You know that saying “you get what you pay for?” Well, with the Ailun Glass screen protector, you actually get less. Despite its popularity as a budget-friendly option, it landed in the bottom 10% of all screen protectors we’ve tested. The Ailun protector combines poor visual performance with weak edge durability and a dated installation experience. Let’s break down why this $8.89 deal might still be overpriced.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Decent center impact resistance (306.52N) | Worst clarity in testing (84%) |
| Scratched only at 7H hardness | Increases glare significantly (+14%) |
| Comes in 3-pack for $8.89 | Almost no oleophobic coating |
| Includes camera lens protectors | Dust-prone, outdated install kit |
| Glass is structurally decent | Flat edges break easily (58.7N) |
Design
The Ailun screen protector ranks #12 in design—not horrible, but certainly not good. It’s made of tempered glass, based on our shatter testing, and covers just 92.21% of the iPhone’s front face, below the 93.07% average. More importantly, it doesn’t have black edges or cutouts, which means it fails to fully cover the displayable area. The edges are extremely flat and unfinished, making them more prone to damage and less comfortable to use.
The install kit brings us back to 2015. You get a basic frame with minimal guidance, and dust management is a real concern. That said, we’ll give Ailun credit for at least including enough accessories to support three installs. Many budget brands cut corners there, but Ailun doesn’t.
Performance
Performance is where this protector really collapses, ranking 18th out of 20+. It retains only 84% of the iPhone’s native clarity—the lowest in our tests. For comparison, the average clarity score is 90%, and the best hits 93%. So not only does your screen look worse, it’ll also be more annoying to view in sunlight or bright rooms thanks to a 14% glare increase—more than double the average of 5.64%.
The oleophobic coating? Basically nonexistent. Droplets took a whopping 94.3 seconds to travel 6cm at a 30° angle—way above the 44-second average—and left behind streaks. From our hands-on testing, there’s borderline no smudge protection at all.
Protection
Protection is the only area where Ailun’s glass doesn’t completely fall apart. It ranks #7 overall, which was surprising. It passed our scratch test, only marking at 7H and not at 6H. In the impact test, it held up to 306.52N before cracking, well above the 271.44N average. Unfortunately, the weak flat edges let it down—it took only 58.7N of force to crack an edge, compared to the 86.18N average. So yes, the glass itself is decent, but everything around it wasn’t built to support that strength.
Value
At $8.89 for a 3-pack, the Ailun Glass screen protector seems like a good deal on paper. But when you factor in its poor visual performance, lackluster coating, and edge fragility, the value drops quickly. It even includes some camera lens protectors, but that still doesn’t make up for the frustration of using it day to day.
Verdict
The Ailun Glass screen protector might be one of the cheapest options available, but it’s also one of the worst. Poor clarity, a non-existent oleophobic layer, and fragile edges make this a product we can’t recommend—even for the price. If you care at all about screen visibility or actual protection, look elsewhere. Sometimes, cheap really is too cheap.