First device to use Corning's Gorilla Glass in mass production was...

[MrX8503]

Surprisingly the 1st gen iPhone. In fact, all of the iPhones use GG and the original was supposed to use a hard plastic until Steve Jobs called the CEO of Corning to reopen their factories to produce the glass.

The iPhone 4 gets a lot of flak for build quality, but it's only shatter prone because it's mostly glass, whereas other smartphones have plastic.

"In 2006, Apple Inc. was developing what was to be the first model of the iPhone. Though initially it was to have a hard plastic screen, Steve Jobs found that when placed in his pocket his keys scratched the prototype's surface. Jobs was outraged and resolved to find a glass that was scratch-resistant enough that iPhone buyers wouldn't have the same problem."

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gorilla_Glass&mobileaction=view_normal_site

 

[Bateluer]

http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/

 

[Pliablemoose]

http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/

Actually, Apple has never credited them with the glass until recently.

http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/02/apple-name-drops-corning-as-iphone-glass-manufacturer-we-feign/

 

[gorcorps]

So does this mean all those people who said "the iphone 4 wouldn't crack so easily if it had real gorilla glass" were full of shit and had no idea what they were talking about?

 

[Anubis]

basically

the reason the iphone 4 cracks so much is because it lacks a protective bezel. GG is designed to be scratch resistant and strong when pressing on the pane of glass, it does not have super edge impact strength.

 

[gorcorps]

basically

the reason the iphone 4 cracks so much is because it lacks a protective bezel. GG is designed to be scratch resistant and strong when pressing on the pane of glass, it does not have super edge impact strength.

that makes a lot more sense

 

[MrX8503]

So does this mean all those people who said "the iphone 4 wouldn't crack so easily if it had real gorilla glass" were full of shit and had no idea what they were talking about?

Pretty much. GG doesnt flex and so when you have a device that's all glass it'll be more prone to shattering. So having plastic does have its benefits, but it'll scratch easier too.

 

[alyarb]

just look on youtube. you'll find a video of a guy pounding down the z-axis with a hammer and it doesn't break. but a modest dink from the x or y direction and it shatters

 

[bearxor]

I always figured the reason the iPhone 4 was more shattertistic was because Apple used a very thin layer of glass. It wouldn't surprise me if Apple was a driving force behind Gorilla Glass 2.0, where supposedly a thickness of half is required to achieve the results of the original.

And though Apples never come out and named them, I think the interview with the guy from Corning in Steve Jobs' biography was probably all the proof we needed.

 

[badb0y]

Thought this was well known lol.

 

[ponyo]

Thought this was well known lol.

I heard/read about it a year or two back.

It's cool technology and we have Apple and Corning to thank for bringing it to our devices. But I don't think it matters to most Apple or smartphone users. About every iPhone I see is covered with case and screen protector. The screen could've been hard plastic and it wouldn't have made a difference since most people cover it with nasty screen protector. I've seen crazy people with screen protector on the iPad and other tablets.

 

[Bateluer]

It's cool technology and we have Apple and Corning to thank for bringing it to our devices. But I don't think it matters to most Apple or smartphone users. About every iPhone I see is covered with case and screen protector. The screen could've been hard plastic and it wouldn't have made a difference since most people cover it with nasty screen protector. I've seen crazy people with screen protector on the iPad and other tablets.

Carriers like phones that need cases and screen protectors. Most accessories they can sell you. *tin foil hat*

 

[Imp]

Carriers like phones that need cases and screen protectors. Most accessories they can sell you. *tin foil hat*

Love them $50 "official" cases...

 

[Strk]

Love them $50 "official" cases...

Of course that's what they want. It is just like any other retail. The "core" item may not make them much, but the accessories probably have a 70%+ mark up on them.

 

[zerocool84]

Of course that's what they want. It is just like any other retail. The "core" item may not make them much, but the accessories probably have a 70%+ mark up on them.

Which makes Apple needing licensing on all accessories sold even more profitable for them.

 

[96Firebird]

Corning does a lot with respect to specialty glass - another large thing they are working on for the future is flexible glass for flexible displays. I did a little bit of work with them when I was a co-op at a medical imaging company. I can't really discuss what they were working on, but it was a neat experience none-the-less.

 

[soccerballtux]

Pretty much. GG doesnt flex and so when you have a device that's all glass it'll be more prone to shattering. So having plastic does have its benefits, but it'll scratch easier too.

no I believe it does flex--

it's not actual glass, it's a special plastic.

 

[alent1234]

Which makes Apple needing licensing on all accessories sold even more profitable for them.

Their cut is 20% of revenues

 

[InfinitySquared]

Their cut is 20% of revenues

It's more than that.

 

[ChronoReverse]

no I believe it does flex--

it's not actual glass, it's a special plastic.

"Gorilla Glass, manufactured by Corning, is an alkali-aluminosilicate sheet glass"



It's very much glass. Another name you might have is "fortified glass". It's a special treatment that makes glass really strong.

But it's still not plastic like plastic =D