- Kyle Chua
Online Tests Spark iPhone 15 Durability Concerns, Dividing Chinese Market
Updated: Dec 18, 2023
Are the latest iPhone models as durable as Apple makes them out to be? Not quite, if some internet users are to be believed.
With the iPhone 15 models hitting stores, more users are now able to get hands-on time with the new devices. A number of users, however, have learned that the Cupertino tech giant's latest releases crack easily.
EverythingApplePro, for instance, conducted a drop test, dropping both a standard and a Pro model from different heights. In his video, he shows that the glass rear of both models crack after being dropped from waist height.
AppleTrack, meanwhile, conducted a similar drop test, comparing the iPhone 15 Pro to the iPhone 14 Pro and it's the latter that came out with lesser damage. The iPhone 15, despite having a frame that's infused with titanium, had more visible cracks and after multiple drops, the camera array completely separated from the device itself from all the damage.
JerryRigEverything on YouTube also found out that the glass rear of the iPhone 15 Pro Max easily cracks just by bending the device slightly or applying a bit of pressure.
These tests have led many online to speculate that Apple isn't confident about the iPhone 15's durability, which reportedly explains why it lowered repair prices this year – a conspiracy now being dubbed as "crackgate".
On top of durability issues, there have also been reports about overheating and discolouration of the different models.
Apple has yet to comment on the growing outrage among early adopters of its latest iPhone devices.
But the online chatter has been loud enough to divide the Chinese market, with some arguing that the quality of this year's iPhone models pale in comparison to the Huawei's Mate 60 Pro, which released silently in late-August. According to Reuters, a survey by Chinese news portal Sina on social media found that more are willing to buy the Mate 60 over the iPhone 15. The former had 61,000 votes, while the latter only had 24,000.
More tech-savvy users also compared how the Mate 60 Pro features satellite calls and texts, while the iPhone 15 is only capable of satellite texts.
"The iPhone 15 can only send SOS messages via satellite, using last-generation technology already deployed in Huawei's Mate 60, which supports full satellite calling," said one user.
Analysts believe that such comparisons and reports about durability issues, along with a slow economy, won't be favourable for Apple's iPhone 15 sales in China, a key market. So much so that industry research group IDC expects the iPhone maker's share in China's premium phone market to gradually decline due to increased competition from Huawei.
A number of users have learned that Apple's latest iPhone models aren't as durable as they're advertised to be.
EverythingApplePro, for instance, conducted a drop test, dropping both a standard and a Pro model from different heights.
In his video, he shows that the glass rear of both models crack after being dropped from waist height.
The online chatter has been loud enough to divide the Chinese market, with some arguing that the quality of this year's iPhone models pale in comparison to the Huawei's Mate 60 Pro.