Most of us love to personalize our gadgets, to make them such that they can be distinguished from others. Sometimes a bare laptop lid just doesn’t cut it.  That’s what the laptop skin industry thrives on, our need to customize our portable computers such that they are more aesthetically pleasing. The laptop skin concept isn’t a new one in Pakistan. It was first introduced by Lahoreonline.org (now known as Laptopskins.com.pk ) about 3 years back. Sadly, it wasn’t well received at that time. Overtime two other companies joined in to give competition, Dexpel and TechnoChameleon.  Further on, a few other companies also started to offer laptop skins, but these three were the largest. Since then, the quality and value of laptop skins has increased drastically. Each company holds special offers and discounts and grows larger in fanbase.  We decided it was time we did a review of these skins, and then decide which one of these is the best laptop skin manufacturer in Pakistan.

Before starting this review, I would like to thank all the 3 companies for taking the time to participate and send in the review units. Unfortunately, TechnoChameleon’s skin was redirected to a different city due to an address issue and couldn’t be recovered by the shipping company. So we would just be covering the skins by both Dexpel and Laptopskins.com.pk and then decide which one is the better.

A little information about the skin manufacturers:

Laptopskins.com.pk was previously known as Lahoreonline.org and was the first manufacturer to introduce laptop skins in Pakistan.  As with any other product, the first batch of skins wasn’t well received. Since then, Laptopskins.com.pk has improved on the overall quality of the skins drastically and are now a force to be reckoned with. The company is based in Lahore and operate on a delivery only basis.

Dexpel is undoubtedly the skin manufacturer which has the largest fanbase and is the most well advertised one. It was started around 3 years back and has been growing ever since. Dexpel offers innovative offers such as snap’n’share discounts and Eid offers. The company is also based in Lahore and operates on a delivery only basis.

Our testing criteria includes the quality and overall feel of the skin, cost, shipping time and handling of the skin, scratch resistance, water resistance, ease of application of the skin on the laptop and whether the skin leaves any residue on the laptop. We would be giving a score out of ten based on how the skin holds up in the criteria.

Cost:

The laptop skins from laptopskins.pk are priced at 350 PKR with 120 PKR on shipping, for a total price of 420 PKR. Payment options include “Telenor easy paisa” money transfer, Online bank transfer and cash on delivery for lahore residents.

Dexpel skins are priced at 400 PKR a piece. But there are no shipping charges on the skin whatsoever, so the total price of the skin is 400 PKR. Payment options here include cash on delivery all over Pakistan, Western Union money transfer for international customers, Telenor Easy Paisa money transfer and online bank transfer.

Considering that laptop skins in UK retail for about 44 pounds, both the skins are priced quite reasonably considering the high quality material that is used in the manufacture. Dexpel does lead here but only by a small margin due to the cash on delivery option for anywhere in Pakistan.

Dexpel: 9/10                                                            Laptopskins.pk: 8.5/10

Shipping time and handling:

We received the skins from Laptopskins.com.pk 8 days after they had agreed to send in their skins.  But there was one huge problem with the package. The courier company had handled the skin very carelessly and had kept it folded. There were rifts along the skin which spoilt the design and the overall measurement of the skin which was unacceptable.

The skins from Dexpel were received 5 days after Dexpel had agreed to send in the units. We were very pleased that Dexpel had tagged a “Do not fold, handle with care” tag, thus ensuring that the skins would not be subject to folding and mishandling. The skin, when received, had no visible rifts on it whatsoever and maintained its original form. Dexpel leads in the shipping and handling department by a huge lead, both in the shipping time and handling of the package by the courier company.

Dexpel:  9/10                                                            Laptopskins.pk:  5/10

Ease of application:

Laptopskins.pk wins this criteria. The skin by Laptopskins.pk required a lesser effort to apply. All that was needed was to remove the back sheet of the skin and then apply it on the laptop. Due to the skins firm nature, It didn’t bend or form air bubbles at all. Infact, we applied the skin properly on our second try. It was that simple

Dexpel skins are fairly more difficult to apply and the given set of instructions are needed to be followed. It is quite hard to apply the skin along the exact edges of the lid and 4-5 tries are needed to avoid air bubbles and rifts along the skin.

