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Durability Tests Suggest New iPhones Can Survive Some Drops, But Still Break From Major Falls
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It’s glass. It’s going to break.
Apple says that its new iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max are made from a more durable glass that's the "toughest glass ever in a smartphone," and warranty company SquareTrade conducted one of its annual drop tests to put Apple's claims to the test.
According to SquareTrade's Breakability Score tests, the new iPhone 11 and 11 Pro models had more durable glass and better handled small drops, but were still prone to shattering in major drops.
In a series of 6 foot drop tests conducted both face up and face down, all three of the iPhones broke and suffered damage of varying degrees. In a tumble test, though, where the iPhones are tumbled around in a metal cylinder, the new devices fared a bit better.
The iPhone 11 and the iPhone 11 Pro Max both suffered from cracks (damage on the iPhone 11 was more minor) but the iPhone 11 Pro survived intact. There was no damage to the front or the back, with minimal scuffing at the corners.
According to SquareTrade, the iPhone 11 Pro is the first iPhone that's ever been able to survive the tumble test intact. SquareTrade says the iPhone 11 Pro is the "most durable iPhone" it's tested in generations.
In a 5 foot dunk test for 30 minutes, the iPhone 11 Pro came out unscathed, while the iPhone 11 and 11 Pro Max suffered from audio distortion. Apple's iPhone 11 Pro also fared the best in a bend test, bending at 251 pounds of pressure. The iPhone 11 bent at 240 pounds of pressure, while the iPhone 11 Pro Max cracked at 232 pounds.
Based on these tests, SquareTrade assigned each iPhone a breakability score. The iPhone 11 received a score of 73, the iPhone 11 Pro received a score of 65, and the iPhone 11 Pro Max received a score of 85, with the lowest score being the best.
Comparatively, in the same drop tests conducted last year, the iPhone XS had a breakability score of 86 while the iPhone XS Max had a breakability score of 70.
Several other less formal drop tests have been conducted on the new iPhone 11 models since launch, with mixed results.
Tom's Guide dropped an iPhone 11 Pro right outside Apple's Fifth Avenue store in New York from a height of about 3.5 feet, resulting in screen damage. A second drop didn't damage rear glass, but the original hip-height drop still broke the phone. CNET saw better results in its multi-height drop tests onto concrete flooring.
At three feet, six feet, and eight feet, the iPhones stayed undamaged for the most part, though some suffered minor scratching and pixel damage on the display. At 11 feet, the iPhone 11's camera quit working, but the 11 Pro and Pro Max didn't break.
YouTuber EverythingApplePro saw results that were quite similar to CNET's in drop tests from multiple heights and at different angles onto concrete. None of the iPhones broke from waist or head height, and the iPhone 11 only shattered after being dropped 10 feet.
What happens to one of the new iPhone 11 models when dropped in the real world is going to depend on the drop height, the material it's dropped on, where the iPhone takes the blow, and other factors, so these tests aren't necessarily demonstrative of what's going to occur when you drop your iPhone.
Testing overall suggests the new 2019 iPhones are more durable than previous-generation iPhones, but glass plus a hard surface still has the potential to result in damage, so it's best to use a case.
Apple sells AppleCare+ for the new iPhones, which covers two incidents of accidental damage for a $29 deductible. AppleCare+ for iPhone 11 is priced at $149, and AppleCare+ for iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max is priced at $199.
Article Link: Durability Tests Suggest New iPhones Can Survive Some Drops, But Still Break From Major Falls
Apple could theoretically make a more durable device. Short of a direct face hit they could protect better from an edge hit by increasing the corner padding between the case and glass. Sort of like crumple zones on cars. I'd take corner damage over glass damage any time.
Persons like that are usually bed ridden and they usually put their phone in tough cases because from hindsight they know better and persons like that too are not gonna be spending $1,000 on an iPhone.
Or maybe people on high does on doses pain medication like Morphine, or with disabilities who that find holding the phone can get harder harder or hell you are just tired maybe! Nothing is as black and white as ''I guess this is for the clumsy"
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this is probably second or third comment of this nature.
Funny though, if you watch the video....on their case it hasn’t shattered
So... you can still break a glass if you drop it !
I would say that’s breaking news ! 😂
I would say that’s breaking news ! 😂
I’m surprised by the comments here. Not about the glass will break comments but the actual topic of the article is that Apple was not joking. It is the toughest glass most of these youtubers have tested. Of course the glass will break at an 11 foot drop.
That one test at 3.5 - who knows. Fell on a rock, staged, or just a bad Apple.
But in general I’m impressed. I didn’t expect their to be an appreciated difference in durability despite Apples claims. But here we actually see it being measurably stronger and everyone either dismisses it or bewails Apple for not designing plastic phones YUCK!
That one test at 3.5 - who knows. Fell on a rock, staged, or just a bad Apple.
But in general I’m impressed. I didn’t expect their to be an appreciated difference in durability despite Apples claims. But here we actually see it being measurably stronger and everyone either dismisses it or bewails Apple for not designing plastic phones YUCK!
I’m in a wheelchair and I have to use a frame to transfer I’m on 110 mg of morphine daily and I have osteoporosis and I have problems gripping at times due to all the other medication I take too and I’m not bedridden. Also that’s a really ablest comment, disabled people can get around and be independent they’re not all bedridden. Also assuming disabled people won’t be spending £1000 on the phone, why is that? Are we all poor for some reason or to scared to own one, the answer is no. Your view of disabled people and disabilities in general is so far removed from the real world it’s actually quite offensive.
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Quite frankly, it should be illegal for Apple to claim that its glass encased phones are nearly impervious to impacts. I'm not aware of any glass that does not shatter. That is one of its characteristics. Maybe Apple should invest in R&D for transparent aluminum. Creating a transparent material (glass) that does not shatter would be the holy grail and generate more profits than its iPhone ever could.
What a shocker !
Pavement to a smartphone is like Kryptonite to Superman. If you value your high priced purchase and don't want it to shatter, put a tempered glass screen protector on the from and put the phone in a quality rubberized case. And yet there are some already bitching in the iPhone forums asking why the front face is already scratched on their brand new iPhone 11 because all they did was put the phone in the same pocket with their car keys.
Sometimes you just can't make this stuff up.
Generally keys should not be able to scratch the front display of a phone, aside from the Galaxy Fold which is plastic.*
Maybe the oleophobic coating gets messed up though?
*although technically that's the inside display not the front one
I’m clumsy, absent minded, have moderate tremor which doesn’t help, and going back to my 4 or 5 I’ve dropped my phone at least once a week. It slips out of my pocket, or off the arm of a reading chair, or I knock it off the kitchen counter. Wood floors, tile, asphalt, anything you can imagine. Rarely if ever has it fallen from more than kitchen counter height.
It always lives in a silicone or leather case and has never broken. It’s currently in a $7 clear case. I wish these drop and tumble tests would be done in the Apple cases.
It always lives in a silicone or leather case and has never broken. It’s currently in a $7 clear case. I wish these drop and tumble tests would be done in the Apple cases.
Apple engineer-'are you sure we should make the back glass? It will break more easily than aluminum or other materials'. 'Yes, repairs generate revenue and these people are keeping devices longer'. 'But..' 'Do it!'
Maybe with the next one we can forgo the glass back? I get it, visually striking... blah blah blah. What I don't understand is... all those people that praise it for its looks are just going to slap a case on it to protect the glass anyway! Seems like an exercise in futility if you ask me. Just make the back metal and give us less to worry about.
Because it would be harder to justify charging $1100 for it.