# Do you remove the plastic film on your electronics? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 18, 2013, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-the-plastic-film-on-your-electronics/650740 "2013-02-18T21:48:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-the-plastic-film-on-your-electronics/650740/21 "2013-10-08T02:25:28Z")
Off. Immediately. I had no idea people left that shit on. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-the-plastic-film-on-your-electronics/650740/22 "2013-10-08T02:39:15Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > Occasionally I’ll own a product for a long time before I realize the protective film is still on a panel, a logo bar, whatever. It’s great fun to peel it off and find the impossibly immaculate surface underneath. > [@troubledwater](#): > > It’s still there on the microwave and dishwasher. I’ve lived here a year. I should peel the microwave. It looks pretty bad. Only just now reading this thread did I realize that the ugly plasticky stuff hanging off the front of my microwave control panel was a protective film that was supposed to be removable. I just assumed that it was the result of cheap construction; I didn’t remove it since I was worried the control panel would fall out or something. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-the-plastic-film-on-your-electronics/650740/23 "2013-10-08T03:50:40Z")
I always remove it. Especially if it’s covering any air vents and might cause the device to overheat if it’s left on. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-the-plastic-film-on-your-electronics/650740/24 "2013-10-08T04:35:59Z")
Depends. On a touch screen, there’s not much choice. On other stuff I leave it on to protect it. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-the-plastic-film-on-your-electronics/650740/25 "2013-10-08T18:00:51Z")
Other than the Otterbox screen protector film on my phone, I peel all of that stuff off. A couple of years ago, a co-worker was complaining that the screen on their new laptop was blurry. I immediately saw the pull-tab hanging over the corner of the display, gave it a quick yoink, and their vision problem went away. :smack: My own pet peeve are those little constellations of stickers on laptops proclaiming stuff like the graphics chipset, wireless, made for Windows, etc. that people leave on until they’re a dirty, ragged mess. The other item I’ve never found a clear consensus on are the little stickers, usually either clear or foil on things like crystal vases or candlesticks that say Poland, Waterford, etc. I hate them, but the owners of said crystal things seem to think a tattered sticker makes the item more valuable. ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-the-plastic-film-on-your-electronics/650740/26 "2013-10-08T18:39:48Z")
> [@kittenblue](#): > > I’m a grandmother, three times over, and I remove the plastic film as soon as I know it works and I’m going to keep it. I am never happier than when I get to peel plastic off new fixtures at work. I have, on occasion, secretly removed the plastic from appliances not owned or posessed by me, if the sight of that loose edge was driving me crazy. On occasion? Fuck that. As soon as the person isn’t looking, off that shit comes. It drives me mad, and I figure I’m doing the person a service by getting that film off of there. Also, there’s the tingle of glee it sends up my spine. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![SpeedwayRyan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@SpeedwayRyan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpeedwayRyan)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2013, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-the-plastic-film-on-your-electronics/650740/27 "2013-10-09T14:59:17Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > The first time I got a smart phone I had it all of about three hours. I pulled it out of my pocket only to find that my keys had scratched my damn touch screen. > > I was freak’n livid! That was of course until I realized that the only thing I scratched was the film cover. I wasn’t aware that the phone had a film cover on it. You keep your smartphone in the same pocket as your keys? Mine go in opposite pockets…nothing ever goes in the same pocket as my phone, especially metal things like keys and change. Yikes. As to the original question, peeling the film is part of unboxing/setting things up. If I’m installing a car stereo or something similar, I’ll leave it on while I’m doing the work to help avoid a scratch, but as soon as I’m done it’s coming off. I cannot imagine leaving it on, but I’ve seen plenty of people do it. That and leaving the stickers on TVs and laptops shouting about the specs/features. That crap is supposed to come OFF, people! ---
**Author:** ![Krouget](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b38774/32.png) [@Krouget](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Krouget)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2013, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-the-plastic-film-on-your-electronics/650740/28 "2013-10-09T15:12:19Z")
I remove it, especially if we’re talking about mobile devices, and I just make sure I’m careful. The factory scratch protection is meant to protect on a temporary basis and doesn’t hold up as well, when compared to a dedicated product designed to do so over a longer term. Most have a specific portion where you’re supposed to peel, and this is exactly where dirt and fine particles start to get trapped, which can actually damage the display. Plus, air bubbles…no thanks. Off it comes. ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2013, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-the-plastic-film-on-your-electronics/650740/29 "2013-10-10T16:47:02Z")
I peel it as soon as I know the item is a keeper. I did miss a tiny piece on my smart phone’s main button though…it stayed there about a week before I noticed it starting to peel. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-the-plastic-film-on-your-electronics/650740.md?page=1)