For the record, I have been counting the days until this stupid iPhone 6 Plus #bendgate nonsense would end ever since the first time I saw the video that kicked it all off from Unbox Therapy. When I saw the knuckles of Lewis Hilsenteger go white in his attempt to bend the iPhone 6 Plus, I was convinced that this was all going to be blown way out of proportion, and any chance to highlight a real problem with the iPhone 6 Plus would likely be lost. I'm sad to say that I may have already been proven right.
There is obviously a structural flaw in the iPhone 6 Plus that Apple should be held accountable for, but there is a huge gap between confronting a company about a legitimate problem and what we've been seeing with #bendgate. Of course, I should have expected that exact reaction, because almost no one on Earth knows how to discuss Apple rationally and reasonably, and any issue with an Apple product, no matter how small, will become far bigger than it should, because irrationality breeds exaggeration (just check the comment section on any Apple-related article for evidence on that).
Let's start right at the beginning, when the rumors first started going around about the iPhone 6 Plus bending. The first whispers came from iPhone users, obviously. But, were they finding out about the problem because of normal usage? At first, yes, but quickly afterwards, not so much. The first reports came from people who had put the iPhone their front pocket only to find it bend, which is unfortunate and a real issue. But, those reports were overtaken by jokes about skinny jeans, and complaints from those who put their new iPhones in their back pocket and then sat on them. Look, I don't care if you're wearing skinny jeans or Hammer pants, and I don't care if you have an iPhone, a Galaxy Note, or a NoPhone. If you put a smartphone in your back pocket and then sit on it, any damage that occurs is your fault and yours alone. That's just a mistake waiting to happen, especially when the phone in question is large enough to be affected by the shape of your ass.
After those initial reports, the mess took an even more silly turn, and for this we have Mr. Hilsenteger to thank, because since then there have been almost no reports from actual consumers with legitimate problems. The vast majority of the "coverage" has been from people who are actively trying to bend the iPhone. The coverage has been flat out ridiculous and has turned into a mess of noise that is obscuring any possibility of getting Apple to answer the real complaints. And, that's a big problem, because there are legitimate concerns which need to be addressed.
Hiding the real problem with theater
Look, a phone bending is nothing new. The iPhone 5/5s had bending problems, so did the Samsung Galaxy S4, the Sony Xperia Z1, and the Oppo Find 5. The iPhone 6 Plus isn't the first phone to have bending problems, and it won't be the last. I mean, this isn't even the first iPhone to have bending problems, so why has the story gone viral this time around? The bending issue with the 6 Plus doesn't appear to be any more widespread than any previous issue. It doesn't appear to be that big of a deal at all, once you look past the hype. Apple has sold millions of iPhones, and it claims there have only been 9 official complaints about bending. There have undoubtedly been more than 9 people with problems, of course, but whatever the real number is doesn't much matter, because all of those real issues have been drowned out by people reveling in a flashy new flaw that they can use to justify their dislike of Apple.
THERE ARE POSSIBLY HUNDREDS OR EVEN THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE OUT THERE WITH AN IPHONE 6 PLUS THAT IS BENT EVEN A LITTLE, BUT ALL YOU GET TO SEE ARE GUYS PROVING HOW STRONG THEIR HANDS ARE
And, that's one of the biggest problems with this whole fiasco. Rather than getting word straight from users who are having the problem, we are getting inundated with hundreds of videos and thousands of reports featuring people actively bending the iPhone for nothing more than show. The few actual accidental bending issue reports come via comments on sensationalized stories (and the bending on those is almost always very slight), and the unfortunate Wired review unit that was bent to an "almost imperceptible" degree during regular use. A legitimate problem is being hidden by those who just want to make catchy theater. There are possibly hundreds or even thousands of people out there with an iPhone 6 Plus that is bent to much smaller degree than you'd see in any video of that. All you get to see are guys proving how strong their hands are.
Even the Consumer Reports investigation missed the point of this whole thing. The Consumer Reports tests were flawed, as evidenced by the fact that the iPhone 6 was found to bend easier than the 6 Plus. The trouble was that the tests only applied pressure to the middle of the iPhone 6 Plus, and found that it took about 90 pounds of pressure to bend the iPhone 6 Plus. Of course, the truth is that it doesn't take that much pressure to bend an iPhone, as long as you are pressing in the right spot. Unfortunately, even though the data was incomplete, Consumer Reports was right in saying that #bendgate is little more than hype. In reality, the whole thing is hype and almost no substance, and not because there is no substance to be had.
We saw the ultimate end point for all of the #bendgate coverage yesterday, and it wasn't a proper response from Apple. Instead, it was two idiot kids going into an Apple Store to bend a display model iPhone for themselves and get it on camera. Many in the media were outraged at what was a blatantly illegal act, but that wasn't the only problem with that video. Those two teens also highlighted the fact that the vast majority of the coverage so far has been mostly spectacle and little substance. Bending an iPhone with your bare hands won't force Apple to deal with the issue, just like taking a baseball bat to your car won't force Toyota to make a stronger windshield. Only real customers with real issues highlighting how widespread the issue is will change anything.
Facing the issue properly
There is a legitimate issue with the iPhone 6 Plus, and it is one that could affect far more people than we know about. Unfortunately, right now, Apple has far less incentive to respond than you might think. Apple was partially saved by the flawed Consumer Reports testing, which missed the real problem and then proceeded essentially to call the issue overblown. Apple has been even more disincentivized to respond beyond what it has already said, because with the rash of copycat bending videos, the actual design flaw that causes the issue has been missed by many, and the problem for Apple may be getting fixed as well.
To his credit, Lewis Hilsenteger of Unbox Therapy, after kicking off the #bendgate theater, has been trying to draw attention to the real issue, which is a structural flaw. Many have speculated (myself included) that the problem was simply that the iPhone was too thin and didn't include enough reinforcement inside. The thinness of the iPhone 6 Plus seems to be a bit of a red herring though, because the iPhone 6 is even thinner and doesn't have the same issues in the real world, despite doing worse on the Consumer Reports tests. The thinness of the device likely doesn't help the problem, but the current data is pointing to a design flaw that may be more to blame. If you notice, every iPhone that has been bent warps in the same spot, right behind the volume buttons.
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