Let’s bend more phones, shall we? iPhone 6 vs. HTC One M8, Moto X, others

“Before the launch of the iPhone 6 Plus, the idea of people being concerned about how ‘bendy’ their phone is would’ve seemed laughable,” Greg Kumparak reports for TechCrunch. “A week later, I’m hearing random people in my just-outside-of-the-echo-chamber coffee spot talk about it like they’d talk about the weather. Strange.”

“Yesterday afternoon, following complaints of new iPhones coming out of their owners’ pockets bent, YouTuber Lewis Hilsenteger posted a video of himself managing to bend the iPhone 6 Plus without much effort,” Kumparak reports. “Today, he’s back with more phones. Does the iPhone 6 bend the way the 6 Plus does? What about other aluminum-backed phones, like the HTC One M8?”

Read more in the full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: Clean up in aisle FUD! A bigger non-issue is difficult to imagine. Don’t sit down in such a way as to bend your smartphone. Or, for those who can’t manage to remember that, buy a heavy duty protective case and treat it like a gorilla treats luggage. There. Done.

(Lewis, you should wear some protective gloves while bend-testing devices.)

[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Dan K.” for the heads up.]

54 Comments

    1. none issue… seems all other plastic phones bend far easier.
      The only thing about aluminum is dropping it. It dents and scares the surface just as much as plastic does, but plastic that is high impact has a better bounce factor then soft metals like aluminum do. that matters to me – but solved with a case.

        1. The U.S. President is using what his IT department set up for him. They gave him a modified Blackberry because that was what he was used to using back in 2007/2008. They could just as easily told him that he had to use a Guardian SME PED (effectively a Blackberry style phone on massive security steroids).

          If U.S. Government IT departments wanted to switch executives (e.g., POTUS and others) to iPhones, they’d have to get Apple to allow them to fork iOS to allow the security levels necessary. To date Apple has been reluctant to do this.

        2. I already knew the tech security reason WHY he carries a Blackberry, I was just commenting on that we couldn’t do an iPhone idiot test using him because he doesn’t have one.

  1. this bend test I don’t trust.
    put it into a actual test frame where you can monitor the pressure accurately.

    when he does the HTC , the moment the screen pops out he stops. He doesn’t continue pressure until failure like he did with the 6 plus …

      1. what is the point of your post?

        I was just pointing out the flaws in his test.

        there is only one disagreement with what I’ve said which is “I disagree. I think his test was scientific and a real test rig wouldn’t make any difference in accuracy ”

        so is THAT your contention? otherwise you are just trolling with nothing of substance to add.

        1. why do you guys troll here?

          Android users trolling at a Apple Fan Site are like Yugo drivers trolling at a Lamborghini Fan Site (FlashFact: Yugo drivers we don’t really care about your opinions).

          And just like a Lamborghini driver would never bother visiting a Yugo car site I never bother to troll an Android site. It’s beneath me, waste of my time because I have no respect for your tech.

          No respect because I know that Apple makes 60% of all cell phone profits in the world so all Android are cheap trash (Yugos) . If they weren’t cheap trash they would be more profitable. Even Apple’s so called ‘flop’ iP 5C outsold the S4 and S5 for months.

          But obviously you guys are obsessed with Apple as you’re here rather than doing something else, like the lonely dweeb glaring lustily at the studs with the hot girls trying to make jokes and comments to disguise the fact he doesn’t have a hot girl himself. Go back to your tattered porn dude and leave us with our hot girls, go drive your YUgo and let me play with my Lamborghini.

    1. Well.

      I always bought a Mophie case for my phones for 3 reasons:
      – more battery (main reason honestly)
      – microUSB charging
      – hate the flat back on those iPhones 4 and later, love the curved iPhone 3 back: feels better in the hand, looks nicer on the ass (or the leg front)

      So there.

  2. You need to look closely at the bending by hand original video. Pay close attention, maybe even stop it or slow mo it. I believe is a hoax.
    To me it looks like the phone on the last frames just before the bend was already a bit bent. Unlike the other earlier part of the video. To me it makes me think that the phone was mechanically weaken before the final test.
    Why? Because Apple is an easy target for disgruntled people. Where are the videos of regular owners bending their phones? Did you see how much pressure was applied to the phone?
    I will wait for a control test of many phones to pass judgement. In the mean time my eyes tell me that a hoax might be in the works.

    1. I’ve been watching UnboxTherapy for years and years. Hes already one of the most popular tech YouTube guys. I dont think hes hurting for subscribers enough for that. Sounds like a conspiracy theory

  3. It would be hard to believe that the iPhone was the only bendable smartphone in existence but I don’t ever remember there being any internet outbreak regarding smartphones that got bent in someone’s pocket. Apple attracts media negativity like a lightning rod. I’m sure it will quickly blow over once people get it out of their system. All the late show hosts will get their moment of fame with bent iPhone jokes.

