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lewisd25

macrumors 6502a
Jul 6, 2007
851
591
Who cares about impact tests? Just hold onto your phone and don't drop it. People act like it's rocket science. JUST HOLD ONTO IT!! :rolleyes:

Go to any college campus and see how many future rocket scientists have cracked iPhone screens...it's truly shocking.
 

PFKMan23

macrumors regular
Jan 12, 2012
194
46
Interesting and good data point to start uncovering the realities of a sapphire display. Either way I would have gotten a case *shrug*
 

pwhitehead

macrumors 6502
Jul 19, 2011
342
100
new jersey
Personally I'd rather have it be more scratch resistant than impact resistant. I'm also going to have a case on my phone, which should help in drops, but the screen will always be susceptible to scratches unless you throw on an annoying screen shield.

I agree 100% with you. It would be nice to be able to place the iphone in my pocket with car keys or a cigarette lighter, not having to worry about it being scratched.

I don't like having a large outter box on my phone while I'm in the office because it feels weird and doesn't go well with business clothes.
 

iPhysicist

macrumors 65816
Nov 9, 2009
1,343
1,004
Dresden
Maybe these technicians are right. They must be way smarter than scientists and engineers - thats why they are technicians.
 

Rogifan

macrumors Penryn
Nov 14, 2011
24,122
31,153
I'm not sure how this applies to Apple since 1)we don't know for certain what Apple's plans are with sapphire and 2)if Apple is using it for iPhone displays we have no idea what their engineering/manufacturing process is so this test may not even be comparing apples to apples (pardon the pun).
 

taptic

macrumors 65816
Dec 5, 2012
1,341
437
California
They didn't mention the fact that it will probably be able to bend quite far because of other materials layered in with it...
 

DaffyDuck

macrumors 6502
Jun 18, 2007
472
3
Most top end watches are made from saphire and they almost never smash

This is because the material used in watches is thicker and with a smaller surface area. Those can make a huge difference when it comes to actual performance.
 

HobeSoundDarryl

macrumors G5
How will the rumoured iWatch face hold up if I'm wearing it during sports and it takes a knock?

The following sums it up exactly right...

Yes, as they have a ton of metal around them, the Glass is often below the surface of the surround, it's a far far smaller piece of glass, and the glass it probably a lot thicker than the thinness of a phone screen.

A big rectangle of sapphire in a "thinnest" possible case gives up the "ton of metal around them", "smaller" and being "a lot thicker" in a phone. I have a watch with a Sapphire screen and it measures less than 1.5" across. That's a big hop from 1.5" to 4.7" and 5.5".

Apple has patents on tempering sapphire, chemically and with lasers, which would make it much more impact resistant and less brittle. They are testing with regular sapphire. That would be a fair test if they compared it with regular glass instead of GG.

Oh brother. :rolleyes: But we'll all hope this is true. I've never heard of any kind of Sapphire treatment that makes it substantially less brittle. The very thing about it that makes it harder to scratch than GG is what makes it more brittle in an impact. If Apple switched to Diamond, it would be even more scratch resistant and even more brittle on impact.

I'm willing to bet that if Apple is investing over $500M in GT Advanced for sapphire, they have a plan to make it durable enough to survive a 3-foot drop. It doesn't matter how scratch resistant your screen is if it's shattered lol.

Or, Apple sees how much profit is being made by third parties selling generic replacement screens and realizes that selling parts only available from Apple can be a lucrative way to grow profit per unit sold. Personally, I suspect Sapphire is much more about this than anything else but will be happy to be proven wrong if Apple's "tempering", "chemically" and "lasers" have yielded some kind of previously unknown breakthrough that brings more impact resistance (than GG).

What I do know: we're going to be shocked at the increase in screen replacement costs for cracked screens… unless- maybe- the third party market can offer replacements made of GG.

iPhone 4S: 3 years without cover, 0 scratches on the screen.

Exactly. And I don't think that's even remotely unusual. Sure there will be a few who have suffered a scratch but I suspect the vast majority have not. If true, this is a relatively expensive solution in search of a tangible problem.

It doesn't even have the usual punch of impressing our friends as all they'll see is one transparent rectangle in place of another. To demonstrate scratch resistance, you endanger your expensive new iPhone in each demo, so this will really have to be a lip service benefit, meaning something to verbally tout at best. They won't be able to see any difference.
 
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Max_Walker

macrumors member
Dec 8, 2002
58
2
Reality Drops

Unfortunately the real world comprises of paths that are not clean and free from loose grit and stones therefore dropping a screen onto the face of the device is likely to result in an extreme point loading somewhere on the screen face.

Watches fair better because the surface is a lot smaller and more likely escape an extreme point loading.
 

iSee

macrumors 68040
Oct 25, 2004
3,539
272
I have no idea, but I have a feeling that not all sapphire glass screens are the same and an Apple's sapphire screen may be very different than a Kyocera one.
 

JaySoul

macrumors 68030
Jan 30, 2008
2,629
2,865
Forgive me but surely a high-end watch with a sapphire screen isn't full of electronics, chips, circuit-boards, Bluetooth capability, a touch screen digitizer etc etc etc....

It's like comparing a bike to a space shuttle.
 

freediverx

macrumors 65816
Feb 19, 2006
1,009
1,022
Interesting - sapphire shattering from a 3 foot drop.

