Recently, while renewing my mobile phone contract, I bought the Samsung’s latest flagship phone, Samsung Galaxy S8+. It was on the 16th May 2017. Fast forward, about 2 months later, I am very disappointed with the glass screen quality. I have heard many bad reports of the screen but I did not realize it is that bad.
Based on the official website from Corning, the Samsung Galaxy S8+ is using the latest Gorilla Glass 5.
It is touted to be tougher against drop and scratches.
CORNING® GORILLA® GLASS 5
Introducing Corning Gorilla Glass 5, a new glass solution that raises the bar for protection against drops higher than ever, surviving 1.6-meter, shoulder-height drops onto hard, rough surfaces up to 80% of the time. That’s up to 4X better in drop failure height than competitive glasses, giving consumers the drop protection they need if they fumble their phones while snapping photos, texting on the go, watching videos, or performing other everyday activities at or below shoulder level. And the best part is even though Gorilla Glass 5 is so much tougher, it still provides the damage resistance, optical clarity and touch sensitivity Gorilla Glass is famous for—ensuring that OEMs that use Gorilla® Glass 5 on their mobile devices cover consumers with the ultimate combination of protection and performance for high-resolution touch-enabled devices.
I have no doubt about it. However, based on what I see on my less than 2 months old Samsung Galaxy S8+, it raises a few questions. But first, I have to declare that I am not a particularly careful person when I use my phone. The reason this S8+ got scratched might be because I have it in the same pocket with my iPhone 7.
Nevertheless, this is not the first time I put two phones in my pocket. It is my first time to witness such deep scratches within half a day in my pocket. How do I know it is deep scratches? I run my fingernails across the scratches and I can feel it. I suspect that the camera module of the iPhone 7 scratches the glass surface of the S8+.
Check out this video.
You might start to point the finger that I should not face the glass surface with the back of the iPhone 7. My answer to you is that things happen. It is not always that I am conscious or cautious about how the phones should be facing each other. In fact, I did that with Mi Mix (with other phones) and it survived well.
What is troubling are not these scratches. It is those lines or marks at the bending part of the glass. At first, I thought it was stains or temporary marks that I could remove. However, after cleaning up the glass surface, I realize that they are permanent. They almost run through the left and right of the glass.
I am only showing those that are visible on the photographs.
Summary
Do not ask me to put on screen protectors. A good glass should be able to handle these kinds of “abuse”. In fact, I did not even “abuse” it. It is just putting two phones in the same pocket. I did not even try keys or any other sharp objects.
If this is a common phenomenon on the latest Samsung phones, Samsung should take a good look at the reason why. Samsung has managed to build a phone that it aesthetically beautiful. Don’t stop there. Ensure that your hardware matches it.
I am not angry. I am just curious on why it could happen in such a short period of time. If you have the similar encounter, comment below. I am very interested to know.
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