    I hope there is some agency out there who will test a whole bunch of smartphones to see if the iPhone is any more prone to being bent than any other smartphone on the market. Although it probably won’t change much maybe Apple will be vindicated if most modern flagship smartphones can be bent with the same force.

    It’s hard to believe why people would actually try to bend their smartphones with their fingers. I’m sure no company ever purposely designed a smartphone to pass that test.

  4. People keep talking about how the phone bent after applying “just a little” pressure. Do your thumbs & fingers turn red when applying “just a little” pressure? Do your hands & arms shake when applying “just a little” pressure?
    To me it seems like “CONSIDERABLE” pressure is being applied! Where is the scientific testing?

  5. He’s back with more phone bending and narcissism.
    Mostly it’s the narcissism, and the phone bending is the
    enabler, as them shrinks like to say.

    “I look great, with my not-fat Kevin Smith thing.”

    Kevin Smith saw these, and wants to come on board
    for the next segment: “How well does the iPhone 6
    hold up if Kevin Smith steps/stands on it?”

    And the follow up, Kevin Smith steps/stands on
    the other phones.

  6. I also don’t trust this guy. A Youtuber is usually a game who’re who’s in it either for the money (payola?) or the views (which translates to $). He seemed to be too pleased with himself when he mentioned “Bendgate fiasco which is growing…” and the ensuing media coverage (of which he was the beneficiary). His test isn’t scientific as he can be applying variable amounts of force to suit his own personal agenda. He doesn’t fool me.

  7. I don’t know guys….I know you think it’s not an issue, but i think its kind of a problem. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would give it a 3. It’s stupid that he didn’t test any samsung phones that reach up to 5.5. oh well. One reason i bought the six and not the plus is because I would want to fit it in my pockets, and when i tried…it barely fit. But, the concept is that i want to put it in my pocket, so to call people dumb for having the phone bend in their pocket is a bit ridiculous. Yeah, you could get a cover, which i always do…but some peeps hate the covers and for good reason, covers usually make the phone less enjoyable to play with. Apple could have put a little more effort into making it more durable, thats all i am sayin.

    1. It is durable enough!
      The problem with this whole fiasco is that it is making an issue out of a none issue!
      And it is done by the competition as an act of desperation for survival.
      Samsung had a lot to loose and this is their lowlife way to compete…Spread disinformation.
      There is zero doubt in my mind that this idiot who published the video is on samsungs bribe list !

      1. Well said muddy gun. Getting a case will help with this issue.

        Yojimbo007. You’re the idiot! This is an issue. It’s already all over the news and on popular sites. You and the other morons can keep burying you heads up your asses. “La! La! La! It’s FUD. It’s not an issue. It’s not an issue.” Apple has to do damage control.

        Durable enough? Way to set the bar sky high. Apple should have better reenforced the casing. Shame on Apple. No doubt Apple will learn from their mistakes and make the iPhone 7 Plus more durable. Doesn’t make the iPhone 6 any more durable though.

        1. You and your comrades are truly trying to make this an issue…..i understand that… But in reality it is a none issue…..
          The phone is durable enough for sane individual !
          But i assure u it wont survive a blow from a big hammer either !
          Now go get your pay !

  8. It must be nice to be able to buy and break any smartphone you like!

    IPhone phablet not so phabulous? It crossed over an engineering line phor those who think a phablet was ever meant to phit in a pocket. Oh well. I never understood the point oph phablets in any case, or out oph a case as the case may be. No doubt there will be some re-engineering in this phablet’s phuture.

  9. I just tested my iPhone 6 on my desk for non-bentness and then to my horror, watched it wobble from corner to corner. Nooooo!!!!!!

    Then I realised it was just the protruding camera lens. Phew!!!

  10. Every youtube and non-youtube bloggers are thinking Chi-Ching!!! This story is click heaven for them. I agree with many commenters, this is a non-scientific test. In the video he used different pressure points, stopped the pressure as soon as he heard a crack, and ultimately didn’t try the Samsung line (Note and S5). One top commenter summed it up over at the comment sections at Tech Crunch.

    “Phillip Blackerby · Top Commenter · Principal at Blackerby Associates, Inc.
    Not exactly a fair test. The implication was that general pressure, such as in a pocket of tight jeans, would bend the phone, but he didn’t apply general pressure. All the pressure was on the edge, not on the middle part of the phone. And he focused the pressure on the button cutouts, not in the middle of the phone. Anyone can take any industrial product and damage it by focusing energy on the obvious weakest points. Let’s see some real science applied! And no, I’m not at all an Apple fanboy, I use a Moto Razr Android phone and a Samsung PC!”

    http://techcrunch.com/2014/09/24/bending-all-the-phones-iphone-6-vs-htc-one-m8-vs-moto-x/?ncid=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Techcrunch+%28TechCrunch%29&utm_content=Google+UK

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