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iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus Were 'Never' Targeted to Get Sapphire Displays

iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus Were 'Never' Targeted to Get Sapphire Displays

By Ketan Pratap | Updated: 18 September 2014 17:12 IST

The sapphire screen was one of the features many tech analysts and industry watchers had predicted to be used the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus ahead of their official launch. However, Apple never planned to use sapphire material for the screens, tips a new report.

Tim Bajarin of Time reports that "sapphire was never targeted for the iPhone 6 or 6 Plus and its role in future iPhones hasn't even been decided yet."

Bajarin even contradicts some earlier reports that showed the sapphire could resist drops, scratches, and was flexible enough. He adds, "I was told by multiple sources that various field tests subjected sapphire to scratch and break tests against strengthened glass. It performs better on scratch resistance, but when you drop it, it is more likely than glass to break. Glass actually flexes and can absorb the shock of a drop more successfully than sapphire. Sapphire is prevalent on luxury watches and other products that don't experience the same drop risk as smartphones."

"Once sapphire is exposed to a scratch or a flaw, visible or invisible, its risk of breakage and eventual failure is high," Bajarin added further.

He also goes on to claim citing sources that the use of sapphire could result in at increase of least $100 to the iPhone base cost. "Our researched opinion early on was that if Apple did add a sapphire screen to the new iPhone, it would add at least $100 to the base cost. That could be a deal-breaker for mainstream iPhone customers" notes Bajarin.

The in-depth report also claims that the use of sapphire material in the screen could adversely affect the battery life of the iPhone. Meanwhile, sapphire being a bulkier material could lead to a heavier iPhone. The material would also be required to be cut into shape, adding to the cost and production issues.

The sapphire material use in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus rumours kicked off when GT Advanced Technologies was reported to have received sapphire crystal display tool components from Apple, which was said to be enough to manufacture between 100 and 200 million 5-inch iPhone displays in Arizona.

Ahead of Apple's new iPhone launch, an analyst (who also happened to be an investor at GT Advanced Technologies) claimed that select iPhone 6 models would feature sapphire screens. Reports even suggested that the larger iPhone model (5.5-inch) would only sport sapphire screen and will have limited production, while only few versions of the smaller (4.7-inch) iPhone 6 will sport the premium sapphire material on the display.

Apple iPhone 6

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS
Variants

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Thin, light, easy to handle
Excellent camera
Superb performance
Reasonably good battery life

Bad
Limited storage

Read detailed Apple iPhone 6 review

Display 4.70-inch

Processor Apple A8

Front Camera 1.2-megapixel

Rear Camera 8-megapixel

RAM 1GB

Storage 16GB

Battery Capacity 1810mAh

OS iOS 8.0

Resolution 750x1334 pixels

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Choose a variant

Apple iPhone 6 Plus

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS
Variants

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Fantastic performance
Very good battery life
Excellent camera

Bad
Large and awkward to use
Lacks software optimisations

Read detailed Apple iPhone 6 Plus review

Display 5.50-inch

Processor Apple A8

Front Camera 1.2-megapixel

Rear Camera 8-megapixel

RAM 1GB

Storage 16GB

Battery Capacity 2915mAh

OS iOS 8.0

Resolution 1080x1920 pixels

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Choose a variant

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Further reading: iPhone 6, Sapphire Screen, Mobiles, Apple, iPhone 6 Plus

Ketan Pratap

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Ketan Pratap is the editor at Gadgets 360 - with over 12 years of experience covering the technology domain. With a breadth and depth of knowledge in the field, he's done extensive work across news, features, reviews, and opinion pieces. But what's truly inspiring about Ketan is how he spends his free time. He's often found gazing at snow-capped mountains from over 20,000 feet while sitting on the hood of his car, taking in the breathtaking beauty of nature. His passion for the great ...More