scratch test

Two 'scratch test' stories October 2012 - August 2014

Kyocera’s Sapphire Shield smartphone display takes a beating in new stress test video

Kyocera has published a new video of its Sapphire Shield smartphone cover in action, pitting it against standard impact-resistant glass in a few drop and scratch tests. As you might expect, the sapphire cover fared much better than the glass. While the glass display was easily scratched and shattered using a piece of granite, the Sapphire Shield looked like it had just come out of the box.

The Sapphire Shield can currently be found on Kyocera’s Brigadier smartphone, which became available from Verizon last week. The phone is currently one of a few to sport a sapphire display, though it’s widely believed that Apple will be debuting such a device early next month.

You can see the full Sapphire Shield stress test below:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_7tVP5YHt0]

Russian website reviews a prototype LG Nexus 4

We have heard a lot about the much-rumored LG Nexus. From surfaced images and retail inventory listings, we expect the device to bear “LG Nexus 4” branding and launch sometime in the coming weeks. We also heard much about the device’s specs and design that—for the most part—seem to mirror the LG Optimus G. In case you just cannot wait for official details from Google and LG, Russian blog Onliner.by has a full, lengthy review of what it claimed is a “prototype LG Nexus 4”.

As for the specs published by Onliner, the device seems to confirm rumors that the LG Nexus 4 is largely based off the Optimus G. Inside the prototype unit, at least, is a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, 2GB of RAM, and a 4.7-inch 1,280-by-720 IPS display. The device also measured in 1.5mm shorter than the Galaxy Nexus, but it is 1.3mm wider at 134 × 69,2 × 9,2 mm with a weight of 139 g.

The prototype unit reviewed was almost too buggy to review the software (Android 4.1.2), but we do get an excellent look at the physical design of the Nexus 4. A few things we noticed include a new micro SIM card tray, a green LED light on the lower bezel, chrome buttons, and headphone jack position at the top. The website also described the device’s textured back, saying it is “completely smooth” to the touch but extremely scratch proof. It stood up to a scratch test using a key.

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