Despite New Ceramic Shield, iPhone 16 Models Still Vulnerable to Drops

[3Rock]

Oh great, we've got the year round up of people smashing glass on concrete for Youtube views.

Anecdotally i've had every iPhone since the first one - I used a case twice on around the iPhone 6s-7 which were my least favourites - all the others were caseless and not one of them smashed when dropped.

I have a solid microcement floor at home, the iPhone 15 Pro bounced off it many times with no issue - in fact I tried to break the iPhone 14 Pro by throwing it at it a few times and that never broke either. Realistically no one is dropping a phone from 6 foot in height, who's throwing it from their head? It drops from your waist, out of your pocket, from your hands at a usable level. 99% of the time it'll be when you go to pull it out or put it away or much more likely when it falls off the arm of a chair.

I even had the iPhone 15 Pro fall out of my pocket on an electric bike going 15 mph and it bounced on the tarmac a bit, whilst there was a little tiny scuff you had to look for it and the glass was perfect. They really are quite hard to break in normal usage and dropping, a case is not needed.

You actually deliberately threw it to see if it would break? Really? What is wrong with people?

 

[hagjohn]

Despite New Ceramic Shield, iPhone 16 Models Still Vulnerable to Drops​

Uh, yeah, it is glass.

 

[JippaLippa]

Scratches on the screen is a much more serious problem starting from the iPhone 15 series. I wish Apple made the iPhone 16 screen more resistant to scratches.

Are iPhone 15/16 screens less scratch resistant than previous models?
I'm about to replace my 13, and it still hasn't got a single scratch.

 

[5553130]

Thing breaks when you break it. Informative, thank you.

 

[nikaru]

My god, say it isn’t so! Glass will break when dropped from a certain height?

THE SCANDAL.

No, the scandal is that, from all materials available on the planet earth, Apple decided that glass is the best material for everyday hand-held device that occasionally falls on the ground many times during its useful life. So Apple is using a very delicate material to make the product more visually pleasing but at the same time force people to put a case on it, which kills the whole idea of making visually pleasing product in the first place, as almost nobody enjoys it. It is profoundly stupid!

 

[nikaru]

While advancements in glass are appreciated, I still use a screen protector and a case, even though the iPhone looks so "exotic" and elegant without them. I understand the applecare+ argument for replacement phone or glass but who really wants to deal with that hassle.

Virtually, nobody. I'm the only member of the "naked phone" club I know of. Everybody use a case which makes all the time and effort Apple invested in designing the enclosure and finishing of the product, completely useless.

 

[I7guy]

You’re dropping it wrong?

 

[Belisama]

No, the scandal is that, from all materials available on the planet earth, Apple decided that glass is the best material for everyday hand-held device that occasionally falls on the ground many times during its useful life.

Absolutely 😤.
I hope the display of iPhone 17 will be made of corten steel.

 

[zombierunner]

I was just looking at apple to see how long for shipping iphone 16 pro and it's 3-4 weeks. Really surprised .. thought the demand was less this year ...

 

[Dreamboy]

For every new iPhone iteration, Apple says it has improved the new screen resistance from the previous one. After 16 models, an iPhone should have the resistance of Adamantium or Captain America shield.

 

[dannys1]

You actually deliberately threw it to see if it would break? Really? What is wrong with people?

I needed an insurance repair, it had scratches but no breaks - so I was wondering how many times i'd have to drop it for it to break...it would appear an infinite amount of times.

 

[Complex757]

For the past 15 years I broke my screen exactly once. I think the trade-off is not worth it for me.

I read this, and then your sig

Life is short. Always enjoy what you want.

More people need to live like this. Emphasizing YOU instead of caring about others.

 

[ignatius345]

Literally every single iPhone model has been accompanied by a ton of hype about the toughness of the glass. And then (surprise surprise) it turns out it's still glass and can still shatter, crack or scratch 🤣

 

[mcilwraith]

why not use a case on your new £1000 glass phone????

 

[cocky jeremy]

Waaait. You're telling me glass is prone to breaking? Who would have guessed?

 

[cocky jeremy]

While advancements in glass are appreciated, I still use a screen protector and a case, even though the iPhone looks so "exotic" and elegant without them. I understand the applecare+ argument for replacement phone or glass but who really wants to deal with that hassle.

I don't do cases because I hate the look, and I hate the feel of them. I do, however use screen protectors. The Magic John screen protectors on Tik Tok are great. I've used them for my last two phones. I dropped my 15 Pro Max several times and never had even a scratch on the screen afterwards.

 

[bigjnyc]

Unless you're Shaquille O'Neal you're not dropping your phone from 6 feet up...... Unless you drop it from an elevated location in which case you shouldn't be expecting it to survive anyway.

 

[JitteryJimmy]

and why are they test dropping the phone from 6 feet?
That’s not relevant to anything.

It's very relevant to some people:

If you're 6 foot 4 inches tall, wearing platform boots, and have poor vision you may often have your phone 6 feet off the ground. And if you're walking your dog at the same time, you might trip on the sidewalk, leading to the phone tumbling 6 feet down onto concrete.

 

[jhwalker]

wow. first drop on both the front and the back and the phone is unusable junk.

lets see someone do something as easy as open it up and replace the battery now.

SAD. disappointed.

I'll hold on to my Samsung S24.

S24 did WORSE than the S23 in the same drop tests and very similar to iPhone.

 

[DEMinSoCAL]

and why are they test dropping the phone from 6 feet?
That’s not relevant to anything.

(Likely because a phone test dropped from 4 feet rarely cracks)

Because if my iPhone drops off the top of my head, I know what's going to happen. Doesn't everyone keep their iPhone 6ft in the air?

 

[Entilzha]

No, the scandal is that, from all materials available on the planet earth, Apple decided that glass is the best material for everyday hand-held device that occasionally falls on the ground many times during its useful life. So Apple is using a very delicate material to make the product more visually pleasing but at the same time force people to put a case on it, which kills the whole idea of making visually pleasing product in the first place, as almost nobody enjoys it. It is profoundly stupid!

Wireless charging.

Not all that “profoundly stupid” when you factor that in.

That said, damn near every flagship smartphone has a glass back these days. Going “Apple is so stupid for doing this!” ignores the actual reasons they’re doing it.

 

[Arytonsenna]

2x stronger? 2 times 0 is still 0.

 

[adrianlondon]

Breaking (hah) News:

The iPhone 18 is to be filled with helium so it floats just above the ground.

A "Carry Kit" is being developed which consists of a MagSafe helium pouch and piece of string.

 

[Return Zero]

Scratches on the screen is a much more serious problem starting from the iPhone 15 series. I wish Apple made the iPhone 16 screen more resistant to scratches.

Is this a proven fact? My 15 Pro seemed to be my most durable phone ever in terms of both absorbing drops without damage and resisting micro-scratches (completely anecdotal, of course).

 

[nikaru]

Wireless charging.

Not all that “profoundly stupid” when you factor that in.

That said, damn near every flagship smartphone has a glass back these days. Going “Apple is so stupid for doing this!” ignores the actual reasons they’re doing it.

Of course, only glass allows wireless charging, thanks for the tip!

Also, I didn't call Apple stupid, what I said that the whole concept is stupid. Investing millions of dollars and thousands of hours to make a beautiful enclosure out of the most exclusive materials with high-end jewelry-level of finishing and state-of-the art precision, so that everything can be hidden beneath a 5$ case from Target. Also, I don't care what other smartphone manufacturers do. I pay my money to Apple and care about Apple.