Claim: Apple Store visitors are bending iPhone 6 devices deliberately in response to web rumors of excessive "bendiness."
Example: [Collected via Twitter, September 2014]
I did read this article about some kids going into an Apple store and bending all the iPhones. Over $3,000 in damages.
— Dave, The Hero. (@TheInfamousHero) September 29, 2014
Origins: Soon after Apple's iPhone 6 was released in September 2014, reports began to circulate claiming that the devices were bending in users' pockets absent excessive wear, tear, or pressure. On
Early on 29 September, a post was submitted to Reddit titled "Kids bending iPhones in the Apple store" featuring a video in which two teenage boys filmed themselves visiting an Apple Store and bending several iPhone 6 units. The clip was taken down the same day, but several mirrors remained readily accessible.
In the clip, one of the two boys explained:
We were in the Apple store bending and breaking their iPhone, which is like criminal damage, I guess. I don't even care to be honest, because it's Apple's fault ... they are false advertising, saying it's the best iPhone but clearly it's not if it can bend in your hands or your pocket. It's just ridiculous."
The teens' Apple Store exploits are not the only claims of deliberate sabotage of
After watching some of the videos online I knew what the supposed weak spot was. (From watching others, they were just guessing.) Taking my thumbs, I pressed and pushed in toward my hands that were firmly around the rest of the phone covering the entirety of the screen on the other side. It bent.
... "Hey, you bent the phone!" a girl next to me said. Her friend soon joined her to look. "I tried and couldn't," she said. Her friend echoed her statement. Soon I was surrounded by a group of
"How did you do that?" asked someone else. "I used my hands," I said. "I think it's kinda cool they make it so it bends," another said.
At this point I thought it best to leave the store. Did I feel bad about bending it a bit? Not really ... others were trying, and I walked past a person attempting the same thing on the way to the exit. If they made me buy the phone, there would have been worse tragedies. I would have received a Plus with no wait with a screen still appearing crystal clear and functioning perfectly.
It is not clear whether Apple Store iPhone 6 displays are being vandalized regularly or if the articles and video stem from a few isolated incidents. Whether or not iPhones are being deliberately broken in Apple Stores, the circumstances under which those devices are damaged differs entirely from the normal pocketing and carrying of the phones, which is what prompted the original rumors. Consumer Reports investigated the overall "bendiness" of
Last updated: 29 September 2014
