While I resent the accusation, I have been called clumsy from time to time. I used to rarely drop things, but in more recent times I've found myself knocking over glasses, ripping clothes, and damaging a frankly stupid amount of phones; most of them were test units, but still.
Despite this trend of expensive flagship phones slipping out of my hands or deciding to lose my pocket, I never use a case with these types of smartphones. Even with some of the best, most fragile foldable phones, I avoid the life of the case.
Am I an idiot? Probably. But I like to see the industrial design of the best phones, rather than wrapping them in unattractive plastic.
Likewise, all the boasts about the best Android phones using Gorilla Glass have fostered my apathy when it comes to additional phone protection. But then one falls, whether by my own hand or sheer physics, to the ground and cracks, chips, or dents.
Except, of course, for the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
I've harped on the benefits of titanium in phones, which has helped the big iPhone withstand all sorts of chassis punishment; However, no patina will form.
But I still have to praise the shine of Apple's Ceramic Shield glass. Introduced with the iPhone 12, I always assumed it was Apple's answer to Corning's Gorilla Glass. However, now I feel like I don't know how good Ceramic Shield is.
In about 10 months of use, my iPhone 15 Pro Max has been through the wringer. He slipped off my couch, crashed into my desk, and fell to the floor, and each time he emerged unscathed.
Shields up!
The most striking example occurred in August, when I was visiting Liverpool. I threw the phone onto a hotel bed and, given the weight of the iPhone 15 Pro Max, it bounced happily off the duvet and through the open bathroom door to land face down with a sickening thud on the tile floor.
I thought “that's it, the phone is finished” and was grateful for my foresight in having a spare Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra on hand.
But when I cautiously picked up the iPhone from the ground and turned it over in fear, I saw that it was completely intact. I couldn't find a single dent or ding on it; Even the protruding camera module looked new and in good condition.
I was really surprised. Such drops have ruined other phones that have had the misfortune of activating Roland Clumsy Mode.
And it got me thinking that despite my love for the Action button or the consistency of camera systems, Apple's Ceramic Shield glass might be my favorite feature of recent iPhones.
So if you're looking for a durable phone that also looks stylish, rather than giving the impression of a brick, I simply have to give the Ceramic Shield iPhones my seal of approval – look for one on our best iPhone deals page.