Consumer Reports: iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus Not as Bendable as Believed

[Derpert]

It doesn't take being part of some "Apple religion" to be able to recognize a manufactured "scandal" when you see one. And this one had the odor on it almost immediately, and once the original video was proven to be selectively edited the jury was in. The Consumer Reports, Square Trade and other professional reports all backing up the structural integrity of the phones are icing on the proverbial cake. What we're getting sick and tired of here is certain "trolls" and such trying to keep it going after it has been debunked and they know it has.

Yea, but peoples expensive iPhone are bending in normal day-day use

 

[Max(IT)]

OK Mr. Nitpicker, then the iPhone 6 AND the HTC One (M8) are BOTH at the bottom of the list. You must be in marketing or in politics because people like you are excellent at twisting a meaning. See you could have said the iPhone 6 and the HTC are both at the bottom of the list, however, you didn't say that. So your response was factually incorrect based on the bottom of the list meaning the phones in the test that received the worst score.

So to be clear, the bottom of the list means the phones in the test with the worst score!

Maybe you didn't consider that Consumer Reports put the HTC One (M8) at the bottom to be courteous to Apple.

The test involved six, I say again SIX phones.... For a comparison is just a ridiculous number.
The test wasn't supposed to show a ranking between phones.
It was supposed to show that you can bend any phone, but the forces involved are much bigger than normal usage. Even if the iPhone 6 is weaker than others, it still is STRONG ENOUGH.

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The problems with most metals, and Aluminium in particular (thanks to rGiskard above) is that the 70/90lbs of force doesn't need to be applied all at once.

Metal is not flexible like plastic, however it is stronger. The problem is that the lack of flexibility leads to a result called metal fatigue. This process occurs when a given section is repeatedly subject to a similar force over time.

I suspect this is where the REAL bananagate will come from.

It may also be how some tricksters prepare the phone, by repeated micro-movements, causing metal fatigue and making the final push that much easier when it hits.

This is actually a worse problem if it is true, because it will hit most consumers well out of their 90 day grace period.

that has to be proved.
Metal fatigue on aluminum? I really doubt that...

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The antennas are external so there would be no inductive loop effect. In fact the the entire phone is banded by aluminum, so why doesn't that create an inductive loop?

Finally, what I'm suggesting isn't a continuous band around the phone, only continuous plates on each side of the phone. To my admittedly limited knowledge, that wouldn't create an inductive loop.

So you pretend to basically be smarter than a team of expert engineers?
What a wonderful place is the internet

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I am not necessarily against the iPhone 6, I do think Apple is an arrogant drink-the-cool aide kind of company (I will concede they have probably earned that “right” because of their success and innovations), but I admit that I am on my fourth iPhone (5s) and I love the iPhone.

I will add that I am starting to dislike, a tiny bit, that the base iPhone keeps getting larger and larger; since I am one who keeps my iPhone in my back pants pocket. OK sure, maybe I should not keep my iPhone in my back pants pocket, but it works for me. Anyway, I think the 5S is a good size and after sitting on my phone many times over the past year, I have yet to bend it. For me, the iPhone 6 is at the “max limit” for size as a pants pocket storage person.

My reluctance in moving to the iPhone 6 is the whole bendability issue. There is absolutely no doubt, based on the Consumer Reports test, the iPhone 5/5s is stronger than the iPhone 6 in a “bend from the back” test. However, for me the real question is the iPhone 6 strong enough for my everyday use and OK for someone like me who keeps their phone in their back pants pocket. Time will tell.

Actually CR told you exactly that: the phone is strong enough for everyday use.

 

[Keirasplace]

I'm an Apple user since 12 years. My first Apple product was a second generation iPod 20 GB I bought end of 2002, which I still have and btw is still working. I owned several other iPods, a PowerBook and a MacBook. I'm writing this on a MacBook Air now with my Apple keyboard. Besides the keyboard on my mousepad lies my Apple magic mouse. I had two iPhone 3G, one iPhone 3Gs and still today use my iPhone 4 (besides my iPad 3) which, because it seems has some "geriatric diseases" I plan to replace with a iPhone 6 soon.
But of course I must be an "Apple hater"... That I'm just an critical customer - not someone who defends everything blindly - who expects the company I like buying stuff from to build high quality products I don't have to worry about you can't imagine, can you?
But instead everyone here who dares to criticise apple is an "Apple hater", DroidFan" or "part of the paid army of Apple bashers"...
As rGiskard wrote, why not just acknowledge that there might be or that there is a problem? What's the big deal with that? Apple is just a company who usually builds great products, but sometimes also does mistakes. Apple is not an religion, but for some people here it sadly seems it is.

