Rumours of a tougher, better built iPhone 6S appear to be on the money as a video test emerges on the internet.
As good as it is, the iPhone 6 has become known for its somewhat weak chassis – a situation that earned the ‘bendgate’ tag after a few too many boomerang-shaped smartphones.
Since April, numerous sources have reported that the iPhone 6S will be significantly tougher. Apparently, Apple has switched to the Series 7000 aluminium that it uses in the Apple Watch Sport, as well as reinforcing the iPhone 6 design’s weak spots.
It has been claimed that this will lead to a 60 percent tougher phone than the iPhone 6.
Now a team of testers called Unbox Therapy have put what appears to be the iPhone 6S chassis through an intensive bend test. The results are impressive.
When strapped into a custom-rigged pressing machine, the iPhone 6 chassis could only withstand 30lb of pressure before it began to fold significantly.
The iPhone 6S chassis, by contrast, managed to withstand 80lb without bending to a significant degree. That makes it just a little short of three times tougher – at least according to this specific test on a specific area of the two phones.
It’s worth noting that even a completely built iPhone 6 folded at 70lb. Impressive.
The team’s material tests also confirmed that the iPhone 6S was indeed using the new Series 7000 aluminium, and that it features a much thicker anodisation to boot.
Related: iPhone 6S vs Samsung Galaxy S6
The video speculates that the latter could be down to the increased levels of zinc in Series 7000 aluminium, which leaves the material more open to corrosion than the iPhone 6’s bog standard material.
Series 7000 aluminium is also considerably more expensive than the weaker material, though you can bet that Apple secured itself a decent rate.
We should also point out that Samsung has already adopted Series 7000 aluminium on its two latest smartphones, the Galaxy Note 5 and the S6 Edge+.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
