails are extremely short, you may find it helpful to use something that has a rigid square edge to pick away the vinyl. Once the edge of the skin is raised, you will be able to gradually peel back the skin from the phone bit by bit in a single motion: much like removing a plaster. Vinyl phone skins are long-lasting, but you shouldn’t have any difficulty removing them when the time comes. Although, if you find the wrap is firmly stuck down, simply apply some heat with a hairdryer before you start peeling the vinyl to soften the adhesive and allow for the skin to be removed with less force.

Do phone skins damage your phone when removed?

Phone skins do not damage your phone when removed. Premium quality vinyl wraps are designed to be durable and super-soft to prevent the target surface from being damaged during the application and removal processes. The most common concern we see regarding the removal of phone skins is whether the adhesive will have stuck the skin too firmly to the device, requiring the skin to be scraped off rather than peeled. This is absolutely not the case, and once an edge has been raised, the phone skin should peel back from the device with ease as a single piece.

Do phone skins leave residue?

The adhesive used by our vinyl suppliers is equally as important as the quality of the vinyl itself, and premium quality vinyls are designed to leave zero residue when the skin is removed from its target surface. Specifically, when the vinyl is manufactured by our suppliers, the adhesive layer itself is engrained into the vinyl. This ensures that when the vinyl is removed from its target surface, the adhesive remains attached to the vinyl and the residue is peeled away along with it. In some rare circumstances when you remove the Samsung Galaxy skin from your device, there will be some tiny pieces of residue remaining. If this does happen, simply rub your finger against the remaining residue a few times and it will disappear.

To conclude: phone skins are perfectly safe, they do not damage your device, and they are entirely removable with ease. It’s time to go shopping for some phone skins and wraps.

All the best,

Liam & Reece
Founders at VybeSkins