But, why would you ackowledge an issue when you don't have to? That almost sound like the "teach the controversy" thing about intelligent design. According to that everyone's opinion is exactly the same, layman and specialist. A guy filming a video under dubious circumstance is as credible as Apple, Consumer report.

Extraordinary claims do require some reliable source to back them up. That's the case in science too. Even if you claim some breakthrough in well defined experiemental circumstances; people just don't read your publication and says... Well, that's it then. No need for confirmation, lets just assume that this is true... In this case, the video is totally non scientific and contradicts other very simple scientific tests.

So, why on earth should we accept that this is true when there is no demonstration at all that it is a substantial issue in normal use and not an edge case.

 

[Max(IT)]

Thanks for clarification on that.

So this is indeed all a bunch of hogwash then yet.

The last I checked it was iPhone 6 Plus bent in pocket.

Then it soared to, "Look at me, I can take an iPhone 6 Plus and push on the back while pulling on the edges and SEE LOOK IT BROKE!"

Now it seems the conversation has devolved into the non-correlation between the iPhone bending in your pocket with no interference from anyone or anything and a mysterious 90lbs force that magically pushes on your phone to bend it meanwhile you don't feel a thing.

Haters are in full denial.
They are considering an idiotic stress test like pushing with two thumbs on a specific point of the frame while pulling both edges with two hands a representative of real life experience.
That's amazing.

 

[StyxMaker]

I almost always dropped my 5 and 5s with a case every time I got out of my car . Now I don't drop it because it's too big to sit in my lap and text and drive. So a case with a solid backing and beautiful features would be appreciated.

I'm sure every other driver on the road is grateful your new phone is stopping you from putting them all at risk.

 

[Snowy_River]

Two scientific studies that are flawed in that they're testing the middle of the phone and not the weak point. How does the public "lie" about bent phones when the process is video taped in public with multiple witnesses? Consumer Reports confirms the phone is a bit sturdy near the middle of the phone. I think we can all agree with that. However, they haven't really said anything about the weak point theory, which is the cause of the whole "bend gate" craze going on right now. What do scientific testing results do when they're not even addressing the problem?

Sigh.

Wouldn't it be nice if people actually understood physics? I could quite simply explain to you why testing in the middle is a completely valid means of testing the bend-ability. Does it cover everything? Of course not. But does it cover overall lateral structural stability? Absolutely. You can note that the bends that are visible both in the video and the photos show that the bend did occur at the volume buttons, as would be expected because the reduction in the structural support of the side wall there would make it a high stress point.

Now, does that mean that it's not possible to bend a phone (any phone) with less force than these tests showed, if you seek out the high stress point and apply your force there? No, it doesn't. But, if you want to do that, you have to seek out the high stress point on all the other phones, too. Watching the video that was posted in page one of this thread, the guy clearly places his thumbs right by the volume buttons on the iPhone, but when he pulls out the Motorola phone, he keeps his thumbs in the middle. THIS is a flawed comparison.

(I could make other comments about the questionable legitimacy of that video, but I don't really want to dig into that too deeply here.)

Long and short, I have to side with the experiments that are showing true scientific approach and results. Could more extensive studies be run? Absolutely. And, if anyone wanted to pay me to run them, I'd be more than happy to design and run a slew of experiments to test stress point bend results, even pressure bend results, and any other ideas I could come up with. But, failing that, I think that these preliminary tests are fairly strongly indicative of what the expected results of such tests would be...

(If you want to fund such s research project, please feel free to contact me...)

 

[Keirasplace]

Yea, but peoples expensive iPhone are bending in normal day-day use

So, where did you in fact get this "news"... Let me guess... Youtube or someone reporting on this youtube clip in other media, or even a friend who saw the videos... Do you have a reputable source to add to the mix?

If say 15 people in 20M phones have had this issue. The probability that these failed under normal use are in fact quite remote. Because if that would be the case,you'd already have tens of thousands of failures. Simple as that.