Dexpel: 7/10                                                              Laptopskins.pk: 9/10

Quality:

This was a very difficult criteria to judge. The skins from Laptopskins.pk were undoubtedly sturdier then the dexpel skin. It had a rugged feel to it, almost suggesting that the skin was impact resistant too, though that isn’t the case. But the Dexpel skin had a more premium feel to it, due to its glossy nature. But then I took note of something. The skins from Laptopskins.pk didn’t fully stick onto the laptop and left some gaps between the skin and the lid. The skin couldn’t fully stick onto the laptop on all sides. There were also rafts in the skin and we suspect it was due to the mishandling by the courier company. In comparison, the Dexpel skin did not have any gaps between the surface and the skin, suggesting a better quality of material used for the skin and sticking agent.

Dexpel: 9/10                                                              Laptopskins.pk: 8/10

Overall look and feel:

The skin by Laptopskins.pk was very vibrant in colors. The design which they had sent us gave us an idea of the excellent contrast of the skin. It made the laptop look aggressive due to the awesome design and apparent sturdiness of the skin. The skin was matte so the design was easily visible at all angles, along with giving a better impression of the colors on the skin. The same can’t be said about the feel of the skin though. The skin was somewhat rough, which made our hands sweaty when placed on the skin. The sweaty hands somewhat reduced our grip while handling the laptop, though it wasn’t so much as to make it a serious issue. The overall look and feel of the skin was very nice to say the least.

The skin by Dexpel was easily the best looking skin we had seen by far. The glossy skin gave the HP G62 a MacBook like premium feel. The skin just looked amazing from all angles. The colors were very vibrant and the image was very detailed. It perfectly fit the G62 and wasn’t cut off or in excess from any side. The black plastic of the G62 gave a perfect contrast with the reflective green laptop skin.  We also felt that this laptop skin was much smoother then the one by laptopskins.pk, and our hands remained sweat free while placing them on the skin.

This criteria depends entirely on preference. Both the skins have excellent vibrancy and definition of colors. The skin by Laptopskins.pk definitely looks more aggressive, which I feel would appeal more to the younger crowd. But the skins by Dexpel gave the laptop a premium feel, with its excellent design and fitting. It was according to me, the best looking skin I had yet seen on a laptop. Also, the overall feel of the Dexpel skin is much better.

Dexpel: 9.5/10                                                             Laptopskins.pk: 8.5/10

Scratch and water resistance:

For the scratch resistance test, we used a pin to make slight pressure scratches on the skin. This was because in daily use, these skins would be subject to slight wear over time. True to its claim, both Dexpel and Laptopskins.pk skins were scratch proof. There were no visible scratches on the surface of the laptop. But during the scratch tests, we did notice that the skin by laptopskins.pk tore to a certain extent due to its rough texture, while the Dexpel skin had still kept its original integrity due to its much smoother surface, though now with a few scratches.

For the water resistance test, we placed both the skins on 2 separate cardboard sheets. What we did then was spray both the skins with water and let it remain there for some time. Then, we removed the skins to check for any visible water marks. As expected, both the skins didn’t let any water seep through them and there were no visible watermarks on the cardboard sheet. However, once again, we did notice that the skin by Laptopskins.pk had spoiled due to the colors of the skin mixing with the water. In comparison, the Dexpel skin kept its original integrity and the colors remained intact.

Dexpel: 10/10                                                              Laptopskins.pk: 8/10

Residue:

We left the skins applied for 6 hours each. There was no residue left on the laptop whatsoever. The laptop suffered no visual damage when both the skins were removed.

Dexpel:10/10                                                               Laptopskins.pk:10/10

Final Score:

Dexpel:    63.5/70                                                        Laptopskins.pk:   57/70

Verdict:

The verdict isn’t an easy one. It was really hard to decide the better skin amongst both the skins, because frankly, this is a more subjective verdict and depends entirely on the taste of the consumer. We personally believe both the skins would appeal to different types of people, the Laptopskins.pk skin attracting the younger crowd due to the sturdiness, ease of application and aggressive nature of the skin while the Dexpel skin appealing to the more mature crowd due to their glossy finish, clean cut corners and premium feel. Dexpel wins the laptop skins review comparison, and therefore, is the best laptop skin manufacturer in Pakistan according to us. But that in no way means that Laptopskins.pk is an inferior company. As you can see above, most of the scoring cut from the Laptopskins.pk skin was due to the careless shipping, which is majorly a fault of the shipping company. A simple “Do not fold, handle with care” tag on the package would ensure a safe delivery to the recipient without causing damage to the skin. But till then, Dexpel leads the laptop skins market in Pakistan, with its quick and responsible delivery, flexible payment options and one of the best looking skins we have seen yet.