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Corning could have been bought for $15 billion in January of 2013.

Think that would have given Apple more than Beats?
 
It does not matter how tough the glass is made or what it is made of. If it is mistreated, it is going to get scratched. If you put a screen protector on it, you have a better chance of it not scratching. Yes I know, some do not like protectors and some will say they get scratched to easily. But better than the actual phone screen itself.

Zagg and Spigen both make pretty good glass screen protectors that work well and look decent. It will be a long time if ever something is made that is truly scratch resistant or proof.
 
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Glass vs Sapphire

There was report not long ago about how it was now possible to create sapphire that would allow a lot more light through an not require a bright backlight and thereby reducing battery consumption and increasing battery life.

Yes but I think the "reduction" and "increase" were both relative to a "normal" sapphire screen not vs. a glass screen. In other words, I don't think it meant that it would outdo glass screens, only outdo regular sapphire. And of course, all such positives were still ignoring how sapphire- while more scratch resistant than glass- is more brittle than glass. Not many had a scratching problem with their iPhones but plenty had shatter problems. Sapphire was not going to solve the latter.

If this GG4 is even more scratch resistant while hanging on to a similar resiliency against shattering, that's GREAT for all of us. Besides that benefit for everyone, should you manage to shatter a future product, a pane of glass will be much less costly to replace than a pane of sapphire.
 
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I really want a sapphire iPhone so I can tell everyone I have one of the hardest things on earth in my pocket.


...and then in two years I buy a new one.
 
You raise a valid point. I question the ferocity of the gorillas with which Corning test their Gorilla Glass.

And what does Gorilla Glass 4 even mean ? Does that mean the glass is resistant to 4 meek gorillas ??!?!?!? What the hell is that in the real world ?? :(

Not sure if serious....
 
Was there a reason why Apple turned away from Gorilla Glass the first time? If it was a business decision, it doesn't seem like Apple would go back into bed with them again.
 
isn't the point of sapphire not only for durability, but for the improved viewing experience too?

Not at all. It's heavier and doesn't allow as much light to pass through. It's only advantage is scratch resistance.

Gorilla Glass has never given me any issues with scratches.
 
I'm not impressed by Apple's utilization of Sapphire so far, the fingerprint scanner fails to recognize your fingerprint most of the time if your finger is even slightly moist and the rear camera has accumulated significant amounts of dust behind the cover so what's the point of the scratch-resistant cover in the first place?
 
Phil Schiller called it "ion-strengthened glass". The only company currently producing such a product is Corning.



Corning was probably going to lose Apple as a buyer if Apple had been able to produce sapphire. So that probably forced Corning's hand to make something similar and at a better price point. If Apple does go with them for the next iPhone, everybody wins.


There's a Japanese company that also makes ion-strengthened glass, and they were on Apple's supplier list for 2014… right alongside Corning.
 
That's a cute picture of the simian, but wouldn't you want a gigantic, tough Silverback 800lb gorilla for your picture of Gorilla Glass™ toughest baddest smartphone glass? Instead of cute / cuddly?
That cute and cuddly gorilla would rip off your legs and legs if it wanted too.
 
iOS uses Gorilla Glass? :confused:

Yes they don't mention this anywhere but the frosted glass overlays they've been using since iOS 7 are digital Gorilla Glass ;)
I have to wonder how many foolish people have taken the words of these companies when it comes to strengthened glass and end up breaking them thinking it's a great idea to show off by slamming their expensive device into concrete.
 
I miss plastic screens, everything is scratch this or shatter that now Lol my goodness

You must have never actually had a phone with a plastic screen if you are yearning for the good old days when scratches weren't a problem.
 
You raise a valid point. I question the ferocity of the gorillas with which Corning test their Gorilla Glass.

And what does Gorilla Glass 4 even mean ? Does that mean the glass is resistant to 4 meek gorillas ??!?!?!? What the hell is that in the real world ?? :(

Umm. What does iPhone 4 mean? It takes 4 people to assemble it? What about the 5S? It takes 5Stupid people to assemble it? See where I'm going. Gorilla Glass 4 is simply the 4th "generation" on Gorilla Glass.. much like iPhone.
 
My big black friend asking how big dividends from this product to african gorillas?:cool:
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Umm. What does iPhone 4 mean? It takes 4 people to assemble it? What about the 5S? It takes 5Stupid people to assemble it? See where I'm going. Gorilla Glass 4 is simply the 4th "generation" on Gorilla Glass.. much like iPhone.

Wow... just........ wow.
 
When I got my iPhone 6 when it first came out.. 2 weeks in, it fell out of my gym shorts at my desk and fell (no joke) 1.5 feet onto my tile floor and the bottom cracked.

Luckily, it wasn't that big of a deal and didn't reach the screen. So I never replaced it.
 
alkali-aluminosilicate <--- this completely explains it if you know any chemistry

They chemically alter the glass by fusing different alkali ions to the atomic structure of the glass

Making it more flexible and stronger with ever generation there is a complete different formula... So it's hardly just a simple generation bump that they just throw a Number after!
 
I always slap my phone in a tpu case and I'm not that concerned about glass shattering. I drop my phone all the time and never had a shattered or even a tiny cracked screen because the case.

But scratches do worry me. After 4 days of owning iPhone 6 I notice a scratch in the middle of the screen. I immediately slapped a screen protector on it.
 
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