 

[Max(IT)]

You'll never put 70 to 90 lbs of force on any phone by carrying it around in your pocket...or by making phone calls.

That's the truth people are ignoring...

 

[Lankyman]

Explain 9 cases of bend phones on 10M sold.....??

As said previously "only someone in complete denial would claim otherwise".

Think about it - you are that person.

downloading music people hadn't asked for, launch of iPhone marred by reports of bent phones - (whether it's true or not is not the issue) and finally the iOS 8 update fiasco.

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That's the truth people are ignoring...

I don't think anyone has said they get bent by carrying them.

 

[Max(IT)]

It's all relative. Who cares if it's 'weaker than most phones' if it's strong enough for normal use. A Porsche is faster than a Kia but both are fast enough to lose your license.

Those youtube videos are crap. You can see peoples hands shaking due to the amount of force they're having to use. Smack anything hard enough and it will break.

I'm repeating that concept from days....

 

[yansun]

But, why would you ackowledge an issue when you don't have to? That almost sound like the "teach the controversy" thing about intelligent design. According to that everyone's opinion is exactly the same, layman and specialist. A guy filming a video under dubious circumstance is as credible as Apple, Consumer report.

Extraordinary claims do require some reliable source to back them up. That's the case in science too. Even if you claim some breakthrough in well defined experiemental circumstances; people just don't read your publication and says... Well, that's it then. No need for confirmation, lets just assume that this is true... In this case, the video is totally non scientific and contradicts other very simple scientific tests.

So, why on earth should we accept that this is true when there is no demonstration at all that it is a substantial issue in normal use and not an edge case.

Which video you are talking about? If you mean this Unbox Therapy guy video, I absolutely don't care about that and the whole media fuss around it.
What I'm interested in and what I'm concerned about are the actual iPhone owners who claim their phone bent. I quoted the user richardsonrs who claims his iPhone bent slightly in his pocket by the pressure applied on it there. See here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQxX_x3HTXQ and here https://forums.macrumors.com/posts/19935054/. How do you know it's impossible the phone bent like this? Because of the CR test? As other people mentioned here this test does not disprove that near the area of the assumed "weak spot" at the volume buttons (where the iPhone of richardsonrs and others bent) the phone might bend easier as the test results for the middle of the phone have shown. How do you know how much pressure it needs to bend the phone there? How do you know what forces are applied on the phone inside a jeans front pocket and how? So how do you know that under "normal use" and under certain circumstances the iPhone is not vulnerable to bending even slightly?

 

[biocide]

I returned my iphone back to Apple yesterday.

liar liar pants on fire! Hey if the iPhone isn't bendable (check the scientistic proof and all yo), how did you bend it in first place? huh? huh? Why are you silent now? -- believers of MR. Average age 13, collective IQ 70.

There's a lot of talk about "science" from the fanboys here. I've got two master's degrees under my belt, and I'm currently doing a social science PhD. And I've yet to come across anyone in my professional life who would base a scientific claim on such a thing as this video from consumer reports alone.

You know, you should really look up methodology terms like "measurement error" etc. Most scientists know that all experiments and surveys etc can be error-ridden. The best way of finding out what happens is always to try and find the brute facts - not ask people whether they voted in the last election for example, but rather look at the actual voting records in the record books of the state. In this case the brute facts is people's actual usage of the iPhone. If people keep on reporting problems, then it's reasonable to believe that the iPhone has a problem. It's as simple as that. Science and common sense.

 

[Max(IT)]

So people with bent iPhones are all "college kids" who don't know how to use the phone in the correct way? ...

Where are people with bent iPhones? There are more than 10 MILLIONS out there. Where are the crowd of furious customers?

 

[biocide]

liar liar pants on fire! Hey if the iPhone isn't bendable (check the scientistic proof and all yo), how did you bend it in first place? huh? huh? Why are you silent now? -- believers of MR. Average age 13, collective IQ 70.

I just realized this post might have been ironic.. Apologies and please disregard my previous post on this!

 

[calzon65]

Actually CR told you exactly that: the phone is strong enough for everyday use.

Apple, Consumer Reports, the YouTube pundits, posters in this forum (including myself), et al., are collectively just the start of the conversation. Several months of use by millions of customers will be the real test.

