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Class Action Lawsuit Filed Over iPhone 4 Glass Breakage

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Apr 12, 2001
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LA Weekly reports (via The Next Web) that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Apple over the iPhone 4 and its claimed propensity for breakage. The lawsuit feeds off the "Glassgate" publicity that has seen the iPhone 4 judged to be more accident-prone than other smartphones due to Apple's use of glass on both the front and back of the device.
Apparently fed up and pissed off, California resident Donald LeBuhn filed a class action lawsuit earlier this week in L.A. County against Apple, claiming the company knows about the design flaw and refuses to warn consumers that "normal" use leads essentially to a broken phone.

According to his lawsuit, first reported by Courthouse News Service, LeBuhn threw down $252 in September for a new iPhone 4, but three weeks later the glass broke when his daughter accidentally dropped it approximately three feet to the ground while sending a text message.

He previously owned a 3GS version of the iPhone and claims the glass did not break when accidentally dropped from similar heights.
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In his filing, LeBuhn cites Apple marketing materials for the iPhone 4, which claim that the "ultradurable" glass used in the iPhone 4 is "20 times stiffer and 30 times harder than plastic". According to LeBuhn, these claims are misleading at best, and his suit seeks full refunds for customers covered by the class action suit and reimbursement for any repairs made.

Article Link: Class Action Lawsuit Filed Over iPhone 4 Glass Breakage
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2011/01/28/class-action-lawsuit-filed-over-iphone-4-glass-breakage/
Awesome....

Great, we'll all get $1.25 and some lawyer will get $100,000.... what a great waste of time, energy and money. I've dropped my IP4 a couple of times, no breakage.
 
I've dropped my iPhone 4 from a number of heights accidentally. Sometimes over a metre onto a very hard surface. And theres still no damage to it. Ok, a few scratches if you hold it under a quite bright light. But nothing that you'd ever see. It still looks pretty shiny, way more than my 3G did.

There might be some truth to this? But I doubt it.
 
"Apparently fed up and pissed off, California resident Donald LeBuhn filed a class action lawsuit"

Huh? My impression is the reason for class action lawsuits is for the originator and lawyers to make a lot of money. If he wanted to fix thins there are better ways.
 
Does he think Apple has engineering some sort of magical glass that won't shatter? Apple says their glass is strong and scratch resistant, but some on, does he expect any phone's glass to not smash when dropped?

He's dropped his 3G more than once (similar heights, not similar height), his daughter's dropped her phone.

Maybe they should work on holding the phone so they don't drop it, or buy a case, because they seem pretty clumsy to me.
 
Tbh he bought a phone he knew had glass on both sides, and complains if it might break easier.

I have dropped mine countless times and no breaks though.. Fingers crossed.
 
You know, that's super dumb. Anyone with any science degree knows that anything that is stiffer and harder is more brittle. Apple's claim is absolutely valid in that it wont scratch, it just didn't say that the tradeoff is more brittle. come on, glass on concrete = shatter. Duh.
 
Kilamite said:
Does he think Apple has engineering some sort of magical glass that won't shatter? Apple says their glass is strong and scratch resistant, but some on, does he expect any phone's glass to not smash when dropped?

He's dropped his 3G more than once (similar heights, not similar height), his daughter's dropped her phone.

Maybe they should work on holding the phone so they don't drop it, or buy a case, because they seem pretty clumsy to me.
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no, but maybe he thinks apple shouldnt make an iphone whose front and back are made of glass? which makes total sense.
 
On the one hand, if the guy was simply suing because his phone broke after he dropped it, it would be ridiculous. On the other, you do have to admit how the claims of "30x harder and 20x stiffer than plastic" could easily be interpreted to mean that the glass is 20x or 30x less prone to cracking than plastic when dropped, and if you had an all-plastic phone it probably wouldn't break with a 3-foot drop.
 
Normal usage here along with a 2 year old using it....no scratches. You can't build anything idiot proof, there will always be bigger idiots.
 
In apples defense it doesn't say its tougher.

That being said it does seem iphone 4s break easier and are harder to repair when the front glass breaks compared to 3g/3gs
 
"the claims are misleading"

Of course they are misleading - it is advertising. Just because it is stiffer and stronger than plastic doesn't guarantee invincibility.
 
someone wants to get money from apple so that he can afford the iphone5 /which is made out of a single piece of security glass. the glass unibody :D
 
Did he hit his daughter for breaking his iPhone?

Oh wait it's never the child's fault.

What if she dropped it into the toilet, would he still suing Apple because the iPhone is not water proof.
 
They should settle the case by sending him some of those little bumpers.

...and maybe a full-body condom to keep him safe from the rest of life in general.
 
I've seen iPhone4+bumbler survive some falls that have amazed me.

I've knocked them off the table onto hard title floor a couple times.

I've even once saw one tossed, the catch was missed, it took a 5 foot drop onto tile. It was fine. I couldn't believe it.
 
canucksfan88 said:
no, but maybe he thinks apple shouldnt make an iphone whose front and back are made of glass? which makes total sense.
Click to expand...

Well, if he already thinks it is a bad idea, why did he buy it? No one forced him to buy it, he could have gone with another phone if he thought that it was a bad idea to make it out of glass.

Now, where he is *actually* having a contention (cause his argument is way better than yours when we're talking actually having a case in court) is that he says their claims that the glass is stronger and better than plastic are untrue. He's claiming they made false claims as to the glass being more durable (when it is not).

I have no idea or not whether he will win on that front (depends on his lawyers and Apple's lawyers cause that is kind of subjective. Who ever has a better argument on whether Apple had misleading claims or not will win).
 
Can I create a class action lawsuit against people like this guy? Its people like this who hold back innovation and make more fine print in the already over lawyerized world. I hope the judge throws out this case, and I hope through some sort of loophole, apple turns around and sues him. :D
 
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