sapphire crystal

Seven 'sapphire crystal' stories September 2013 - August 2015

iPhone 6S will come in Apple Watch-like Rose Gold rather than Pink, lack sapphire, and have renamed Force Touch

Mark Gurman Aug 27 2015 - 11:39 am PT

Earlier this year, reports began to suggest that Apple would launch the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus in an additional color beyond the Space Gray, Silver, and Gold options that have been available in the popular iPhone 6 and iPhone 5s. Since then, there have been conflicting rumors regarding Apple’s color choice: some (including the Wall Street Journal) have claimed that the new iPhones would come in “pink,” while some analysts have referred to the color as “Rose Gold” (the discrepancy could be attributed to the similarity between colors). Today, our sources have confirmed that the new iPhones will actually come in a color that is unmistakably Rose Gold in both appearance and name…

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Apple Watch sapphire rivals those of classic sapphire watches (Video)

Dom Esposito Apr 27 2015 - 9:48 pm PT

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There’s certainly a benefit to Apple’s use of sapphire crystal on Apple Watch. It’s extremely scratch resistant (even though stainless steel may not be) and will hold up over time, but how does it compare to sapphire crystal used in traditional watches? In a new video published by Unbox Therapy, Apple Watch was put up against a Tissot watch to see if Apple’s standards for sapphire crystal match up with traditional watchmakers….

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DisplayMate: Apple Watch has ‘excellent’ display, but Ion-X glass bests sapphire in light tests

Jeremy Horwitz Apr 27 2015 - 10:50 am PT

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Screen technology analysis firm DisplayMate, best known for comparing the display performance of phones, tablets, and laptops, today published an extensive report on the screen inside the 42mm Apple Watch. Describing the screen as “excellent,” DisplayMate’s Dr. Raymond Soneira also explained the relative benefits of the Ion-X glass found in the $349+ Apple Watch Sport versus the Sapphire Crystal used in the higher end Apple Watch and Apple Watch Edition models, notably praising the lower end model’s glass as superior across a number of tested categories.
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Kyocera’s Sapphire Shield smartphone display takes a beating in new stress test video

Mike Beasley Aug 5 2014 - 1:29 pm PT

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Kyocera has published a new video of its Sapphire Shield smartphone cover in action, pitting it against standard impact-resistant glass in a few drop and scratch tests. As you might expect, the sapphire cover fared much better than the glass. While the glass display was easily scratched and shattered using a piece of granite, the Sapphire Shield looked like it had just come out of the box.

The Sapphire Shield can currently be found on Kyocera’s Brigadier smartphone, which became available from Verizon last week. The phone is currently one of a few to sport a sapphire display, though it’s widely believed that Apple will be debuting such a device early next month.

You can see the full Sapphire Shield stress test below:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_7tVP5YHt0]

Sapphire 4.7″ iPhone 6 display put through its paces with knife and keys in new scratch test video

Mike Beasley Jul 7 2014 - 4:09 pm PT

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Earlier today we got a quick look at a flexible iPhone 6 display, but a new video from YouTuber Marques Brownlee (embedded below) takes the supposed next-gen screen through a more complete durability test. In the video, Brownlee not only bends the flexible sapphire panel, but takes a set of keys and even a knife to it in an attempt to leave a scratch.

The beginning of video features a look at the sapphire crystal that will reportedly make up the next-generation iPhone’s display. As demonstrated in the video, the glass is extremely clear (which is why Apple currently uses it in the iPhone’s camera lens and the Touch ID sensor on the 5s). After a quick examination of the crystal-clear glass, Brownlee really put it to the test…

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Shots of Apple’s new solar-powered manufacturing facility in Arizona

Scott Buscemi Nov 5 2013 - 1:25 pm PT

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Yesterday, it was announced that Apple has chosen Mesa, Arizona as the location of their upcoming sapphire crystal manufacturing facility, possibly bringing the material beyond lens covers and Touch ID buttons to full-on displays. Once the location had been discovered, I decided to take a quick trip to the manufacturing facility to see it first-hand. Thanks to some friendly security, I only got so far, but I was able to glean some details from what I saw and heard.
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Report: Apple could use sapphire crystal for home button on new iPads, cover glass on 2014 iPhones

Jordan Kahn Sep 18 2013 - 1:06 pm PT

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With Apple utilizing a new laser cut sapphire crystal in its redesigned home button that now includes a capacitive fingerprint touch sensor on the iPhone 5s, it’s not that surprising that rumors of a sapphire home button on future iPads are starting to pop up. We’re certainly not taking this one as fact, as it comes to us from the not-so-reliable DigiTimes, but a new report from the publication says new models of Apple’s full-sized iPad and iPad mini will also utilize the hard sapphire crystal material. The rumor apparently comes from “Taiwan-based sapphire makers.”

The report adds that Apple could also be looking to utilize the material for entire touch screen covers for new iPhones coming in 2014, but that price could be a factor, as sapphire crystal is reportedly still around 5 times more expensive than alternative materials.

In it’s latest promotional video for the new iPhone 5s home button and TouchID feature (below), Apple says the Sapphire crystal button protects the the new touch sensor and also “acts as a lens to precisely focus it on your finger.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJkmc8-eyvE