Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro Top Last Year’s Phones in Bend and Drop Tests

MacRumors

MacRumors

macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
69,399
40,439


Apple's thin and light iPhone Air is built with a durable titanium frame, and as we've seen demonstrated, it is highly resistant to bending even though it's only 5.6mm thick. Less has been shared about its drop protection, but device insurance provider Allstate Protection Plans today shared the results of its annual iPhone drop test. The drop test provides insight into the durability of both the iPhone Air and the iPhone 17 Pro models.


The iPhone Air and the iPhone 17 Pro use Ceramic Shield 2 instead of glass for both the front and back, which Apple says is better able to hold up to drops and scratches. The iPhone Air has the titanium frame, while the iPhone 17 Pro has an aluminum frame. The iPhone 17 Pro's design uses more aluminum than before, with just a rectangular Ceramic Shield cutout at the back for MagSafe charging.

In bend tests, the iPhone Air performed almost as well as the iPhone 17 Pro. The iPhone Air was able to withstand 190 pounds of pressure before it bent, while the iPhone 17 Pro withstood 200 pounds of pressure. The iPhone 17 Pro Max performed even better, only bending at the 240 pound mark.

The iPhone 6, best known as the "bendgate" iPhone, was able to be bent at 110 pounds of pressure.

In face-down drop tests, the iPhone Air and the iPhone 17 Pro's displays shattered from a six-foot fall. The iPhones remained functional, but the Ceramic Shield 2 material was too sharp to use with bare hands.

The iPhone 17 Pro's aluminum frame protected it from damage during a back-down drop test, and it only received minor scuffs at the six-foot mark. The iPhone Air's less durable design resulted in a rear panel crack when it was dropped, but it was still usable.

Last year, the iPhone 16 Pro Max display shattered and the device was unusable after a six-foot face-down drop. In the back-down drop test, the rear glass shattered after a single drop and it wasn't safe to use because of broken glass. This year's iPhone 17 Pro models are much more durable than the iPhone 16 Pro models, and that improved durability does carry over to the iPhone Air. It's not quite as resistant to drops as the iPhone 17 Pro, but it performed better than the iPhone 16 Pro models.

Allstate used to do dunk tests, but iPhone models have such good water resistance at this point that it's no longer worthwhile. The iPhone 17 Pro models and the iPhone Air continue to offer IP68 water and dust resistance. IP68 means the iPhones can survive 19 feet under water for up to 30 minutes.

Since Allstate always performs its drop tests in the same way, with the same apparatus, and from the same height, it's a useful way to see year-over-year changes in drop resistance. It looks like Apple's claims of improved durability are accurate, though Ceramic Shield 2 is still a glass-like material that has the potential to break.

In a real-life situation, the angle of an iPhone's drop, the drop height, and the surface that it lands on will impact the outcome of a fall, and it's still a good idea to have a protective case or a protection plan like AppleCare+.

Article Link: iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro Top Last Year’s Phones in Bend and Drop Tests
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2025/09/23/iphone-air-17-pro-drop-tests/
  • Like
Reactions: SFjohn, drrich2 and AppleWes
Useful comparative data and proves you still need a case and screen protection to minimize damage in a fall etc. Even the Air which, by all accounts, is quite resilient for such a design. Shame, as the phone begs to be used without a case, but a case it must have, I think. To be expected as always.
 
  • Like
Reactions: decypher44, Jovijoker and centauratlas
jz0309 said:
Can't be, MR users tell me that the aluminum 17Pros are the worst ever and scratch from just looking at them, leave alone getting bumps from touching them...
/s
Click to expand...
One thing is resistance to scratches, and something else (almost the opposite) is resistance to shattering.

Taking into account that Apple wants to frame the Pro line as a “real professional device”, I think they found the right balance. The new Ceramic Shield is used on the front, since it’s more resistant to scratches (and scratches on the screen make a bigger difference than on the back), while on the rest of the body, they heavily prioritise resilience over hard materials.
 
  • Like
Reactions: decypher44, digimc and hieranonymous
winxmac said:
Click to expand...
Watched the first 20 seconds, seems like the Allstate approach is a more scientific way to go with fewer variables. When the guy just sprinkles random things and swings a phone through the air as they drop, and those things are in different places during different "tests," (and the things being dropped aren't even the same from one phone to another) he's introducing too many variables. It just seems like clickbait more than anything else to me. There may be some valid information for people to take away, but I'm not going to watch his schtick and the ads attached to it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jovijoker, foggygray, hieranonymous and 1 other person
I've been caseless with my iphones since the 3GS so I just live with a certain amount of risk I guess. That said the 17 Pro does feel like a tank compared to previous phones to me. I'm mostly worried about the microscratches that'll develop over time, but that's part of the story of a phone I guess. My 14 Pro had some dings and dents and the screen was a disaster, but it made it 3 years in one piece.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jovijoker, sos47 and winxmac
I take all drop tests with a grain of salt. My iPhone 15 Pro Max’s screen shattered from a fall from a chair, roughly a distance of 1.5 feet, onto a chair mat. Even with a screen protector on it, it hit at the perfect angle for cracking a corner of the screen, which then proceeded to spider web over time. There is no distance that is safe for drops, and even protective screens don’t help in some cases.

My son shattered a screen utterly by tossing his iPhone 11 Pro onto a bed a few years ago, which then bounced and hit the wall. The entire front screen was completely shattered.

This is not an advertisement to get an extended warranty. This is the first phone screen I’ve ever cracked, and I’ve had an iPhone since the iPhone 3G. It’s just to say that sometimes you get unlucky and that drop tests are meaningless. I also never use a case.
 
