Apple’s new iPhone 13 ad shows that the phone is “Toddler Resistant” thanks to Corning’s Ceramic Shield
Finally, the toddler holds the phone high and drops it on the hardwood floor. The mother comes from behind to pick up the iPhone, glances at the screen, and puts it in her pocket. “Toddler Resistant” says the ad, followed by Apple’s iconic “Relax, it’s iPhone” tag line.
Corning and Apple teamed up on the OG Gorilla Glass
Corning and Apple have teamed on protective glass dating back to the original iPhone when Apple asked Corning if it could develop a toughened thin glass for the iPhone. By 2010, the first version of Gorilla Glass was found on 20% of mobile phones across the globe, about 200 million units. In 2012, Corning introduced the sequel called Gorilla Glass 2. While we don’t know how long it took the company to come up with that name, the sequel was 20% thinner than the original.
At the end of 2014, Corning introduced Gorilla Glass 4 which was thinner than Gorilla Glass 3 while offering the same protection as the previous version. Gorilla Glass 5 was designed to provide protection from drops and debuted in 2016 on the ill-fated Samsung Galaxy Note 7.
Corning’s latest protective glass for mobile devices is the Gorilla Glass Victus
Eventually, the Gorilla Glass SR+ was replaced by the Gorilla Glass DX+ and was first used on the Samsung Galaxy Watch in 2018. The following year, the Samsung Galaxy S10 was the first smartphone to use Gorilla Glass 6 and matched the previous version’s scratch resistance while providing protection from multiple drops conducted at taller heights.
Gorilla Glass Victus can survive falls from as high as 6.5-feet onto rough and hard surfaces. While Gorilla Glass 6 can survive up to 15 drops of 1 meter each (3.37-inches), Victus can survive up to 20 drops of 1 meter each.
Corning’s Ceramic Shield, used on the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 models, gives those iPhone models four times the drop protection than previous iPhone handsets.
