The titanium iPhones, at least, are nearly impervious to scratches when dropped on concrete or asphalt from a reasonable height. I “scientifically” test this pretty often.

Because the iPhone 15 pro was significantly lighter than previous pro models, I wanted to avoid a case to get the most out of this improvement. However, I wouldn’t have even experimented with not using a case if it weren’t for the applecare+ plans that are reasonable. I’ve been surprised by the durability to the extent that I should probably discontinue the applecare+ plan.

The aluminum models might not be as durable. Compared to phones 20 or even 30 years ago that didn’t need a case, I suppose a significant difference is the density as much as the total weight or the hardness of the materials.

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loloquwowndueo 3 days ago | parent [-]

Phones 20 years ago didn’t have expansive glass-covered screens. The biggest I had (blackberry curve) was fairly plasticky and quite sturdy, when dropped it might sometimes eject the battery compartment cover but otherwise survived in perfect working order. And of course Nokias were almost indestructible.

	▲	rz2k 3 days ago \| parent \| next [-]
		Good point. I did have a Kyocera 6035 which I dropped and broke the screen on (years past its useful life) but that was an exotic device.
	▲	nickpeterson 3 days ago \| parent \| prev \| next [-]
		Yeah people forget how nearly indestructible the old Nokia candy bar phones were.
	▲	gf000 2 days ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		I mean, they were pretty trivial electronic components with a tiny screen wrapped in a kg of plastic. Like, what even could go wrong with them? But modern smartphones are anything like that, and people do like the more premium materials on the outside (and it sort of makes sense - if you have a device that you are using 24/7, it might as well "feel" more premium), so I don't think it's a fair comparison