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Is the new iPhone 4 glass really that resistant?

Robert Wojno

Robert Wojno

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When Steve Jobs announced an iPhone 4 with its breakthrough super-resistant glass everybody was wondering if it’s really that hard and resistant. My first iPhone glass died because of a heavy landing on my kitchen’s tiles so I was really doubtful about the new super technology and its extraterrestrial powers.

The first iPhone 4 teardowns confirm that the new wonderful glass used to build the new Apple device is Corning Gorilla Glass. This is good news because this is a product we actually know. During the Mobile World Congress 2010 in Barcelona, I had an opportunity to test the Gorilla Glass and chat a little bit with people from Corning.

Stronger and thinner

Gorilla Glass looks like the normal glass we are used to seeing in all sorts of mobile devices. The only difference is an incredible thinness and low weight which can reflect on the lower weight of the whole device, and of course on its size. This magical glass is also incredibly tough. I had an opportunity to compare it with a normal type of glass. I didn’t have to exert myself to break a glass plate using a metal rod. Conversely, I was unable to damage the Gorilla Glass. I am not the weakest person and was not the only one to try the strength of the glass. No one succeeded in breaking it.

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Hi we’re the scratches, and you can’t see us

We also tried to damage the Gorilla Glass with the keys and again failed. It is really promising. Actually it appears that the key leaves the scratches on the surface of the glass but because of its structure they are very shallow and can only be seen under a microscope. That leaves us with some worry that the scratches could accumulate and become visible after some time of use.

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OK, but does it mean that this glass will be invincible on my iPhone 4? Well it’s not 100% sure, but according to what we have seen it’s highly probable. Most iPhone damage is caused by strong impact with a sharp point. Thus, this high resistance which we can actually confirm gives hope that even a hard landing will leave an iPhone 4 intact. I would be more worried about the resistance of the stainless steel skeleton than the glass. The time and some crazy testers will show if I was right being so enthusiastic about the new glass. I only hope that the iPhone 4 will not be as unbreakable as the phone tested by the BBC journalist at CES.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l56h3C3BN4c[/youtube]

Robert Wojno

Robert Wojno

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