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Sapphire Displays for iPhone 6 Missed by 'Weeks' Due to Yield Issues

Main question I ask myself is, "what could I do with the 6 that I cannot do with the 4S I now own?" The camera is the primary distinction for me, but dangling the OIS before me in a phablet I don't want was a d*** move by Apple, as was the 16GB base model.

I was going to get the 6 anyways, but this news has me on the fence. Guess I'll wait for reviews to see how awesome the camera is.
 
Technarchy said:
Bet your bottom someone will.

GT should have been all over this months ago and had their SME's in China to ensure they knew how to work with Sapphire materials.

If I were a share holder I would be losing my mind at how big of an opportunity is being missed.

100% unacceptable. They've clearly known about this for year or more.

Talk about dropping the ball.
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Steve would not have let this happen. :apple:
 
AppleScruff1 said:
Personally, I don't think I would be upset unless somehow the sapphire screen had a much greater resistance to breaking, scratching doesn't worry me as much as dropping and breaking. I wouldn't go out of my way to break my glass screen just to have sapphire. If the day came and I did break the screen, then fine, but I wouldn't spend the $79 to solve a problem that hasn't happened yet, I'd wait.
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I agree. Knock on wood, through five different models I've never broken a screen (nor a back on a 4/4S). Dropped them plenty of times.

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milan28 said:
And by then, Samsung, HTC and LG will no doubt be another 2-3 years in front!
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Nothing running Android will ever be in front. As someone who has owned both, and uses an Android at work right now I know that. If you don't understand that you will never get it.
 
I will wait for 6S Plus in Sep 2015. I don't like scratches and must carry keys in the same pocket as the iPhone in my skinny jeans.
 
I still suspect the brittleness of the sapphire kept it from being used on a display that large, but I don't have any real justification in dismissing the channel reports...

Have we gotten a good explanation why the :apple:Watch sport doesn't use sapphire like the others? My suspicion is that a watch that shatters on impact is bad for the racquetball court.
 
i want iphone 6s super plus phone.....

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rgiskard said:
main question i ask myself is, "what could i do with the 6 that i cannot do with the 4s i now own?" the camera is the primary distinction for me, but dangling the ois before me in a phablet i don't want was a d*** move by apple, as was the 16gb base model.

I was going to get the 6 anyways, but this news has me on the fence. Guess i'll wait for reviews to see how awesome the camera is.
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nfc
 
Analog Kid said:
Have we gotten a good explanation why the :apple:Watch sport doesn't use sapphire like the others? My suspicion is that a watch that shatters on impact is bad for the racquetball court.
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I read somewhere that the sapphire is heavier, and the sport watch is optimized for weight. Hence the aluminium case instead of steel also.
 
jont-fu said:
I read somewhere that the sapphire is heavier, and the sport watch is optimized for weight. Hence the aluminium case instead of steel also.
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Glass is based on silicon, which is a fairly heavy element, whereas sapphire is based on aluminum, so I would expect sapphire to be lighter, but I could not find a source verifying my hypothesis.

If sapphire is indeed lighter, that might explain why Apple was interested in using that for the screen, despite it being no more shatter resistant. Glass is a big part of the overall weight of the phone. If I recall correctly, when iP5 switched from glass back to aluminum, the weight went down by about a third, despite growing in size.
 
Who cares? Sapphire glass was shown to be worse than Gorilla Glass in drop tests.. doesn't make a big difference overall.
 
theBB said:
Glass is based on silicon, which is a fairly heavy element, whereas sapphire is based on aluminum, so I would expect sapphire to be lighter, but I could not find a source verifying my hypothesis.

If sapphire is indeed lighter, that might explain why Apple was interested in using that for the screen, despite it being no more shatter resistant. Glass is a big part of the overall weight of the phone. If I recall correctly, when iP5 switched from glass back to aluminum, the weight went down by about a third, despite growing in size.
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No, I found the source and sapphire really is heavier than Gorilla glass (or Ion-X glass as Apple calls it now to avoid mentioning any brand names):

"However, the displays for the most basic Apple Watch and Watch Edition models will be protected by polished sapphire crystal. Apple chose the material because, next to diamond, it is the hardest transparent material on earth. The Apple Watch Sport, however, will be protected by Ion-X glass, which is lighter and makes more sense for running and other exercise."

Source:http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/...atch-and-iphone-6/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

By the way, the iPhone 3G front glass weighs 0.32 ounces (9 grams) and the newer models have even thinner glass. Of course every gram counts but even if sapphire was 50% heavier it would add only 0.16 ounces or 4,5 grams.
 
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My long-held belief is that the sapphire display covers were always bound for the watch first. Smaller volume to pilot and gather data before deploying to the golden goose (iPhones).

Along those lines, these reports feel like an attempt at backtracking for "news" outlets that were baselessly speculating.

"We were right all along, but Apple changed their mind" is much easier than "We were wrong."
 
Based on some of the comments I've read here, I've never seen a bigger group of people so clueless about the benefits of sapphire crystal than those that hang out in here. The ignorance is just staggering on this issue.

No, it's not 'about the same' as gorilla glass in terms of scratch resistance, and neither is it so fragile it would shatter if you look at it funny.

Sapphire crystal is HUGE upgrade!
 
jont-fu said:
I read somewhere that the sapphire is heavier, and the sport watch is optimized for weight. Hence the aluminium case instead of steel also.
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I'm kind of curious how many grams they saved by changing the glass.

Stainless steel is about 3 times denser than aluminum. Sapphire is only about 60-some percent denser than Gorilla Glass (one possible ion exchanged glass). Not sure how much glass is used, but that doesn't seem like it would account for much weight.


Maybe as a marketing differentiator it has some value, but it seems like quite a supply chain hassle to save what? 3 or 4 grams?

If they see weight as a challenge of sapphire, that could also figure into the iPhone decision. The watch has a face of about 16cm^2. The 6+ is probably closer to 100cm^2.
 
Four oF NINE said:
Based on some of the comments I've read here, I've never seen a bigger group of people so clueless about the benefits of sapphire crystal than those that hang out in here. The ignorance is just staggering on this issue.

No, it's not 'about the same' as gorilla glass in terms of scratch resistance, and neither is it so fragile it would shatter if you look at it funny.

Sapphire crystal is HUGE upgrade!
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Thank you for lifting the veil of our ignorance with your quantitative data.

All caps is clearly more better than the merely "huge" upgrade I've seen people around here calling it.

;)
 
AppleScruff1 said:
Hopefully Apple will implement the sapphire displays on a later batch of the iPhone, perhaps by the first of the year or so? Just the first few months of production would have glass displays and it would be a good way for them to tweak things before the iPhone 6 Plus S goes into production.
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So you screw over the early adopters? Highly doubt it.
 
Analog Kid said:
Thank you for lifting the veil of our ignorance with your quantitative data.

All caps is clearly more better than the merely "huge" upgrade I've seen people around here calling it.

;)
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Although you correctly pointed out that my comments aren't inclusive of quantitative data, they are however based on personal real world experience.

Which sapphire crystal products do you have personal experience with? Not being snarky, just wondering.
 
Apple could move up the 6s and 6s Plus release to Spring 2015 (April to June). I think I read here that A9 production will begin in the first quarter of 2015.
 
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