Acrylic or Glass mirror - pros and cons for each option

[Serge]

Hello guys, I am looking for best mirror for my MagicMirror project.

As of now there are two different option for mirrors: Acrylic of Glass mirror.
I will purchase online so no possibility to check personally each type.

My needs:

• mirror for bathroom (e.g. high humidity)
• reflection should be as light and clear as in regular mirror - this will the the only mirror in the bathroom.
• mirror size 600 (w) x 800 (h) mm.
• 21.5’ IPS is planned to be installed behind the mirror.

Could you tell me please the pros and cons for each type of mirror based on your own practical experience.
I want to choose the best one before the purchase took place.

[Serge]

Thanx to the info from other topic:

@ganget said in Best glass transparency for MagicMirror:

Maybe this link can help you with answering your question? It’s all about research i guess. :winking_face:

I realized that Acrylic two-way mirror not suitable for big size mirrors e.g. more than 600x600mm due to reflection distortion on big size.
Glass mirrors better suit big sizes magic mirrors.

[tcsabina]

Hi Serge,

I am also in the same struggle: Acrylic or glass for a bathroom.

I’ve read the article you have linked, but it is not mentioning exact sizes. Just small, medium and large. But yeah, define ‘medium’…
Where does this 600x600mm as max size for acrylic came from, if I may ask?

On top of this, this example is about a 1000x700mm mirror where acrylic was used. Not for bathroom, true, and you can see some distortion at the places where the mirror is attached to the frame. But I don’t see any issues with the edges, which, regarding the article, should be a problem for the acrylic.

So to summarize, I think I will got for a 500x700 borderless acrylic for my bathroom, as my first MM.

[boblazer]

I like glass. I had been using acrylic until @ejay-ibm suggested I give glass a go.

I haven’t actually got the reflective film on perfectly (yet, trying again tonight!) but so far glass seems like it is going to produce a nicer finish than acrylic.

Thin acrylic just won’t work. It’s too hard to get it perfectly flat so the reflection is distorted. Thick acrylic is better in that respect but it still scratches too easily. Glass is thinner than the thin acrylic. I think glass weighs about the same as the thin acrylic. Glass just seems better in every way except it will cut you.

Glass Pros:

• nicer finish
• thin
• light weight
• no warping
• cheaper than acrylic
• doesn’t scratch easily

Glass Cons:

• it will cut you

Acrylic Pros:

• it won’t cut you

Acrylic Cons:

• warps easily (sometimes it’s already warped at the store)
• scratches easily (sometimes it’s already scratched at the store)
• more expensive

But this is all with me doing it myself. I wouldn’t be surprised if you found a very nice, big, professional-looking piece of acrylic with the film already on it somewhere. But based on my experience glass does come out nicer and lighter.