Earlier this month, Apple finally unveiled the much anticipated iPhone 8. The latest iteration looks similar to the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, however, the iPhone 8 boasts an aluminum band along the edge, a glass back panel, and allegedly “the most durable glass ever in a smartphone,” according to Apple. That’s certainly quite the claim, but just how sturdy is the new iPhone?
Well, don’t worry, folks, the humans of the internet are on the case. In true conspicuous consumption fashion, people around the globe are intentionally destroying the $700 phone to perform an iPhone 8 durability test in the name of science (and perhaps that ever elusive next “like”). Be it death by sledgehammer, Louisville Slugger, or hydraulic press, these are our favorite iPhone 8 destruction videos so far.
If watching people destroy iPhones in a litany of clever ways is your thing, you’re in luck because we’ve also curated a similar roundup of humans systematically pummeling the iPhone 7. And just in case you destroy your phone unintentionally and not as part of a rather ornate and expensive YouTube campaign, here’s how to backup an iPhone without iTunes in advance.
iPhone liquid nitrogen test
Liquid nitrogen has a temperature of about negative 320 degrees Fahrenheit. For the sake of perspective, that’s just a smidgen warmer than the surface of Pluto. After the phone steeps in the liquid nitrogen for a few seconds, the back panel pops off and the screen goes blank. The host removes the phone from the bowl and gives it a little thaw with a heat gun and the phone actually turns on after a short delay and the display still responds to touch.
After a second dunking, the phone again turns on. The display still responds to touch albeit with a significant delay. Nonetheless, it looks like your iPhone 8 can withstand not one but two liquid nitrogen pool party mishaps and perhaps a quick jaunt around a space rock within the Kuiper Belt.
iPhone 8 ultimate destruction test
As the old adage goes, you never leave a job half done and YouTuber Jhasio YT certainly follows through on this credo until the iPhone 8 is pulverized into itty bitty pieces. The host chisels the iPhone 8 with a glass knife, crushes it with a hydraulic press, axes it, slugs the thing with a baseball bat, douses it in gasoline, sets it on fire, and even drowns it in Coca-Cola for good measure. And all of this is set to the cartoonish score of Giuseppe Verdi’s three-act opera La Traviata. This YouTuber even went through the motions of cooking an egg on the back of the iPhone 8 using only the heat produced by the internal battery because apparently that can be done. Go crazy, folks. Can your Android do that? Probably.
iPhone 8 scratch test
If there’s one person out there who knows how to strategically obliterate a gadget in a myriad of ways, it’s YouTube sensation TechRax, and now that there’s a new iPhone to be murdered, our boy is back to doing what he does best. TechRax performs a series of test to see just how rugged the latest iPhone iteration really is. He stabs it, beats it to death with a hammer, and even slices and dices the phone like julienne fries until the thing is annihilated. We can only hope the judge takes it easy on him, this is obviously a crime of passion.
iPhone 8 bend test
In this destruction video, EverythingApplePro attempts to bend both an iPhone 7 and an iPhone 8 to juxtapose the durability of each. In just a matter of seconds, the host breaks the iPhone 7 in half — even bending the lithium ion battery — and then humblebrags that he underestimated his own strength. However, he is eventually humbled by the iPhone 8. After many uncomfortable grunts and heaves, the iPhone 8 is left unbent and unscathed despite his most valiant efforts. Get your reps up, EverythingApplePro.
iPhone 8 water test
In this video, Mrwhosetheboss runs the iPhone 8 through a number of tests to gauge its alleged IP67 water-resistant rating. He dunks the device in water at various depths for different increments of time and, in the end, it appears as though Apple’s IP67 rating is actually a little conservative. Do with that information as you please.
Now that the dust has settled it would be only fitting that we know tell you about our picks for the best cases to protect your iPhone 7, iPhone 8, and iPhone X.
