iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus Successfully Survive Second Drop Test

The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus were subjected to their first drop test yesterday after the two devices went on sale in Australia. While the 6 and 6 Plus fared well when dropped on their backs, the screens did see significant shattering when dropped face down on the concrete.

A second drop test conducted today saw somewhat different results. Android Authority dropped the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus in several different ways, including face down, and the two devices saw little damage aside from scuffs. Even when dropped on their faces with a decent amount of force from waist high, the screens remained intact.

A similar result was seen after a genuine accidental drop. The first person to receive an iPhone 6 in Australia opened up the package on camera and immediately dropped the phone on the hard ground, where it miraculously came away unscathed.

It’s impossible to determine the overall durability of the screen in the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus based on a limited number of drop tests that were conducted under different conditions, but this additional data does serve to reassure users that the devices do have the potential to survive a fall.

Still, given the increased size of the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus, it may be advisable for users to purchase a case. In fact, several reviews of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus conducted by tech sites suggested the devices “need” a case, and described them as slippery. The Verge, for example, said the iPhone 6 Plus “works better in a case” because it makes the phone easier to hold, hides the camera bump, and covers “the weird lines on the back.”

Apple’s iPhone 6 and 6 Plus went on sale today, and the devices are now in the hands of millions of customers around the world as customers pick up phones from the Apple Store and receive their pre-orders. New orders for the devices from the Apple Store will ship in 7 to 10 days for the iPhone 6 and 3 to 4 weeks for the iPhone 6 Plus.

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First Impressions of iPhone 6 and 6 Plus: Sleek Look, Great Display, Unoptimized Apps Blurry, Loud Vibration

While the official reviews of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus were published several days ago, with the devices now making their way into customers’ hands we are starting to see broader first impressions of the larger iPhones.

Case from MacRumors giveaway, based on rumored design specs (Photo by @adam_moreno)
Several posters in our forums have highlighted the high-quality “Retina HD” displays on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, but have observed that apps yet to be optimized for the larger displays appear “quite blurry” or “‘big’ and disgusting” due to scaling issues.

Photo by jchiou
Another aspect being noticed by users is the much louder vibration on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, something highlighted by John Gruber in his review earlier this week.

The iPhone 6 has a noticeably stronger vibrator to me, and with the iPhone 6 Plus, it’s so powerful it’s actually a bit noisy — the sound made by the 6 Plus vibrator is so strong, I wonder if there are going to be complaints that it’s not “silent” at all.

As someone who runs his iPhone in silent mode much of the time, I definitely appreciate the stronger vibrator.

Customers are also generally praising the overall look of the new iPhones, calling them “sleek and beautifully made” and “glorious”. Those opting for the gold model may notice that it is “a bit more yellow golden” than the gold iPhone 5s.

Gold iPhone 6 (left) vs. gold iPhone 5s (Photo by @horwitz)
As for size, some customers have been concerned about placing orders for the iPhone 6 Plus without having a good idea of just how big the device really is. Reactions now that users are getting their hands on them seem to be mixed, with some saying they “love every inch” of the 5.5-inch display while others have found it too big for their tastes. Some in-store customers were able to compare the two sizes before purchasing, helping make the decision easier.

For ongoing coverage of photos and first impressions, readers are welcome to follow our consolidated thread stickied in our iPhone forum.

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Tim Cook Helps Kick Off iPhone 6 Sales at Palo Alto Retail Store

With Apple’s retail stores beginning sales of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus today, customers have been lining up to either pick up their pre-ordered devices or take their chances on launch-day supplies without reservations. Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster conducted his annual line count at Apple’s flagship Fifth Avenue store in Manhattan and found a record 1,880 people in line at 8:00 AM, an increase of 33% over last year’s line.

Tim Cook at final employee meeting before opening doors of Palo Alto store (via @CNBCnow)
Apple executives are also getting into the spirit of the iPhone launch, with CEO Tim Cook making his traditional visit to the Palo Alto store to greet customers. Cook walked the line and posed for photos with customers before heading into the store to meet with staff and open the door to welcome customers.

Several other executives are also out and about, with new retail chief Angela Ahrendts presiding over her first iPhone launch by visiting the flagship store in Sydney, Australia, and Internet software and services chief Eddy Cue making an appearance at the Stanford store.

Phenomenal start to a historic day and an honor to be with our incredible team and first customers in Sydney. pic.twitter.com/28aww07wGj

— Angela Ahrendts (@AngelaAhrendts) September 18, 2014

Nearly all Apple retail stores in launch countries have now opened for business today, with only the three stores in Honolulu, Hawaii yet to begin sales of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.

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iPhone 6 and 6 Plus Go On Sale in U.S. and Canada to Huge Lines

Following launches in a number of other countries around the world earlier today, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus have now begun going on sale in the U.S. and Canada, with 8:00 AM Apple launch times in the eastern and central portions of the countries having already occurred.

As expected, supplies of the iPhone 6 Plus have been tight in some cases, although perhaps not as low as originally thought. Apple’s own stores appear to have the strongest supplies of the iPhone 6 Plus, with carrier stores in some cases having barely a handful of units to distribute.

iPhone 6 line at Toronto’s Eaton Centre Apple store snaking through multiple levels (via @KristinaParts)
Lines at most stores, particularly Apple’s own locations, are long in most cases, despite the company having offered pre-orders for delivery this year. As of 6:00 AM, the line at Apple’s flagship Fifth Avenue store in Manhattan stretched for twelve city blocks, according to Business Insider. Other locations are obviously seeing shorter lines, but many customers are reporting lines numbering in the hundreds at their stores.

Some MacRumors forum members are updating their statuses in our iPhone 6 Launch Meetups forum while others are sharing their thoughts in our general iPhone forum as the launch continues.

For those with pre-orders going out for delivery today, our forums remain busy as users track their orders minute-by-minute. MacRumors forum members in the U.S. are generally organizing in one of a number of threads depending on where they ordered from.

– The “I just bought/ordered/shipped/received my new iPhone 6/6 Plus” thread
– iPhone 6 & 6 Plus Sprint Pre-Order Thread!
– T-Mobile.com preorder thread
– ATT Pre-order status
– VZW Order Status Thread
– Apple.com Pre-order thread

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