How will the rumoured iWatch face hold up if I'm wearing it during sports and it takes a knock?

Nobody knows because whoever did these videos didn't have an Apple screen to test. Apple has numerous patents on manufacturing and treating sapphire glass which could very well enhance its strength and impact resistance. Do you think they would invest millions into a new material if it were less durable than what they're currently using?
 

latts

macrumors regular
Apr 18, 2008
167
103
Yes, as they have a ton of metal around them, the Glass is often below the surface of the surround, it's a far far smaller piece of glass, and the glass it probably a lot thicker than the thinness of a phone screen.

Er no, the glass is domed on most high end watches above the bezel to slightly magnify and give a better viewing angle.
 

Tankmaze

macrumors 68000
Mar 7, 2012
1,707
351
So it comes down to :
scratch resistant but brittle (sapphire)
Vs
No scratch resistant but "bendy" (glass)

I'll choose the latter, I have always put screen protector anyway. And most likely my phone would drop accidentally. Not looking good for sapphire, unless apple construct the iphone body to handle / absorb the drop impact.
 

HobeSoundDarryl

macrumors G5
Er no, the glass is domed on most high end watches above the bezel to slightly magnify and give a better viewing angle.

um No. There are a few models that are domed but "most" are as Piggie says… for the very reasons Piggie implies. If the Sapphire extrudes so that it is taking the impacts directly and if it is reasonably thin (as it most certainly will be in these iPhones), it would be quick to crack or shatter. I've been in the jewelry business and the watches that use Sapphire tend to be built so that only a direct, head-on impact by something pointy (like a pole) can hit the Sapphire (and such an impact is highly unlikely when the watch is strapped to an arm of a creature that has quick reflexes and some inherent skills at avoiding head-on impacts with poles). All other angles are somewhat shielded by a metal rim that rises above the surface of the Sapphire.
 
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subjonas

macrumors 603
Feb 10, 2014
5,537
5,856
Personally I'd rather have it be more scratch resistant than impact resistant. I'm also going to have a case on my phone, which should help in drops, but the screen will always be susceptible to scratches unless you throw on an annoying screen shield.

I have to ask, have you actually had a problem of scratches on your iphone screen? I've never had a scratch on my iphone nor have I met anyone who has. But I've met of tons of people who shattered their screens.


Who cares about impact tests? Just hold onto your phone and don't drop it. People act like it's rocket science. JUST HOLD ONTO IT!! :rolleyes:

So basically, never make a stupid mistake... ?


Apple has patents on tempering sapphire, chemically and with lasers, which would make it much more impact resistant and less brittle. They are testing with regular sapphire. That would be a fair test if they compared it with regular glass instead of GG.

True, but for me, unless they make it JUST as impact resistant as GG or MORE, GG still wins out because impact resistance is the only thing I care about. The only benefit of sapphire seems to be scratch resistance which is a complete non-issue for me.
 

D-Dave

macrumors 6502
Mar 16, 2010
332
59
I agree 100% with you. It would be nice to be able to place the iphone in my pocket with car keys or a cigarette lighter, not having to worry about it being scratched.

I don't like having a large outter box on my phone while I'm in the office because it feels weird and doesn't go well with business clothes.

Not with you fellas on this one. My iPhone 5 is now two years old, has not seen a cover (apart from a bookbook with credit card / drivers license slot for the occasional night out) and usualy shares the pocket with keys, some coins and (until last august) the mentioned lighter there are some scratches on the back and on the sides....but the screen/glass does not have a single scratch...on the other hand, I did drop it a few times and it came out fine.

Lets hope Apple finds a good balance for whatever they are doing with all that sapphire...I realy want to like the iP6 and would hate some stupid "Screengate"...
 

icing

macrumors member
Nov 24, 2009
46
0
A watch is very unlikely to be dropped, but very likely to be scratched. Which is why sapphire is such a great fit for a watch.

I think Apple will cover the iWatch completely in sapphire glass to make it virtually unscathable. It will be to regular watches what the iPhone 4 was to phones (only better). An unprecedented finish for a consumer grade product.

At least that's what I'm hoping for... and it would make sense.

And I think they'll actually call it iWatch for the same reason they called it iPhone. It helps everyone understand what it actually is and makes the technology more accessible.
 

critter13

macrumors 6502
Aug 23, 2010
374
477
not all created equal

I think it is important to remember that there are many different types and implementations of sapphire. Just like glass. Gorilla Glass is far different from the type of glass used in other applications. I think until we get a real example of what GT will be producing for apple we won't know its true strengths/weaknesses.

I have a hard time believing that apple would dump this much money into a material that won't be better than the industry standard.
 

JGRE

macrumors 65816
Oct 10, 2011
1,012
664
Dutch Mountains
Interesting - sapphire shattering from a 3 foot drop.

How will the rumoured iWatch face hold up if I'm wearing it during sports and it takes a knock?

I have a watch with sapphire glass, use it every day for seven years now. There are scratches on the case and the metal band, but the glass is still spotless as it was when I bought it. Mind, the glass is not synthetic but natural sapphire. As the glass is contained in bezel, it has resist drops, however this is not sapphire's strong point. It think the shatter resistance depends on the bezel and the size of the glass
 
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