Hello Mobileread. Just wanted to report on an eBook accessory I just purchased: the screen protector. I bought one from Boxwave, which sells protectors for almost every device with a screen under the sun. I've bought protectors from them before for my Treo, Nintendo DS, and PSP, after reading a favorable review about the Treo version.
The tester in that review said that he couldn't scratch the protector even with a brillo pad--it was and remained crystal clear throughout his testing battery.
I've always hated applying these things in the past, it's so easy to get dust under them as you attempt application. This one was relatively easy. Maybe because of luck, but I think it helped that the protector seemed to fit [almost] EXACTLY into the screen area. There are no gaps at the edges. Consequently, I was able to push it up against the screen edges to help line it up, and didn't have to worry that it would be off-center as a result.
In record time I had it on. I used the supplied squeegee to get rid of the air bubbles, and then took a look. I'm not sure I like it.
While the protector is completely clear and doesn't ruin the contrast, it does seem to add quite a bit of glare. I don't think it amplifies glare like the 700 seems to do, but it does mean that in high glare situations, you now have a mirror...and in low glare situations where the naked screen effectively masked all glare, you can now see a faint, mostly unobtrusive reflection.
High-glare situations were already hard to read on the 505, and of course, it's no easier to read when it's a mirror. With low-glare situations, both are readable, but the faint reflections off the protector could be distracting, since you won't necessarily be able to see much in the reflection, but you'll easily see movement and large objects.
There is also a bit of a rainbow/polarized effect when light strikes the 505 at certain angles (glare-heavy angles, not reading angles). This might have something to do with it being UV-resistant or something like that (supposedly it reflects less UV rays back at you to help save your eyes).
I've attached a picture that I took, meant to illustrate just how bad it can be. The whole effect is like laminated newspaper.
I've been mostly happy with Boxwave in the past (the only bad things was that some protectors seemed to curl up a little at the corners, and couldn't be squeegeed flat. Just a cosmetic thing. With my Canon A571 (or similar) the protector was too big for the screen, and hung off of it, and would catch on my pocket and peel off).
This time, the form, cut and fit of the screen are perfect, but it just adds too much unwanted glare. I'll leave it on a while, since I paid around $15 for it, but I may well be taking it off. [These protectors look fantastic when a device's screen is already glossy, since they do not change its qualities, but it appears they don't play well with matte screens.] I certainly feel a bit safer with it on, in terms of my device's safety. With the screen protector on, I'd feel confident putting the 505 in my jacket pocket, naked. However the cost for that might be too high. I may just have to find a better case.
Boxwave does offer an "anti-glare" protector, but I'm reluctant to try those, since anti-glare generally doesn't offer close to 100% transparency. The "crystal" protector [I bought] claims well over 99% transparency.
update: This just in! I can't stand the thing already (it's been about 10 minutes). I've taken it out, and since I forgot to take a "before" photo, instead I can provide an "after the after" photo. Without further ado: Protectorless 505 in the same position with mostly the same light. High glare.
ouch.
edits to main review in []'s