  • Love
  • Like
Reactions: BotchQue and Jovijoker
tobybrut said:
I take all drop tests with a grain of salt. My iPhone 15 Pro Max’s screen shattered from a fall from a chair, roughly a distance of 1.5 feet, onto a chair mat. Even with a screen protector on it, it hit at the perfect angle for cracking a corner of the screen, which then proceeded to spider web over time. There is no distance that is safe for drops, and even protective screens don’t help in some cases.

My son shattered a screen utterly by tossing his iPhone 11 Pro onto a bed a few years ago, which then bounced and hit the wall. The entire front screen was completely shattered.

This is not an advertisement to get an extended warranty. This is the first phone screen I’ve ever cracked, and I’ve had an iPhone since the iPhone 3G. It’s just to say that sometimes you get unlucky and that drop tests are meaningless. I also never use a case.
Click to expand...
They aren't meaningless, it's just that sometimes you get unlucky. People will get unlucky less often on phones that are rated better.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Syegrayn and SFjohn
Heres my advice that has served me well for nearly 20 years. Ive owned most versions of the Iphone and every time i sell or trade on in, they were sold in mint condition because I ALWAYS PUT A CASE AND SCREEN PROTECTOR ON THEM THE MOMENT THEY LEAVE THE BOX!

I dont care if they are made out of Adamantium and Vibranium (Wolverines Skeleton and Captain Americas Shield) and could survive a direct nuclear blast, they are still getting a screen protector and a decent case on them.

Why? Cause i have severe OCD and i refuse to have a scratch or crack or what ever nag the hell out of me on my 500 dollar device i plan on trading in towards the next one in a year or so.

Protect your investment. These phones arent cheep and i dont care what apple says, they still are subject to the laws of physics.

So do yourself a favor, you just spent nearly a grad if not more on a shiney new iphone, spend a few bucks more on a case and screen protector of decent quality and just take care of the phone and it should be fine.
 
  • Like
  • Haha
Reactions: WannaGoMac, decypher44, sos47 and 2 others
I am truly shocked how strong the Air is... i wasnt expecting it to be that strong. Shame the cameras, speakers and battery suck on it though. But i do guess you got to make compromises somewhere.

I just hope the rumored Iphone Fold is just as strong, but with hopefully better speakers and cameras.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Syegrayn, decypher44 and Jovijoker
Yourbigpalal83 said:
Heres my advice that has served me well for nearly 20 years. Ive owned most versions of the Iphone and every time i sell or trade on in, they were sold in mint condition because I ALWAYS PUT A CASE AND SCREEN PROTECTOR ON THEM THE MOMENT THEY LEAVE THE BOX!

I dont care if they are made out of Adamantium and Vibranium (Wolverines Skeleton and Captain Americas Shield) and could survive a direct nuclear blast, they are still getting a screen protector and a decent case on them.

Why? Cause i have severe OCD and i refuse to have a scratch or crack or what ever nag the hell out of me on my 500 dollar device i plan on trading in towards the next one in a year or so.

Protect your investment. These phones arent cheep and i dont care what apple says, they still are subject to the laws of physics.

So do yourself a favor, you just spent nearly a grad if not more on a shiney new iphone, spend a few bucks more on a case and screen protector of decent quality and just take care of the phone and it should be fine.
Click to expand...
After 20 years owning iPhone you could notice spelling on the box.
To be serious, everyone is different, I can’t stand a feeling of a screen protector, it reduces smoothness, and optical quality of the display. Scratches do not bother me as I use my devices for 5-7 years and at that moment some scratches won’t make any difference in resale value. But I do agree that case is a must as it offers both front and back from shattering. I also only use cases with open bottom because I don’t want to touch it when closing apps.

This years improvements are very intriguing, if Apple continues improving shatter resistance I hope that my next iPhone will be safe to use without a case.
 
urtules said:
After 20 years owning iPhone you could notice spelling on the box.
To be serious, everyone is different, I can’t stand a feeling of a screen protector, it reduces smoothness, and optical quality of the display. Scratches do not bother me as I use my devices for 5-7 years and at that moment some scratches won’t make any difference in resale value. But I do agree that case is a must as it offers both front and back from shattering. I also only use cases with open bottom because I don’t want to touch it when closing apps.

This years improvements are very intriguing, if Apple continues improving shatter resistance I hope that my next iPhone will be safe to use without a case.
Click to expand...

I’m similar - can’t stand screen protectors. And prefer an open bottom case for the same reason as you mention.

Although the screens have shown micro-scratches (less so over the years as the glass has improved) I always seem to get the max trade-in price or second hand price when I sell my old phone. And I’ve saved money on screen protectors, so what’s not to like 😀
 
I'm curious, how many people buy insurance, through Allstate, or someplace else - not including AppleCare, for their iPhones?

That's something I've never once considered doing. I buy insurance for my car - partly because it's the law in my state.

I just have a hard time justfying, for myself, doing that for a low-cost, consumable product like this. Also, I do not live in a high-crime area where theft is common.
 
I don’t get why we’re still doing these drop tests. Everyone already knows one simple fact phones break when you drop them. It doesn’t matter if it’s titanium, aluminum, or unicorn dust holding the thing together, if it lands the wrong way it’s toast. The only real test that matters is whether you put a case on it or pay for AppleCare+. These staged six-foot drops feel more like ritual than real insight at this point.
 
  • Like
  • Disagree
Reactions: macvicta, S.B.G and MRSugarD
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back