A MacBook is a masterpiece, but this does not mean that you cannot improve it with a cool touch. Stickers offer a way of decorating and personalizing your device, and most MacBook owners are adopting this option on their devices. However, if you intend to resell your device in the future, a common concern will be whether stickers on your MacBook will ruin it.
So, do stickers ruin the MacBook? Applying stickers to your MacBook directly is not a good idea, as it may ruin your MacBook. While the stickers make your device attractive, they are repulsive during removal and can devalue or damage your device. The damage will occur when you scratch your MacBook’s surface or use a strong solvent to remove the residue. Knowing how to attach and remove the stickers without damaging your device is necessary to avoid such damage.
To ensure you express your personality without compromising your device’s value, you may be on the market for a good laptop sticker.
If you want to vocalize your personality or just improve the appearance of your MacBook, you can use stickers. Stickers offer a convenient way to capture your brand, faith, and relationships, but the aftermath may not be friendly on MacBook. Read on to know if stickers ruin MacBook and how to prevent the damages, in case of any.
While stickers will make your MacBook attractive, they will likely ruin it during removal. As you scratch the sticker from your device or use a solvent to remove it, you will leave marks that lower your MacBook’s value. Hence, you should know the best way to decorate and remove decorative stickers from your device.
One of the ways you can avoid ruining your MacBook with stickers is by avoiding direct application. Direct application damages your device courtesy of the adhesive residue and sticker silhouettes.
The adhesive residue, which is the greasy glue that remains on your MacBook after removing the sticker, is not only unattractive but also difficult to remove. If you have the sticker on your device for so long, the residue will be worse, hence inadvisable to leave some types of stickers on for too long.
On the other hand, sticker silhouettes may not leave residue, but the sticker designs will imprint on your device. Since stickers also serve a protective purpose, the surface around the sticker silhouettes will appear faded, affecting the overall aesthetics. Unfortunately, while you can clean the greasy residue from adhesive, the marks left by sticker silhouettes are permanent.
Luckily, there is a safe way to decorate your MacBook with stickers and avoid residues. To enjoy stickers on your device, consider attaching them to a Snap-On case. A Snap-On case is a plastic cover for the MacBook’s base and lid.
With this option, you can always remove the case and your MacBook will still be as good as new. Another option is to laminate your MacBook first or use a Protector. By taking off the clean film of the protector or laminator, you will not affect your device’s surface.
However, the Snap-On case remains the best option, as they do not stick on your MacBook’s surface. Also, you can reuse the stickers on your Snap-on case long after doing away with them, as they will still be in position on the case. Using high-quality stickers is also ideal to avoid damaging your MacBook. High-quality stickers feature less adhesive and will less likely leave a residue when you remove them.
Do Stickers Come Off MacBook Easily?
Laptops and MacBooks are among the devices covered by the most stickers. Most people put decorative stickers on their devices to personalize them. Over time, you may want to remove your sticker to resell your device. In this case, you should remove the decorative stickers but remain with the serial number sticker, warranty seal, and license key necessary for servicing the device in the future. Read on to know whether MacBooks are an exception when it comes to removing stickers.
Generally, stickers do not come off MacBooks easily, and options to remove them include scraping, wiping, abrasives, solvents, heat guns, hair dryers and using water. Care must be taken using these methods are they may invalidate the warranty of the MacBook.
You should be wise with your solvent choice, as some residues may need more than one solvent. Luckily, MacBook resists most solvents courtesy of its aluminum casing. Still, you should be cautious with mechanical methods such as scraping and scrubbing, which may void your warranty.
Generally, Apple advises against using solvents to clean their devices or remove stickers. They are also against abrasives, paper towels, and liquids. As such, you should be careful with your options when removing stickers from your MacBook, as Apple will not cover damages to your device from using prohibited products.
Water can remove stickers on your device, but it will not do a clean job, especially if you have many stickers. As such, use other options, including scraping, wiping, abrasives, solvents, heat guns, and hair dryers.
It is advisable to stick to popular products such as Liquid Sticker Remover and Goo Gone rather than trying new ones that may cause adverse reactions when it comes to solvents and abrasives.
Whichever option you pick, you should exercise certain precautions during use. For instance, avoid direct application or spraying the liquid on your device. Instead, use a clean microfiber cloth in the application.
You should also allow the products to infuse and use the time to work on the sticker, then remove them gently using a dry microfiber cloth. During removal, be patient and avoid extreme pressure, which may stress and damage your device’s casing.
Scraping off stickers from your MacBook is ideal if the sticker has been there for less than a year. Doing this enables you to peel off the sticker without damaging your device. The residue, in this case, will also be minimum, removable with a mild solvent. Start by peeling off the sticker from one of the corners using your fingernails until you lift the label off your MacBook’s surface.
