issued Camel هاتف IPhone 17 Pro Last month, within days of the official launch of the phone, images of the phone began appearing online from customers. Shows scratches, marks, and deep scratches on the device. The media was quick to call this problem (scratch scandal) Or (Scratchgate).
It has become so common that Camel It was forced to publicly address the issue just five days after the 17 Pro went on sale. The company stated that the aluminum used in the 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max is just as durable as the aluminum used in other products, however, it may show minor signs of wear with normal use over time. But what happened over the past week was far from unusual. In fact, we can only recall one other model of the iPhone This type of damage was evident immediately upon release, and that was it. IPhone 5.
Back to the iPhone 5 Scuffgate
Phone issue IPhone 5 On September 21, 2012, just as with the 17 Pro, people quickly began posting photos of the product showing scratches and signs of wear, causing the term “Jet wound“Scuffgate” on social media.
One user even emailed Phil Schiller, vice president Camel For global marketing at the time. The user wrote: “I love the phone IPhone 5 My phone is black and dark gray, but I've noticed some scratches and wear on the band around the phone, and many others are experiencing the same issue. What should we all do? Are there any plans to fix this?
رد Schiller By saying, “Any product made of aluminum may become scratched or cracked with use, revealing its natural silver color. This is normal.” This statement, made 13 years ago, sounds eerily similar to the one we heard from Camel recently.
Is it true that everyone overreacts to something that should be considered normal? The answer is not, because this problem has only happened twice in history. iPhone Extending for eighteen years: In 2012 with IPhone 5 Today with IPhone 17 ProIf it were “statistically normal,” this type of durability issue would have affected between 51 and 100% of all models. iPhoneBut it didn't; it only affected 5.9%, or two out of 34 models. That's what could be described as a "unnatural".
Aluminum and fragile design constraints
Let's dig deeper, because there are unique qualities in each of them. IPhone 5 و IPhone 17 Pro It makes them less durable. The first is their design, which is made of AluminiumThis is why using a heavy-duty protective case has become crucial with these new phones.
Aluminum is commonly used in consumer electronics because it light, Andcheap, AndEasy to manufacture, AndEasy to dye In bright colors. But it has drawbacks: it is Soft وWeakThat's why companies like Camel The aluminum is anodized, creating a hard outer layer that protects against light scratches.
But this layer is not more than a thickness of 15 microns Only one-tenth the thickness of a human hair, making aluminum vulnerable to punctures, cracks, and deep scratches. If you add Camel To color aluminum, the dye is applied over the oxidation layer. This means that a scratch may penetrate the paint but not the aluminum. When this happens, you're left with a light gray mark that stands out strikingly against the dark background.
I had had IPhone 5 Very dark aluminum color I called it Camel The name is slate. Even when a tiny scratch appears, the high contrast turns it into an unsightly sight.
The iPhone 5 also had chamfered edges. Diamond polished (diamond chamfered edges). These edges were created using a machining process that removed the oxide layer, giving the aluminum a smooth, reflective appearance, but also leaving it soft and weak And vulnerable to damage. The edges were so fragile that some customers discovered their phones were already scratched right out of the box.
Despite saying Schiller Scratches or cracks with use are normal, it has been proven that IPhone 5 It was more fragile than usual, a result of design decisions I made. Camel By itself. These decisions were reversed in later models. The model is no longer 5S It comes in a dark “slate” color. Instead, I created Camel Space gray, a shade closer to silver than dark gray or black. This way, when the phone inevitably gets damaged, the contrast between the raw aluminum and the space gray is much less pronounced. After that, it didn't have IPhone SE, which borrowed the design of the iPhone 5, had diamond-polished chamfered edges. It even had chamfered edges. oxidizing...which wasn't as reflective or as pretty, but was more durable. And guess what? Because of these simple changes, there was no more "iPhone scuffgate" or widespread user complaints.
Materials Race: From Aluminum to Titanium and Back
10 years have passed without any major durability issues. iPhoneThis is because the company has almost solved the problem by using harder minerals وstronger glassIn 2017, it was IPhone 10 The first model to have a frame made of stainless steel (stainless steel). This was an improvement over aluminum because it was Three times tougher, making it harder to bend and almost twice as hard, increasing its scratch resistance.
continued Camel Use of stainless steel in models iPhone Top class until 2023 with IPhone 15 ProThis model was distinguished by the use of Titanium, which weighs approximately Half the weight of steel While it is almost as durable, it has one major drawback: PriceTitanium costs about 10 to 15 times more than aluminum and 6 to 10 times more than stainless steel.
So, when it was Camel has evolved IPhone 17 Pro, which uses much more metal than 16 pro Previously, the high cost of titanium likely made them consider alternatives. Because For the first time in 9 years, I decided Camel Making the most expensive phones iPhone It has the cheapest minerals: Aluminium.
But it wasn't just about saving money. While offering IPhone 17 ProJustified Camel Use of aluminum by saying that it 20 times better thermal conductivity Made of titanium. While this is technically true, its practical impact on the thermal performance of 17 pro Much less dramatic. In fact, the new steam room cooling system is likely to be in 17 pro It is the largest contributor to its thermal performance.
The fragility of the iPhone 17 Pro and the condemned design
What makes IPhone 17 Pro He is very fragile. Edge effect (edge effect). Manufacturers report that oxidation layers grow perpendicular to the treated surface. Therefore, voids occur at all sharp corners and edges. The paint tends to flake off at these points. All edges and corners should be radius beveled to achieve a uniform coating.
This is the biggest reason behind fragility. IPhone 17 ProIt is the first model to contain. Camera bump made of aluminum with oxidized edge sharp Around the perimeter. This resolution is worse than the chamfered edges in IPhone 5, because the camera bump prominent وAlmost twice as big from last year's bump, increasing the chance of it being bumped, scratched, or cut by another object. When you place your phone 17 proIt literally balances on that camera bump.
Instead of making this part the Most durable On the phone, I made it. Camel the most vulnerableAnd for people who say you should just take better care of your phone, I say:
Apple needs to take better care of its customers.
Considering the price iPhone Over the past decade, it's nearly doubled. So, I don't think it's wrong to expect a more premium product.
What makes this situation even more frustrating is that Camel Durability issues have already been resolved. iPhoneIn 2017, it stopped using aluminum on the back and replaced it with ion-strengthened glass, abandoning the IPhone 10 It was completely replaced by aluminum in favor of stainless steel. Then, in 2023, we got titanium. Over the past eight generations, it has become iPhone More and more durable. But this year, it has become iPhone Significantly weaker.
Even users who tried to protect IPhone 17 Pro Their protective case has been discovered to be damaged by impacts. I think customers are right to be frustrated. Camel $100 higher price on 17 pro Compared to last year while giving it a cheaper and less durable material.
In conclusion, it is important to hold companies like Camel When it makes a mistake, it's because this public pressure usually forces it to quietly fix the problem in future releases. That's what happened with IPhone 5S Because of the “iPhone wound scandal,” and IPhone 6S Because of the “bending scandal,” which we expect to happen next year with IPhone 18 Pro As a result of the uproar we are raising today about iPhone Pro scratch scandal.
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