Video shows rumored 'iPhone 6' sapphire front panel destroyed by car
After multiple torture tests, a purported sapphire front cover rumored to be bound for Apple's 4.7-inch "iPhone 6" has finally been broken, but getting there took a car weighing 1.6 tons.
The supposed sapphire display cover started making the rounds online on Monday and has since been subjected to all variety of stress testing to determine the part's durability.
In a video posted to YouTube on Wednesday by HK Apple Daily, the component is put through the usual battery of scratch testing, stabbing and bending before seeing savage assessment involving fire and, ultimately, a car.
As seen below, testers are able to shatter the purported iPhone front cover by crushing it with a 1.6-ton vehicle. The result may be expected, though a closer look at the subsequent destruction yields some interesting clues as to the part's makeup and design.
Note the most damaged portion of the cover is the edge that first makes contact with the tire. It appears the overwhelming force shattered this leading edge and quickly propagated toward the trailing edge, breaking off a substantial portion of the window that was likewise crushed as the car moved over it.
Since a piece of the glass broke off cleanly -- without "spiderwebbing" -- by a compressive force rather than a high-energy kinetic impact, it can be inferred that the material is strengthened and possibly made of laminated layers. This does not necessarily mean the part is made of sapphire, but few materials can withstand extreme bending and exhibit resilience to surface scratches while being shatter resistant.
Corning's most advanced Gorilla Glass shares similar properties, but is still vulnerable to high velocity impacts as evidenced in numerous smartphone drop tests.
AppleInsider this week reported on an Apple patent for strengthening single-crystal sapphire through "residual compressive stress," which basically describes advanced tempering techniques. Another patent for lamination processes details construction methods in which a sapphire glass layup can be made flexible while retaining superior surface hardness.
Whether the purported iPhone front cover glass is actually made of sapphire or some other hardened material has yet to be determined, but it is interesting to see the part come out (mostly) unscathed from some serious abuse.
The supposed sapphire display cover started making the rounds online on Monday and has since been subjected to all variety of stress testing to determine the part's durability.
In a video posted to YouTube on Wednesday by HK Apple Daily, the component is put through the usual battery of scratch testing, stabbing and bending before seeing savage assessment involving fire and, ultimately, a car.
As seen below, testers are able to shatter the purported iPhone front cover by crushing it with a 1.6-ton vehicle. The result may be expected, though a closer look at the subsequent destruction yields some interesting clues as to the part's makeup and design.
Note the most damaged portion of the cover is the edge that first makes contact with the tire. It appears the overwhelming force shattered this leading edge and quickly propagated toward the trailing edge, breaking off a substantial portion of the window that was likewise crushed as the car moved over it.
Since a piece of the glass broke off cleanly -- without "spiderwebbing" -- by a compressive force rather than a high-energy kinetic impact, it can be inferred that the material is strengthened and possibly made of laminated layers. This does not necessarily mean the part is made of sapphire, but few materials can withstand extreme bending and exhibit resilience to surface scratches while being shatter resistant.
Corning's most advanced Gorilla Glass shares similar properties, but is still vulnerable to high velocity impacts as evidenced in numerous smartphone drop tests.
AppleInsider this week reported on an Apple patent for strengthening single-crystal sapphire through "residual compressive stress," which basically describes advanced tempering techniques. Another patent for lamination processes details construction methods in which a sapphire glass layup can be made flexible while retaining superior surface hardness.
Whether the purported iPhone front cover glass is actually made of sapphire or some other hardened material has yet to be determined, but it is interesting to see the part come out (mostly) unscathed from some serious abuse.
Comments
Maybe, maybe not. The video could be completely faked.
It wouldn't be the first time either.
No way to say with an degree of certainty until we see an actual shipping product. But hey, page views are all that really count around here, right?
It could be faked but my gut is saying it isn't.
I guess if people don't chuck their iPhones in the middle of a highly trafficked road, then they should be ok!
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I also think that we wont be seeing any sapphire displays on any Android phones any time soon. Apple is the only one who has the resources to do what they do at the scale that they do.
These are the kind of innovations and advances that Apple needs to continue doing.
That's the only part of the video that seems wrong to me. I'd think a 1.6 tonne vehicle wouldn't be an issue especially since we're talking about it being 1/4 the weight with 50/50 load balanced car and the force spread out over the entire front panel area. Wouldn't that be force per square mm than a nail being hammered?
Get ready for a class action suit by SUV owners.
/s
and now Apple can focus on something that to prevent scratches, dings and dents on the back.
