First, there were complaints of iPhone 6 Plus units bending in people's pockets. Then a YouTuber successfully bent the device, which instantly went viral (now people are calling that video into question). Soon thereafter, Apple responded, insisting only nine people have complained about the bending. It also opened its doors to journalists so they can see how they test the iPhone 6 Plus for themselves.
Now, consumers aren't sure what to believe.
One Wall Street analyst took matters into his own hands. BTIG analyst Walter Piecyk said Friday he visited an AT&T store and tried bending Apple's 5.5-inch iPhone for himself.
Just stopped in an AT&T store to try and bend a 6+. You have to be kidding me. That is not bendable. $AAPL
- Walter Piecyk (@WaltBTIG) September 26, 2014
It's embarrassing I didn't check for myself earlier but #bendgate is ridiculous. $AAPL
- Walter Piecyk (@WaltBTIG) September 26, 2014
Piecyk says he didn't consider what would happen if he actually bent the phone, but says he put "hand shake level" effort into bending the phone in "multiple spots." He says he applied "reasonable force."
(And we should note that Piecyk is a big guy. We're guessing 6 foot 4 inches tall.)
It's still unclear how susceptible the new iPhone 6 Plus is to bending, but Apple's engineering lead Dan Riccio says, "The bottom line is that if you use enough force to bend an iPhone, or any phone, it's going to deform." And if you successfully deform a phone that's not yours, you may be forced to buy it. In other words, we recommend you don't try testing #Bendgate unless you're at home.
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