Beginner
Intermediate
AdvancedOkay, so the Playstation 3 is pretty schmick with its style and design. Unfortunately there’s a problem: if you put scratches or fingerprints on that piano-black gloss you’re going to notice it. The once beautiful finish is now marred. So what can you do to protect your console but also make it look great? Slap a “skin” on it!
Personalise and protect
Decalgirl skins are flexible, adhesive-backed vinyl pieces pre-cut to fit your game console. It works kind of like a sticker sheet where you peel off various pieces and stick them down on the corresponding areas of your console and controller. They use good quality “cast vinyl” which won’t fade or shrink for more than five years. On top of the print design is a glossy clear coating to increase strength and protection.
The adhesive backing is made of a very interesting textured material. The material assists with applying the skin–if you need to realign a piece you can peel it off easily without leaving any sticky goo. It also helps make is easy to press out any air bubbles.
Applying the skin is fairly straight-forward but does require some care and patience. The most difficult piece to apply is the largest one which covers the majority of the PS3, where it is necessary to ensure things are lined up correctly.
One drawback I discovered is due to the PS3′s touch-sensitive power and eject buttons. When the skin piece is covering this section of the console, the buttons tend to not respond very well. This may be temperature related or perhaps the skin is just slightly too thick for the buttons to register. In the end I just removed the skin piece that covered the buttons.
Our rating
The print and construction quality of the Decalgirl PS3 skin is excellent. Your PS3 will look unique and be free from smudges. It can be fiddly to apply but the clever adhesive certainly helps if adjustments need to be made.
4 / 5
Get your own skin
Head over to the Decalgirl website and browse their PS3 console skins. They have heaps to choose from!
Have you skinned your PS3? Send us a photo (flame@ps3explained.com) or show everyone here in the comments!
Just order mine. Could not help it. O_o
All…if your thinking of getting your console SKINNED go to DECALGIRL…..i just got my order and it took 4 days to get to the UK.
Cant wait to put it on my PS3. O_o
That’s great, Lv3saiyan.
Which design did you get?
The one that you shown above. I think that one was cool. So had to get it.
Thinking of doing my other consoles soon as well. O_o
They look nice! i used to sell something like this for the ps1 years ago, didn’t think people would use them on the ps3 but the designs are great, im going to have to get some in!
whats the postage like for decalgirl sending to the uk? i dont know whether to buy a decalgirl one or one from a uk company
matt777: If you add items to the Decalgirl shopping cart and then “checkout” you will be able to see the postage rates (and don’t need to confirm the purchase). Looks like it’s US$11.90 postage to UK.
Hey matt777 – i say just buy it, they delivery really fast as well.
It will make your console look so cool.
What about removing the skin from the PS3? Does it leave any marks or glue on the case? (thinking about reselling it)
I was thinking about buying one, but dont know. If it is just a simple sticker, it will be hard to remove, and probably leave some marks. Any help here?
Hi Dude and Chris. As I say in the review, the vinyl backing is cleverly designed to stick well (see the 4th photo which shows the textured backing) but also be easy to remove. I don’t know what adhesive is used but it didn’t leave any residue or marks in my testing.
i got my psp done by wrapstar skins, they do some good one for psp users =], how much roughly do they cost in english moeny (£)
do they make them for the slimline ps3′s with a union jack pic??????????
Their PS3 Slim skins are here: http://www.decalgirl.com/category.view/406
Doesn’t look like there is a union jack one.