Popsocket: Nailed it or Failed it?
Marketing gimmick or not, these press-ons are surprisingly solid.
What’s in the Box?
In this sturdy little box you get the nails, two prep pads, a one-sided file, an orange wood stick, and a booklet with application tips.
I like to use the orange stick for nail removal but some people use it to push back their cuticles!
The Nails
These nails are short, squoval in shape (definitely more oval than square), have a glossy finish, and come with attached adhesive backing. There seem to be five different designs in the box but I’m gonna be honest, I didn’t count the designs in person and I’m relying on photos.
The Numbers
Although the box says there are 30 nails in total, I only counted 28. From thumb to pinky, I wore sizes 0, 6, 4, 7, and 10. Here’s a breakdown of how many nails of each size were in my kit!
Nail Size — Amount Included
0–2
1–2
2–2
3–2
4–2
5–2
6–2
7–4
8–2
9–4
10–2
11–2
Purchasing Experience
The whole ordering process from online order to delivery was super fast. I ordered these nails on the 15th and they arrived on the 20th!
I bought the nails+Popsocket bundle for $15 with $3.99 shipping. If you only wanted the nails, they would cost you $10 plus shipping.
Brand Details
Popsocket is a phone peripherals brand — they sell phone grips (the Popsockets), phone cases, wallets that stick on to your phone, mounts, and phone accessories. The nails show in their accessories section modeled with matching Popsockets!
Since nails aren’t Popsocket’s main type of product, their selection is pretty limited. All of their designs are short and squoval shaped and most have glossy finishes. (As of right now, there’s only one set with a matte finish.) They carry a range of styles from simple single-color to fully printed like the set I ordered.
I love when brands branch out and try novel new things so I was super excited to give these a shot!
The Wear Test
Let’s address the elephant in the room: my thumb/pointer finger nails and middle/ring finger nails were matched pairs. Generally when I’m building a manicure, I don’t like to have two identical nails next to each other unless they’re a very simple design. In an ideal world, I would have mixed up the order of the designs so that the matching nails weren’t next to each other.
I don’t know how Popsocket could fix this, however, as everyone’s nails are different sizes. If you get these nails, you may be able to wear more of a variety of designs than I did!
Designs aside, I was really happy with how sturdy these nails felt. The adhesive was strong and the nails were thick enough that they didn’t bend or twist. I wore these nails for four very stressful days and even though I fidgeted with them nonstop, they stayed in place.
When it comes to wear damage, these nails honestly wore pretty well. A pet peeve of mine is when the main body of a press-on is a pale color and the design printed on it is a dark, contrasting color. When nails like this wear down naturally, the pale free edge contrasts with the dark design and it just looks messy.
The print on these nails didn’t wear evenly at the tip and instead wore a bit jagged and uneven. There was even a slight textural difference where you could feel the printed layer end and the base nail begin. This was irritating and it took everything in me not to file it smooth.
The Verdict
If you want a Popsocket and you also like short, functional nails, these press-ons might be a fun thing to toss into your cart. There’s nothing wrong with these nails and structurally they were sound — they just didn’t really spark joy for me and I wouldn’t buy them again.
(I do really love the Popsocket that came bundled with the nails, though.)
