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Space Grey - Does it scratch like the black 5?

mazz0

mazz0

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Mar 23, 2011
3,468
4,199
Leeds, UK
A friend's choosing which 5S to get. I couldn't recommend getting a 5 in black to anyone who doesn't plan on keeping it in a case due to how scuffs show up on it. Since the 5S has been out a while can people tell me how well it's stood up to wear compared with a black 5? Specifically people who had issues with their black 5 scuffing up - if you managed to keep your black 5 pristine without a case then... wow.

It doesn't matter much since my friend intends on putting it in a nasty ugly case, but I'm still curious.
 
The anodization is equally susceptible to normal wear and tear, but it'll be less obvious on Space Gray as it's a lighter color (much like the white/silver version).
 
I would also like to know this as I don't want to put a screen protector on the back of my 5S because of the 'bubbles'/outlining you get of the iPhone text on the back (yes, I'm that obsessed with these things).

Having had my Space Grey 5S for a week, so far I've had no scratches/marks yet.
 
I never had any issues with scratching on my black 5 backing, it was the chamfered edges which were made of butter. I had some actual chips in a couple of spots. So far my 5s is holding up pretty good, but I've got a case on it this time.
 
JayLenochiniMac said:
The anodization is equally susceptible to normal wear and tear, but it'll be less obvious on Space Gray as it's a lighter color (much like the white/silver version).
Click to expand...

Exactly. Small scratches are less noticeable on the 5S, but it's still quite easy to mark up a brand new device after only a few days/weeks.

Moral of the story: Enjoy your new 5S and forget about any wear/tear. You bought the device to use, not as a collector's item.
 
The 5S is no different than the 5 and can and will scratch. Aluminum is quite soft and the ano will not protect it.
 
FAJV said:
The aluminium around the black 5S is not painted so it will not scratch.
Click to expand...

Hmmm, nope.


scratches.jpg
 
The 5s has zero coloured paint on it, it's silver so if scratched will only show silver which isn't half as noticeable as the 5 with its slate finish.
 
oVerboost said:
Okay, but the statement about it not showing up as much as on the slate I stand by, otherwise we'd have seen at least one badly scratched up/flaky space grey iPhone on these forums by now lol.
Click to expand...

Keep in mind that the black and slate iPhone 5 that were scratching up/flaking like crazy around this time last year were from a batch with defective anodization. Apple has since fixed that quality control issue. Properly coated anodization on black and slate devices don't get to that state (mostly along the edge like in the photo above) until after a longer period of time and the black wouldn't rub off like crazy.

But, yes, normal wear and tear wouldn't show up as much on Space Gray because it's a lighter color.
 
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