Corning announces harder, better, stronger Gorilla Glass 5

Ugh, that moment when you drop your phone and your screen cracks! Trust me, we’ve all been there. Now, with the all new Corning Gorilla Glass 5, the survival rate of your phone when it is dropped may just increase.

Considering the fact that 4.5 billion devices in the world have been shipped with Gorilla Glass, Corning probably has long been a part of your smartphone experience, whether you know it or not. Today, Corning announced the fifth iteration of its super durable glass, aptly named Gorilla Glass 5.

In a press release, Corning cites a study that concludes, “Over 85% of smartphone owners have dropped their phones at least once per year and 55% have dropped their phones three times or more. Additionally, more than 60% of smartphone owners reported dropping their devices between shoulder and waist height.”

Corning claims that Gorilla Glass 5 was designed with precisely those real-life figures in mind. According to lab tests conducted by Corning, Gorilla Glass 5 survives up to 80% of the time when dropped facedown from 1.6 meters onto rough surfaces.

Corning’s SVP Jim Steiner claims that according to internal drop tests, Gorilla Glass 5 is roughly 1.8 times more durable than Gorilla Glass 4. For your information, Gorilla Glass 4 was said to be twice as likely to survive when dropped compared to Gorilla Glass 3, but that was only from a meter high.

In terms of scratch-resistance, you can expect Gorilla Glass 5 to be similar to the previous version.

Corning says that the ultra tough glass is now in production for manufacturers to use. Devices with Gorilla Glass 5 will start shipping later this year, which means we probably won’t see it in the highly anticipated Galaxy Note7.

You can find the full press release below:

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News Release FOR RELEASE –– JULY 20, 2016

Corning Unveils Corning® Gorilla® Glass 5

New flagship cover glass takes tough to new heights while maintaining leadership in optical clarity, touch sensitivity, and damage resistance

CORNING, N.Y. — Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) today unveiled its latest breakthrough innovation – Corning® Gorilla® Glass 5. Responding to consumers’ No. 1 issue with mobile devices, the new cover glass is designed to provide further protection against breakage from everyday drops. Rigorous lab tests show that Gorilla Glass 5 survives drops onto rough, unforgiving surfaces up to four times better than competitive glass designs.

The unique attributes of Gorilla Glass 5 build on the best-in-class performance of previous generations of Corning Gorilla Glass. Mobile devices are the primary tools consumers use to capture, view, create, send and consume digital content, and the cover glass is the interface for touching, typing and swiping that content. Consumers count on their cover glass to deliver damage resistance, optical clarity, touch sensitivity, and protection from drops.

Gorilla Glass 5 Delivers

According to a recent global study*, over 85% of smartphone owners have dropped their phones at least once per year and 55% have dropped their phones three times or more. Additionally, more than 60% of smartphone owners reported dropping their devices between shoulder and waist height.

“With each successive generation of Corning Gorilla Glass, we have taken cover glass technology to new levels. Gorilla Glass 5 is no exception, extending Corning’s advantage in drop performance over competitive glasses,” said John Bayne, vice president and general manager, Corning Gorilla Glass. “With many real-world drops occurring from between waist and shoulder height, we knew improving drop performance would be an important and necessary advancement.”

In lab tests, Corning Gorilla Glass 5 survives up to 80 percent of the time when dropped facedown from 1.6 meters onto rough surfaces, far outperforming competitive glass designs.

Leveraging its strengths in glass science and fusion manufacturing, Corning leads the cover glass industry it created nearly 10 years ago. Corning Gorilla Glass has been used on more than 4.5 billion devices worldwide, including more than 1,800 product models across 40 major brands. Gorilla Glass 5 will allow manufacturers to provide the ultimate in highresolution, touch-enabled devices.

“Corning has a 165-year history of delivering life-changing innovations,” Bayne said. “Gorilla Glass 5 is the latest example of Corning applying its material-science expertise to solve tough consumer challenges in a way that impacts people’s everyday lives.

Corning Gorilla Glass 5 is commercially available and is expected to be on product models from leading global brands later this year.

*Numbers noted are averages of an 11-country study of global smartphone users, based on Toluna’s Quicksurvey panel. Countries included the U.S., Brazil, the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, Turkey, India, Russia, China, and Indonesia. Collectively, these countries represent 3.9 billion people, or 54% of the world’s population.

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Do you think Gorilla Glass is as durable as Corning claims in real life? Share your experience in the comments below!