 

[cmaier]

There's a lot of talk about "science" from the fanboys here. I've got two master's degree under my belt, and I'm currently doing a social science PhD.

You have no idea how much this made me laugh.

 

[yansun]

Where are people with bent iPhones? There are more than 10 MILLIONS out there. Where are the crowd of furious customers?

I just was referring to one...

 

[Max(IT)]

The only bent phones you're going to see will have been done on purpose!

Maybe some will get bent from extreme situations unintentional, but very few!

Correct. Like people inadvertently sitting on their phone. It happens.

 

[yansun]

Apple, Consumer Reports, the YouTube pundits, posters in this forum (including myself), et al., are collectively just the start of the conversation. Several months of use by millions of customers will be the real test.

This.

 

[Autosaver]

Sigh.

Wouldn't it be nice if people actually understood physics? I could quite simply explain to you why testing in the middle is a completely valid means of testing the bend-ability.

...You're arguing over something no one is arguing about. Not only that, but you start out your post with an attack. Quite silly honestly.

It's not that the video can't be used to show off the iPhone's bendability, it's that the video can't be used to invalidate Unbox's video due to them testing completely different areas of the phone. You even said yourself there could be another test for the weak points. To claim that Unbox faked the video or that dozens of users in this very thread with bent phones are lying because the CR video said it's stable is quite silly.

 

[biocide]

You have no idea how much this made me laugh.

Glad to make you happy.

 

[Max(IT)]

No it's the second time this phone has bent. I bent it back the first time. Going to let them deal with it now.

So basically it's your fault.
But the good news is they are probably going to give you a new one, thanks to this drama

 

[Yojimbo007]

The undignified tactics of the competition and their paid army of bashers are still on a roll. wow

Lol..

There is absolutely ..and i repeat absolutely nothing wrong with either iPhone 6 or 6 +

They are perfectly strong for a SANE individual.. And meet all strength requirements and then some !

FACTS:
-iPhone 6 and 6+ have been awarded best in class and least likely to break phones by independent agencies. FACT!!!
-Consumer reports has varified that the bending issue is bogus!
-The Canadian idiots video ( who out of the goodness of his heart has blown 4000+ dollors in 48 hours to bend phones ..lol) has been proven to be fake and doctored.
(And ya he spent that money out of his pocket.. Lol)
-Apple has exposed their testing to the media and it is an incredible exhaustive process of testing !
-Competition has been left in the dust by the new iphone design.
-Best in class, thinnest, lighthes true 64 bit processor and os .. Leaps and bounds ahead of competition.

It is the competition spreading disinformation and fud! The same disgraceful competition that copied the iPhone and the iOS .

Now they are scared .. Really scared of the tremendous positive response to the new iphones..
They can't compete so they are spreading Fud.. Absolutely pathetic.
( another funny fact!... All those competition's PR people who immediately jumped on the bandwagon to degrade and mock apple through tweets... Were tweeting from iphones ... Lol)

All of you who are victims of these trolls... Please do yourself a favor and go to an apple store and see it for yourself !

A Phone only needs to be as strong as a phone needs to be.. Overkill is a waste.
Or why dont we make phones out of concrete and steel.. Hey it will take even more load to bend them.. And they will be cheaper !

Bs has limits
Being undignified is being pushed to newer lows...
There are so many things wrong with the claims if the completion that it is ridiculous .they have created a bogus story and are pushing it into publics mind as reality ....


Given all the above ... Some of you are still falling for the Fud spread by the lowlife competition.
Dont be so naive and dont feed the evil approach of the lowlives .

Again do yourselves a favor and go to an apple store!
The truth is there for u to see.. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the new iPhones.. Nothing !!! .
The rest is bull!

Ps .. Dont u wonder why there is so much passionate hate for apple on this thread? Have asked yourself why? And who is fueling it?
Its so obvious ...and those who fall for it are empowering the undignified ! And u know who they are!

Reminder to the newcomer!

 

[Crosscreek]

I have no doubt anymore about the quality of build anymore. I don't think there is too much more to be said or demonstrated.

 

[cmaier]

Glad to make you happy.

Reminded me of a time at work when I overheard one engineer arguing with another. The first engineer says "well, I have a Ph.D. to back up MY opinion."

It sounded so ludicrous that I swore right then I'd never mention any of my advanced degrees to try and win an argument.