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BodyGuardz Ace Pro case and Pure Arc protector for the Samsung Galaxy Note 8: Hands-on

The Galaxy Note 8 is arguably the best smartphone available today with a price starting at $930. For $40 or less, you can protect your Note 8 with a case or a glass screen protector.
By Matthew Miller, Contributing Writer
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1 of 8 Matthew Miller/ZDNET

BodyGuardz screen protector and case for the Note 8

It's now been nearly two months since I started sing the Samsung Galaxy Note 8, see the ZDNet full review, and I've been testing a lot of cases and a couple of curved glass screen protectors.

Many years ago, BodyGuardz screen protectors were the first I bought and put on my devices. BodyGuardz sent along a couple of Designed for Samsung certified products to evaluate. The Ace Pro case and Pure Arc screen protector are both available now with a great anniversary sale saving you $7 to $8.

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Putting on the BodyGuardz Pure Arc protector

The Pure Arc screen protector has a MSRP of $39.95 with a current anniversary price of $31.96. Tempered glass is designed to fit the display with adhesive along the edge to help hold it in place along the Note's curved edges.

There is an installation guide that fits on top of your Note 8 to help you accurately position the glass protector. Installation was easy and only took me a few minutes. I thoroughly cleaned the display with the included wipe and microfiber cloth, positioned the installation guide, peeled off the adhesive back, and put the protector down onto the Note 8.

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Upper edge of the Pure Arc on the Note 8

Rather than having adhesive everywhere and then having to squeegee out bubbles under the protector, I set the protector down in position using the guide and then pressed down along all of the edges to secure it. I haven't used the protector for enough time to comment yet on its ability to stay in place over the long term and I haven't dropped my phone to see if it will protect the glass.

I have not experienced any issues with usability with the protector in place and am easily able to manipulate the edge panels and tap on all keys of the keyboard. The protector is also designed so that you can still use cases with it in position. This means there is an edge on the sides so you can definitely notice there is a protector in place. I'm willing to have this edge in order to gain some screen protection.

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Lower edge of the Pure Arc on the Note 8

The protector comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee if you are not happy with it and also has free lifetime replacements, just pay shipping, when you register your product. Thus, if the protector saves your phone with a drop, you can get another protector to continue with this level of protection. If you purchase a case, then you also get free shipping on replacements.

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Ace Pro for the Galaxy Note 8

Speaking of cases, BodyGuardz also sent along the Ace Pro case. This case comes in smoke and black where there are black solid edges and a gray opaque back and button areas. It is on sale now for $27.96 with a full price of $34.95.

The case is made with Unequal technology that is used by professional athletes on the field for impact protection. The TPU material on the back is clearly thicker than just about every other case I have tried and the Unequal technology on the corners and edges is designed for serious shock absorbption and dissipation. I'm not dropping my expensive Note 8 to test it for this review, but it sure looks and feels like this case will protect my Note 8.

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Back of the Ace Pro case

The edge panels are fully functional in the case. The back is transparent so you can see the back of the Note 8 while it is also well protected.

Wireless charging works well through the case and while it does add some thickness to the Note 8, it is available for a reasonable price and offers some solid protection. It has also been tested to Mil-Std 810G-516.6.

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