Glass is scratch-resistant but not drop-resistant. Plastic can protect your phone from drops but can’t protect it from scratches. Glass looks more premium and plastic makes it look like a cheaper version. So smartphone makers seem to not be able to find a material for their displays that can protect it from both scratches and drops and make it look premium too. Well, Corning says they can now do it with their brand new Gorilla Glass 6 and if rumors are to be believed, you might see it in an upcoming smartphone sooner than you think.
If Gorilla Glass 5 focused more on making your screen scratch-resistant, scientists now worked on bringing us a material that should protect our screens from the usual drops that we do on our smartphones. A consumer study said that people actually drop their phones an average of seven times a year and half of those drops occur at 1 meter or below. So in creating Gorilla Glass 6, they tested it out and it survived 15 drops from 1 meter onto rough surfaces. In this aspect, it is already two times better than the previous Gorilla Glass.
Corning #GorillaGlass6 helps survive multiple drops because almost everyone fumbles their phone at least once a year. #IsItOnYours pic.twitter.com/Hsi8GPAySe
— CorningGorillaGlass (@corninggorilla) July 18, 2018
One trend that we’re seeing with smartphones now is that they’re using glass backs for their higher-end devices. Corning says that the Gorilla Glass 6 is the perfect material for the front as the shatter-resistant material can give your smartphone an even more premium feel. It can enable the latest design trends as it has optical clarity, touch sensitivity, efficient wireless charging, and of course the aforementioned scratch resistance and enhanced durability.
The Corning Gorilla Glass 6 is already being evaluated by manufacturers, but there are rumors that the soon-to-be-announced Samsung Galaxy Note 9 will be the first to sport it. The ill-fated Galaxy Note 7 was the first to use the Gorilla Glass 5 back in 2016, so this might not be all that surprising. We’ll find out soon enough as the launch will happen in early August.
SOURCE: Corning
