The Ceramic Shield raises the odds that an iPhone display will survive a fall by a factor of four
And in the middle of glass and ceramics is glass-ceramics. The latter starts out as glass and turns into nearly a completely crystalline or ceramic substance by using heat and a nucleating agent (like silver or titanium) — that forms “seeds” that crystals can grow around. Corning has been able to develop the Ceramic Shield to make it transparent and to give it the properties it needs to be of use to Apple in the production of the new iPhone models. Or as Apple puts it, “Enter Ceramic Shield. It’s made by introducing nano-ceramic crystals — which are actually harder than most metals — into glass. Sounds simple, but it’s incredibly difficult because ceramic isn’t transparent. By controlling the type of crystals and degree of crystallinity, we developed an exclusive formula that maximizes the toughness of the ceramic while remaining optically clear. This was the breakthrough that made Ceramic Shield ideally suited for the display. It’s a first in any smartphone, and it’s tougher than any smartphone glass.”
Besides the use of the Ceramic Shield, Apple says that “there’s one more thing that contributes to the durability of the front cover. It sits flush to the edge of the phone, which helps protect it even more. Altogether, we’ve quadrupled the drop performance — the largest year-over-year improvement ever for iPhone.”
While many will say that support for 5G is the most important addition to the 2020 iPhone models, not everyone can take advantage of this. However, everyone who owns an iPhone 12 series phone can take advantage of the improved protection of the display provided by Ceramic Shield.
