Just days after they went on sale, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus have a noticeable flaw: According to TechCrunch, “the larger iPhone 6 and 6 Plus may be prone to bending after being crumpled in your pocket for a long time.”
The Bendgate Phenomenon
Dubbed “Bendgate,” this bending phenomenon of the new iPhones’ thinner and larger aluminum bodies seems to occur at the top end, just near the volume buttons. iMore reports this is the point where the iPhone is weakest due to the cutouts for the buttons and the SIM card. Pictures of unintentionally curved iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus devices continue to accumulate across blogs and Twitter, giving rise to the hashtag #Bendgate.
Some owners have complained that the phone bends simply by keeping it in their pockets for prolonged periods. One YouTube video of a demo has emerged, showing an iPhone 6 Plus bending with only a nominal amount of force.
Not Unique to iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus
For many first-time iPhone owners, Bendgate may seem like a major engineering flaw—but this phenomenon is not unique to the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. Back when the iPhone 5 came out, Cult of Mac reported it also bent at the volume button. The same issue returned again with the iPhone 5s.
Some websites have tried to explain the reason. According to iMore, “the iPhone 6 and the preceding iPhone 5s and 5 are made of precisely machined aluminum. It’s a metal, yes, but metals such as aluminum generally possess the quality of ductility—they are pliable, not brittle.” Aluminum is a fairly soft metal, about as tough as a US penny. The website recommends putting the iPhone in a shirt or coat pocket, or ensuring it stays upright and parallel to the leg in a pant pocket.
What do you think? Would you still purchase the iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus despite the possibility of bending?
Image courtesy of Flickr
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