iPhone 15 Pro drop test suggests it’s not as durable as iPhone 14 Pro
A new video suggests that the iPhone 15 Pro may be more susceptible to drop damage than the current iPhone 14 Pro.
The video, on Sam Kohl of AppleTrack (through 9to5Mac, compares the two iPhone Pro models during a series of drops. The iPhone 14 remains in apparently like-new condition even after drops hit double digits, but at that point the iPhone 15 Pro is completely destroyed.
It’s important to keep perspective here: if you accidentally drop your iPhone, don’t pick it up and drop it multiple times; it took multiple drops to cause damage to the iPhone 15 Pro in the video. But there does appear to be a structural difference between the old iPhone and the new one, and that difference could apparently make the Pro more susceptible to spiderweb tears when dropped on a hard surface.
Why does the iPhone 15 Pro get damaged in a different way?
The new iPhone 15 Pro makes extensive use of titanium alloy, which is strong and light, and has a titanium alloy frame instead of a stainless steel frame. While titanium is stronger, it’s also a little more flexible, and that, along with the transition from a vertical to a curved edge, seems to have taken away some of the shock-absorbing properties of the iPhone 14 Pro’s stainless steel band.
What that means in practice is that while the titanium itself is very strong, it can transfer more vibration to other parts of the phone, like the glass back, which you can see cracking in the video. So while the structural integrity of the iPhone remains undamaged, the impact can be transmitted through the glass, causing it to crack.
This is unlikely to be a major problem for most users, especially those of us who keep our phones in a case (partly for protection and partly to protect resale value). But it’s perhaps fortunate timing that Apple has made it cheaper to repair the iPhone 15 Pro’s glass back: Apple’s latest repair price estimates put the cost of replacing the iPhone 15 Pro’s back at $169/£ 169 / AU$275, rising to $199 / £199 / AU$319 for the iPhone 15 Pro Max. That’s significantly less than the previous models, which were $499 / £519 / AU$879 and $549 / £559 / AU$899 respectively.
But if you’re clumsy, you might want to consider AppleCare on your new iPhone: that gives you unlimited repairs for accidental damage and reduces costs to $29 in the US, £25 in the UK and AU$45 in Australia.