Corning Gorilla Glass 5 Will Survive Smartphone Drops Better

Corning recently unveiled the new Gorilla Glass 5, which is tougher than before and can withstand smartphone drops better.

The new Gorilla Glass was specially built to survive smartphone drops from waist and shoulder heights. Most people usually drop their phones from either waist height or shoulder height. Research done by the company also shows that around 85 percent of smartphones owners have dropped their devices at least once a year.

According to Corning, when the Glass equipped smartphone or tablet is dropped from around 1.6 meters, chances of it shattering are very low. About 80 percent of the time, it will survive the drop.

Overall, Corning’s Gorilla Glass has been used in over 4.5 billion devices to date. It was in 2007 that the Glass was used on a consumer electronics device for the first time. Companies such as HTC, Lenovo, LG, HP, Asus, Huawei, and Samsung, have all used Gorilla Glass.

Gorilla Glass 4 was released last year and is now used on almost all the latest smartphones and tablets. It was supposedly twice as stronger than the previous gen Glass and could withstand drops from about 1 meter. And now, the latest Glass is more stronger and can survive higher drops.

Corning has conducted several tests with the Gorilla Glass 5 to ensure that it can withstand rough surfaces and drops on its face. They dropped their dummy smartphones with the Glass from both waist and shoulder height. However, they weren’t dropped on the edges, which can be more damaging.

According to John Bayne, the VP and General Manager of Corning, the durability of the glass also depends on the design and stiffness of the smartphone design. He further states;

With each successive generation of Corning Gorilla Glass, we have taken cover glass technology to new levels. Gorilla Glass 5 is no exception, extending Corning’s advantage in drop performance over competitive glasses. With many real-world drops occurring from between waist and shoulder height, we knew improving drop performance would be an important and necessary advancement.

Also, Corning used 0.6mm glass for the test, whereas OEMs will usually opt for a thinner 0.4mm version. This thinner glass may not fare as well as the thicker glass. Ultimately, it all falls in the hands of the OEM, as Corning can’t direct them on their designs.

The new Gorilla Glass 5 will most likely be present in the next gen iPhone 7, the new Galaxy Note 7 and all the smartphones coming out later this year. Production for the Glass is already under way and we should hear more about its application very soon.