Invisible Shield for MacBook

Gadgeteer Hands On Review by Rob Tillotson

June 29, 2006

Today's portable devices are as nice to look at as they are to use. But how do you protect them from the nicks and scratches that are inevitable in everyday use? One possibility is the Invisible Shield, from ShieldZone Corporation. The Invisible Shield is an adhesive-backed protector made of an extremely durable transparent material, custom-fitted to a particular device. While most of the Invisible Shield protectors are for small devices (iPods, PDAs, phones, and the like) there are also laptop-sized ones for the Apple PowerBook, MacBook, and MacBook Pro.

I tested the Invisible Shield for the 13" MacBook, not only to prevent my new toy from scratches and dings but also to try to avoid the discoloration other owners of white MacBooks have been reporting. The full body Invisible Shield package includes a total of eight protective sheets: a large one for the case top, three for the case bottom and battery, and four for the wrist rests, trackpad, and trackpad button. In addition to the protectors themselves you also get a small bottle of "application solution" (filtered water, I think) and a flat plastic blade for smoothing out bubbles.

The Invisible Shield is made of a strong, stretchy clear plastic with a mild adhesive on one side. Putting it on is easy, provided you spray it until it is dripping wet on both sides before sticking it down. The layer of water underneath prevents it from fully adhering until you have a chance to move it around a little, and the wetness on top makes it easier to smooth out ripples and bubbles. At first there will still be some visible imperfections from liquid under the protector, but they vanish as it dries.

I found applying the smaller pieces - wrist rests, trackpad button, and bottom panels - to be quite easy. The top sheet, because of its size, was more tricky. It is big enough to require two hands, and it wraps around the curved edges of the case. It took me several tries to get it aligned so that there was no overhang, and I spent about twenty minutes peeling up the edges and smoothing them back down. (The material is durable enough to take quite a bit of stretching and rubbing, and you can re-stick the adhesive a few times while it is still wet.) I gave up before getting rid of all of the smaller bubbles, though.

The Invisible Shield isn't completely invisible, of course; the wrist rest protectors in particular are easy to see if the light hits them right, since they are shinier than the matte finish of the keyboard area. (Note that the touchpad itself is uncovered in these pictures; the kit included a sheet to protect it, but I didn't put it on as I didn't want to change its texture.)

Here is a close-up of the wrist rest, without flash and deliberately positioned so there is a reflection.

And the bottom, again without flash. There are actually three separate pieces here: one on the battery, one on the area next to the battery, and one covering the rest of the case bottom. There are accurately-positioned cutouts for the screws, rubber feet, and battery release so that it should not be necessary to remove the protectors to service the MacBook. It's hard for me to tell the protectors are there at all, unless I'm looking closely.

And finally, the top. The bubbles visible in this picture are hard to see in normal lighting. Although I wish I had done a better job applying the top protector, I'd rather have a case that looks like this than one full of scratches (like my old iBook).

The only problem I had with the Invisible Shield was the difficulty of applying the top sheet perfectly. This isn't the fault of the product; it's just a bit tricky to put on such a large "sticker" without some imperfections, especially if you've never done it before. The smaller sheets, on the other hand, were easy to put on without bubbles or wrinkles. The material seems to be extremely resilient; I didn't deliberately try to scratch or cut it, but while putting on the top sheet I did stretch and scrape it quite a bit and it remained undamaged.

The "standard" Invisible Shield kit for Apple laptops can be ordered from ShieldZone for $39.95 and has protective sheets for the case top, wrist rests, and trackpad area. The full-body package is $54.95 and also includes the protectors for the bottom of the case. Custom-fitted versions are available for the MacBook, MacBook Pro, and PowerBook (12", 15", and 17" models).