Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Sapphire glass on future iPhones and iPads?


The screen on a modern smartphone or tablet is the most fragile component and cracked or broken screens have been seen by most people. Now Apple appears to intend to remedy the fragility of screens by introducing the super hard sapphire crystal glass instead of using the currently used Gorilla Glass.

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Apple and many other smartphone manufacturers have so far been relying on Gorilla Glass to make scratch resistant and sturdy monitors. However, Gorilla Glass itself is definitely not unbreakable and there are plenty of devices out there with cracked or partially broken monitors. Now, it looks like Apple is going to take the next step through a partnership with GT Advanced Technologies Inc. who specializes in creating sapphire glass surfaces. According to GT Advanced Technologies Inc., the interest and investment by Apple should be considered as advanced payment for the development and production of the Advanced Sapphire Furnace factory, which can produce high-quality sapphire crystals at low costs.


Sapphire glass is nothing new and have been used for a very long time on wrist watches to create scratch resistant glass. In fact, many wrist watches with sapphire glass are even promoted as having unbreakable glass. This is to no surprise as sapphire itself has a score of 9 on Moh's scale of mineral hardness, with only diamond being harder with a score of 10. If one takes a look at used watches, many will have a flawless glass but several dents on the metal pieces, which demonstrates the toughness of sapphire.

The total investments made by Apple is worth $578 million and the idea is for GT Advanced Technologies Inc. to pay back Apple on a period of 5 years once the factory is up and operational, which is planned for the year of 2015. 

If Apple manages to incorporate sapphire glass in its future iPhone and iPad models, then it will be one of the largest technological leaps forward in the smartphone and tablet segment in a long time, creating devices that is tough enough to handle most kind of punishment. Hopefully, this will also make other brands interested and likewise invest into research of creating more sturdier glass surfaces.


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