If you have very short nails, you can use your credit card or putty knife. However, be careful with the latter and ensure you do not scratch your device. It will help if you also peel slowly until the sticker is completely off your device. Peeling your device fast is likely to leave a residue. If your sticker comes out clean, you are good to go. However, if it leaves a residue, your next focus will be removing it.
To remove the residue from your MacBook, start by disconnecting it from any power source if you had not previously. Removing your battery at this point is also advisable. Using a microfiber cloth dipped in hot water, scrub the residue in a firm and circular motions. If the area is still sticky, you can dip the microfiber cloth in the water, and this time, add a drop of mild soap dish, then clean the area. When done, use a dry cloth to wipe the surface.
Mild abrasives such as toothpaste and magic erasers will also come in handy in removing stickers from your MacBook. To do this, apply the abrasive to the sticker before peeling them. You can also rub the abrasive with a damp microfiber cloth on your uncoated stickers. This action will wear the stickers off and remove the glue underneath. While using abrasives, be cautious since very strong abrasives or excessive rubbing will damage the underlying surface.
Solvents such as mineral spirits can also remove sticker glue, making it easy to peel them from your MacBook. Start by applying your choice solvent to a microfiber cloth and wet the sticker’s edges. Afterward, leave the solvent untouched for some minutes to act on the sticker, then scrape it off.
Lastly, for a neat removal of the stickers, use hair dryers and heat guns. This option requires you to be careful with the heat settings lest you damage your device. You should stick to 30 to 45 seconds of heat exposure to the sticker, and if your heat gun or hair dryer emits more heat, reduce this duration significantly. Afterward, you can peel off the sticker with little or no residue.
Is It Bad To Put Stickers on a Laptop?
It is up to you to put or not to put stickers on your laptop. If you prefer being classy, stickers are probably on your to-do list for the next laptop you buy. Before you can start decorating your laptop with many stickers, you should understand the short and long-term implications of these decorations on your device.
There is no proven fact that a sticker is bad and risky to your laptop. Even then, you should avoid stickers with strong adhesives, as they will ruin your device during removal. Hence, as long as you put the right type of stickers in the right places, stickers are okay to have, and you can remove them when you no longer need them.
Before I dive into the type of stickers and their appropriate spots on your laptop, it is better to understand your laptop’s make. Generally, the outer shell of older laptop models is plastic, but some are metal versions containing aluminum and steel.
On the other hand, a sticker can be made of paper, plastic, and vinyl on one side and adhesive on the other. The adhesive comes with a protected waxed paper that you will usually remove before attaching it to your laptop.
There are many types of stickers on the market today, and the small ones are called Decals, while the bigger ones are called Laptop skins. As the name suggests, laptop skins will cover your laptop’s entire body, protecting it from scratches. Decals serve as decorative pieces given their small sizes and variety.
The adhesive in either option is typical glue, and the concern on which is good or bad narrows down to whether it is a paper or a plastic sticker. Paper plastics do not easily come out, and when you force them out, they will leave residue engrossed on the laptop’s surface. Therefore, plastic stickers are only ideal for plastic cases and aluminum laptops. Besides their shiny appearance and durability, you can peel these stickers off these surfaces easily.
With the above in mind, your next focus should be the best place to put your stickers. When placing stickers on your laptop, you should understand that stickers serve aesthetic and protection purposes. Ideally, you should put stickers at the back end of your device or the top clamshell.
This will ensure effective adherence without blocking the keyboard, screen, camera, and other essential features. Other spots where you can put stickers include the trackpad located under the keyboard. For aesthetic purposes, use stickers to replace the brand logos and other items. However, you should avoid stickers on speaker holes and ventilation grills on your laptop.
When you are tired of the stickers and want to remove them, you will need to factor in the differences in adhesives. Paper stickers will give you a tough time to remove, requiring a glue remover to do the job.
In this case, consider high-quality products such as Goo Gone for the best results. For the vinyl and plastic stickers, try to remove as much of the sticker as you can with one pull, using your fingernails or a spiky tool. If you are using a spiky tool, be careful not to scratch your device, and if successful at this, you are good to go.
In case of residue left behind, you will use other methods to dislodge these pieces. Even then, avoid too much force when rubbing the solvents lest you damage your laptop’s surface and compromise on its sale value.
Wrap Up
Stickers on laptops, MacBooks, or phones are an expression of personality. In addition, stickers offer aesthetic and decorative purposes depending on the type you use. Decals are small stickers, hence decorative, covering small parts of your device, while laptop skins are bigger and mostly offer protection.
Putting stickers on your MacBook is both a bad and good idea depending on the method you use. Applying the sticker directly on your device will cause problems during removal and compromise your device’s quality, reducing the resale value.
This is the same scenario with laptops, which is why you should consider high-quality stickers or put a protector below the sticker. With MacBook, consider putting stickers on the device’s casing rather than directly.
Finally, since Apple’s warranty does not cover the damages from removing stickers on your device, stick to mild solvents and abrasives, and avoid scratching your device when removing the stickers.
