You all know about how useful the Blackberry/Crackberry is. But what if it has problems?

What happens when you get scratches in the screen?

First, if you do, you're treading in very troubled waters. Why? Because if it has happened once, it's likely to happen again unless you change some usage/storage habits.

Second, if you have scratches, you're jeopardizing the usefulness of your tool. After all, the "tool" part is what sets the blackberry apart from all the other "toy" pda's out there.

If you have scratches in your blackberry you could begin to create a mental block to looking it. You might not even realize you're doing it but sub-consciously you might be dreading looking at the screen again because those scratches bother your brain. Eventually you'll stop using it because the scratches bother you too much.

So, how do you avoid it?

There are 2 ways:

1. Prevent them from happening.

2. Fix the scratches if they're already there.

Preventing Scratches

Preventing scratches is reasonably easy. Either use the belt carrying case or buy a screen protector. The belt case is pretty good for preventing scratches, but it's not guaranteed to do so. You could easily get a little sand in it and it would scratch it all over the place.

The screen protector is probably the best way to go here. For around $15 you can get a screen protector that will virtually eliminate scratches 100%.

Fixing Scratches

If you have scratches in your blackberry screen, you need to fix them asap. I wrote an article about removing scratches from a blackberry that will help you with the applesauce polish method.

Other methods include using toothpaste and a cotton swab. Basically you can put toothpaste on a cotton swab and rub it on your screen. Then use a wet cotton swab to clean the toothpaste off.

There are also two other products called CD 2000 and BRASSO that are rumored to work, but I personally haven't used them.

Whatever you try, make sure you do it soon. Those scratches can be lethal to your productivity.