Unless there were a pebble or some other point contact between the ground and the panel that the weight of the vehicle compressed the panel onto. Seems like that might be the explanation there. What I find interesting is that the only thing that destroyed the panel would have destroyed the guts of the phone anyway, assuming the panel didn't break but instead deformed (bent inward) transferring the weight of the vehicle to the phone's internal components. So that means the panel might be stronger than it even needs to be for the application it's being used in.
and now Apple can focus on something that to prevent scratches, dings and dents on the back.
I don't think that it is reasonable to expect that everything should be 100% klutz proof.
If somebody is a complete klutz and constantly goes around dropping their phone (or any other item), then chances are that it just might show signs of being abused eventually.
If it's a real video then I hope we see this material used for something somewhere. It bothers me when progress is stifled because of money.
Anyone remember Starlite? It was featured on a local news station here in the late 80's early 90's. Nothing has been done with it.
An example...
If it's a real video then I hope we see this material used for something somewhere. It bothers me when progress is stifled because of money.
What do you mean? If the video is real, then we'll be seeing it on the next iPhones!
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I am also a strong believer in stifling progress for others, due to money. As long as Apple users benefit from this, then screw everybody else! I hope that this is way too expensive for any other manufacturers to consider. Then it wont matter if somebody else wants to steal or copy Apple's idea, because they wont be able to!
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It is my desire that Android users remain in the dark ages. Apple users are like the Jetsons, and Android users are like the Flintstones, and that's the way that things should remain.
I'm kind of more for progress as a whole humanity society. I'm all for patents because they don't last very long and after that everyone can use the idea. When companies file patents the clock starts ticking the second it's submitted once it's approved. The example I provided a link to has been known for between 30 and 40 years and absolutely no one has benefited from it.
There's another from around the same time period that completely eradicated tooth decay and even repaired damaged teeth. I'm having a hard time finding it though. I would be very happy if even one company released either of those materials.
I'm kind of more for progress as a whole humanity society. I'm all for patents because they don't last very long and after that everyone can use the idea. When companies file patents the clock starts ticking the second it's submitted once it's approved. The example I provided a link to has been known for between 30 and 40 years and absolutely no one has benefited from it.
There's another from around the same time period that completely eradicated tooth decay. I'm having a hard time finding it though. I would be very happy if even one company released either of those materials.
I'm definitely not a progress for humanity type of guy, but that's ok, we can have differing views on that topic.
As for the egg video, if that material were truly that great, then why hasn't anybody done anything with it?
You don't want humanity to progress?
Because the guy who invented it died several years ago. He never shared the secret of that material. Supposedly his relatives know it.
He withheld the formula from the likes of Corning, DuPont and others because he was demanding a LOT of money. I know the whole story besides the recipe. It's actually nuclear proff as well.
The one that bothers me most though is the the one that rebuilds teeth. Still can't find it and I'm about to give up.
You don't want humanity to progress?
Only certain groups.
I'm not one of those people who believes that everything should be free or that everything should be equally available to everybody.
People and corporations who invest considerable amounts of their own money into researching new ideas, products and medicines deserve to reap all of the rewards, as they are the ones taking all of the risks.
A good example is a bio tech stock that I own, GILD (which is at all time highs now, yippie for me). They have this one amazing new drug called Sovaldi which costs $1000 per pill, per day. It's practically a cure for hepatitis-C. They are not a charity, and if somebody can't afford it, then too bad for them. They have invested an incredible amount of money, and they are definitely entitled to recoup and to even profit on their hard work.
A society where innovators and risk takers are not rewarded would be a terribly primitive society. There's a reason that so much innovation has happened in the USA, compared to other places on the planet. It's not random luck.
Because the guy who invented it died several years ago. He never shared the secret of that material. Supposedly his relatives know it.
He withheld the formula from the likes of Corning, DuPont and others because he was demanding a LOT of money. I know the whole story besides the recipe. It's actually nuclear proff as well.
The one that bothers me most though is the the one that rebuilds teeth. Still can't find it and I'm about to give up.
If his relatives know about the secret makeup of that material, then surely they would be selling it? I have to admit, that the story smells kind of fishy.
So if someone can not afford a cure for a disease they have you would like to see them die?
Let me tell you a secret. Money has no real value, but a life is real. If you and I were in a desert, you having a billion dollars and me having several gallons of water do you think I'd take any of your money in exchange for my water?
I may be getting a little deep here, but inhumane views like yours are disturbing to say the least.