Since Allstate and other insurance companies tend to win up insuring (and footing the bill) for a number of devices, they’re now the ones shattering them to see which holds up to inevitable accidents the best.
Device insurance provider Allstate Protection Plans on Monday shared the results of one of its annual device drop tests, and this time around, the company broke some of the most expensive smartphones on the market, including the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
The company’s drop and dunk tests included the $1,200 iPhone 15 Pro Max, the $1,200 Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, the $1,799 Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5, and the $1,799 Google Pixel Fold. These compose the most expensive smartphone options from Apple, Google, and Samsung, with all of these devices being constructed from specialized glass.
For the tests, Allstate dunked each smartphone in water for 30 minutes and then dropped them onto a sidewalk from six feet up using an apparatus to drop them from the same height and angle. Each of these devices features decent water resistance ratings and works well following the dunk test. The drop tests changed things, and in the front screen-down drop test, the iPhone 15 Pro Max shattered on the first drop and was unusable with shards of raised and loose glass. The same thing happened to the Galaxy S23.
The Z Fold5 and Google Pixel Fold withstood two screen-down drops and showed frame damage, screen dents, and scuffing, which Allstate attributes to the raised lip around the interior edge of each display. Screen down in this case refers to the “main” screen visible when the device is opened. When the two smartphones were dropped on their closed outer displays, they both shattered.
For the back-down drop tests, both the iPhone 15 Pro Max and Galaxy S23 Ultra both shattered immediately. The iPhone 15 Pro Max remained functional, although two of its cameras were no longer working because of damage to the camera glass.
Allstate Protection Plans have been performing these tests for a number of years now on each iPhone generation. There hasn’t been a lot of improvement outside of Apple’s glass upgrades. Apple has begun using a stronger back glass and a “Ceramic Shield” material for the front, but the glass components continue to break when subjected to drop tests.
Keep in mind that drop tests themselves are variable, and the results depend on the angle the device drops, the material it hits, the speed of the drop, and more.
Apple currently sells a range of iPhone cases, as well as offers AppleCare+ covering two incidents of accidental damage each year for a $29 deductible.
Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.
Via MacRumors