iPhone 5 Meets 2-Year-Old with Instructions for Destruction
Apple's shiny new toy meets the newest member of iFixit's team.
Apple proudly announced on Monday morning that the iPhone 5 had sold an impressive five million in its first three days of availability. However, that wasn't the only iPhone 5 news floating around. Reports from around the web are talking about scuff marks on iPhone 5 units right out of the box. One of the differences between the iPhone 5 and previous models (specifically, the iPhone 4 and 4S) is that this phone doesn't have that all glass back. Instead, the backing is anodized aluminum and early adopters are saying that not only does this new casing scratch easily, in some cases, it's arriving already scratched.
So, just how scratchable is the iPhone 5's back casing? How's it going to look if it's subjected to every day life? The folks over at iFixit decided to introduce their iPhone 5 to a 2-year-old with a set of keys. Check out the results below.
The main concern would be the denting; if that kid could dent the case in a few under-powered attempts, this will be pretty bad if the phone were to be dropped. Dents mean potential internal damage.
IDK who does the anodizing process for Apple, but it seems like a piss-poor job to me. I have cheap flashlights with anodized aluminum bodies that can take a lot more damage than that and still look better. Maybe they cut some corners in order to cut costs, something that would not surprise me a bit from Apple. That case looks more like it was painted, not anodized.
I have yet to see an iPhone owner with the phone uncased; they seem to brag about how pretty their device is, but then hide it away for fear of damage.
Seems to me that high-quality plastic, polycarbonate, TPS or carbon fiber are the materials to go with for long-lasting phone panels.
The main concern would be the denting; if that kid could dent the case in a few under-powered attempts, this will be pretty bad if the phone were to be dropped. Dents mean potential internal damage.
IDK who does the anodizing process for Apple, but it seems like a piss-poor job to me. I have cheap flashlights with anodized aluminum bodies that can take a lot more damage than that and still look better. Maybe they cut some corners in order to cut costs, something that would not surprise me a bit from Apple. That case looks more like it was painted, not anodized.
I have yet to see an iPhone owner with the phone uncased; they seem to brag about how pretty their device is, but then hide it away for fear of damage.
Seems to me that high-quality plastic, polycarbonate, TPS or carbon fiber are the materials to go with for long-lasting phone panels.
LOL...
Hating large multinational corporations? What's wrong with that?
Appreciation for the value of things? Come on! That is entirely subjective. Value is what something is worth to someone, something perceived. For instance, some people would say the value of that phone is high, e=whereas others will say it's worthless. Unless you mistake value for price...
And anyway it is better Al or gorilla glass than plastic, until someone starts using Glock polymer for phones, which seems quite overklilling to me (pun intended).
You probably don't drive a car or take the bus, ride a bike, use a phone, a computer, watch tv, listen to the radio, read newspapers or books, or do anything else that has made your daily life a breeze by those large multinational corporations that provide goods and services man wants, needs, and desires. Companies only get big by providing something that people want. Not one business have ever succeeded in proving this concept wrong.
I'd love to see what she does to the rest of the electronics in the house now that she's been conditioned that rubbing the iPhone with a set of keys and a steel ring is "cool"
"WOW, daddy's football trophy! 60" Plasma TV!... this will be even more awesome than the iPhone with the keys! I can't wait for the praise I'm going to get for this one!!!"
IB
"Wow, its so pretty - lets protect it by putting it in a rubber-plastic nuke-proof case" I've never owned a case. Yeah, my phone will get dropped (shortest record for me was 3 steps out of the Phone store) - My Galaxy S1 has some dented/wear on its plastic edges from 2 years of keys, drops, etc - but nothing like this.
The Nokia Lumia 820 kind of has it RIGHT - the whole case is replaceable. the basic phone is just a black box that NEEDS a case... a lot of aftermarket goodies will come out for that one.
Shouldn't the anodized aluminum handle a bit more roughhousing before taking the damage? The iPhone5 has a nice texture... not as smooth as typical anodized aluminum.
For anodizing to 'stick', the surface on which it is applied at least has to be stiff enough to prevent impacts from digging into it. If the surface is too soft, sharp edges will carve into it and scrape the anodizing off. Even the best anodizing job is only as good as the surface it is applied to.
And Android people don't use cases? Oh wait I see it everyday! I find it hard to believe that all these companies would make cases for Android if no one bought them!
- Stop the Hate.
Regardless, now that people know how prone the anodized aluminum is to being scratched, they'll put it in a case. Not that you generally see people with iphones using it without a case, so all of this discussion of case scratching is pretty funny to watch. But in the end, I'd rather have a phone case made out of metal that has a scratch-prone anodized surface than a phone with glass on the front and back that can shatter when it's dropped...
I want to be the one administering the spanking.