Are you concerned over Bendgate followingthis YouTube video? Responding to the controversy that blew up on social media before taking the world by storm,Apple saidit’d received complaints from nine customers over the supposed iPhone 6 Plus bending.
The company eventook select members of the press on a tourof its facility just a a few blocks away from the Cupertino campus, where it torture-tested 15,000iPhone 6and 15,000iPhone 6 Plushandsets.
I think Bendgate is a non-issue, but I could be wrong. One thing is certain:the memewon’t go away if I choose to ignore it. That said, it doesn’t surprise me at all that some fans are now questioning Apple’s “just works” mantra, especially in light ofother snafusin the form of the iOS 8.0.1 update gone terrible wrong, Apple’s U2 “gift”, Celebgate and iCloud security.
After reading about these PR disasters, some folks may be thinking twice about buying the iPhone 6 Plus. Are you among that group or did you brush off Bendgate as a non-issue?
Cast your vote now.
Chuck Jones theorizedon Forbes.com that Bendgate could potentially wind up costing Apple hundreds of millions of dollars if customers steer away from the iPhone 6 Plus in droves, or should Apple — in the worst case scenario — be forced to recall and redesign the device.
Analysts, on the other hand, are not entirely convinced that Bendgate might end up costing Apple dearly. “It will do nothing, I don’t suspect it will dampen any demand,” Tim Bajarin, an analyst at Creative Strategies Inc.,told Bloomberg.
But why then did the media jump on the Bendgate bandwagon if it’s a non-issue? Because Apple attracts more attention than any other company, that’s why.
Frank Gillett, an analyst at Forrester Research, put it best:
“Apple is a bit of lightning rod or a focus because as a company, they inspire a lot of positive and negative passion and also because they are now this company with a global brand and global reach,” he said.
Marques Brownlee did an excellent job explaining the latest Apple ”crisis”.
I don’t think I’ll be putting off my iPhone 6 Plus purchase because of the reported bending issues. For starters, I don’t wear skinny jeans and would never put a pricey piece of electronics in my ass pocket and sit on it for hours.
After all is said and done, Bendgate will fade away just like Antennagate has back in 2010. While this time around Apple isn’t giving away a free case to everyone, you should get one just in case. Not only will a hardened case prevent or minimize any bending, it’ll hide those ugly antenna stripes on the back.
Conan O’ Brien took another look at Bendgate by trying a rock-hard Samsung handset.
Hopefully,common sense will prevail. Many consumer products, especially thin smartphones, will bend when enough pressure is applied. It’s not just a fact of life, that’s good ol’ physics.
Before signing off, let me just point out that Consumer Reports, the influential U.S. magazine that reviews and compares consumer products and services,promised to subject the handsetto its authoritative testing with the goal of determining whether or not the larger iPhone has a bending problem.
The regular iPhone 6 does not seem to exhibit any malleability issues.
Bendgate comic viaJoy of Tech.
As for that YouTube video,Pocket-lint has a few good reasons to believethat it’s fake and offers some science to back it up. And withten million iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus movedduring the opening weekend alone, I don’t think Apple should sweat over Bendgate too much.
Another finely doneJoy of Tech production.
So, how did you vote and why?
And could the iPhone 6 Plus withstand a reasonable amount of force, including that exerted from everyday activities like sitting, do you think?
P.S. If you’ve already purchased a new iPhone,this poll is for you!
