How do you disinfect the iPad screen?

I'm no germophobe nor OCD about cleaning however it seems essential to disinfect something like the iPad screen from time to time. I have found these discussions useful but inconclusive. So I'd like to say, unequivocally, that after reading around the subject I bought some surgical spirit from a high-street chemist and used that sparingly with a lens cloth to clean the screen. I have done this every month or so for about 18 months and there has been zero/nada/zip impact on the display quality nor on the sensitivity of the touch screen.

How to clean Apple products

To clean iPad, unplug all cables and turn off iPad (press and hold the Sleep/Wake button, and then slide the onscreen slider). Use a soft, slightly damp, lint-free cloth. Avoid getting moisture in openings. Don’t use window cleaners, household cleaners, aerosol sprays, solvents, alcohol, ammonia, or abrasives to clean iPad. iPad has an oleophobic coating on the screen; simply wipe iPad’s screen with a soft, lint-free cloth to remove oil left by your hands. The ability of this coating to repel oil will diminish over time with normal usage, and rubbing the screen with an abrasive material will further diminish its effect and may scratch your screen.

I'm a budding germaphobe and, as the original poster inquired, I would like to disinfect my iPad screen, not merely wipe the fingerprints from the screen. How can I accomplish this without damaging or diminishing the screen? On my older devices, I use hand sanitizer directly on their screens, but I don't care about them as much as I care about my brand new iPad. Thanks.

As a germophobe, you would probably do better to prevent them reaching the iPad by wrapping it in some sort of protection that still allows use, and the ability to sanitise that protection rather than the iPad directly. I believe such products are available, recommended for use in hospitals.

Even better, get over your phobia.

get a paper towel then put a little achohol and rub it on the screen then wipe it with a dry one

The low tech way? Put your iPad in a gallon sized ziplock bag. You can still use it and you can keep its surface clean. If the iPad gets 'dirty', just put it in a new bag.

NOOOO! WHAT ABOUT THE OLEOPHOBIC COATING!?? That's why this is such a tricky issue. Might as well just spary windex on it if you're going to do what you're doing.

Try:

http://www.monsterproducts.com/productdisplay.asp?pin=5930

http://store.imore.com/iklenz-cleaner-solution/15A43A3000.htm

Also see:

http://lifehacker.com/5665119/how-to-safely-disinfect-and-clean-your-gadgets

Err... I repeat 'I have done this every month or so for about 18 months and there has been zero/nada/zip impact on the display quality nor on the sensitivity of the touch screen' .

The coating makes the screen resistant to fingerprints and other such marks. You wouldn't notice a degradation in display quality or sensitivity, but you may start to see the screen gets dirty faster and doesn't easily wipe clean. So then, you'll be compelled to clean it even more often. Actually, Apple recommends not using solvents similar to what you describe. Tread carefully, and good luck.

.

WaPopWa wrote:

Err... I repeat 'I have done this every month or so for about 18 months and there has been zero/nada/zip impact on the display quality nor on the sensitivity of the touch screen' .

Yes, but you didn't mention any products except for "surgical spirit". I mentioned two readily available products that claim the "disinfect" attribute.

Another site:

http://www.macexperience.com/2013/01/15/germ-warfare-disinfecting-your-iphone-an d-ipad/

As always, you can use Google..."disenfect ipad" brings up many results.

OK. TBH that's the first clear and apparently independent comment I've seen on the subject despite having Googled a few times. I'll see if I can find something similar in the UK and now have nearly a whole bottle of surgical spirit to drink ;-)

You do realize hand sanitizer is nothing but alcohol?

Me doth think thou worrieth too much....

Have you considered adhering some sort of antiscratch film, that you can replace at will with a pristine and uninfected piece every so often?

BTW, splashing any sort of solvent onto a naked pad of any brand is a surefire way of increasing the maker's bottom line. Cause the gadget's lifetime will be drastically shortened by the corrosion induced. With alcohol the effect will be doubly enhanced due to the water it contains. Or did you think that bottle contained only pure CH₃CH₂OH or C₃H₇OH without a hint of H₂O mixed in?