Water cannon shots or robots that throw iPhones, these are the Apple laboratories where they test the resistance of their devices

When Apple presents a new iPhone, like the iPhone 15 Pro, we don’t imagine the number of processes what is behind him. Even more so if there is a change in material as happened this year with titanium. Falls, accidents with water… our iPhone accompanies us everywhere. This is why Apple does all kinds of tests to make the iPhone as durable as possible possible.

American YouTuber Marques Brownlee was invited by Apple to its laboratories in which the iPhone is subjected to resistance tests More demanding. Through an X-shaped discussion thread, he explains, step by step, the different situations in which an iPhone 15 Pro is involved.

Water tests of all kinds so that the iPhone has IP68 certification

We start with one of the accidents that terrifies us the most (especially now that it’s time to go to the pool and the beach). We are talking about iPhone water resistance. Apple has different methods to check its resistance level, depending on the humidity level and the amount of water.

IPX4 resistance

The iPhone is positioned on a metal tray on which a light drop falls. water flows without any pressure. At this level, the iPhone is not immersed at any time. It’s the closest thing to leaving an iPhone on a table while it rains.

IPX5 resistance

Different jets of water are applied to the iPhone at low pressure and from different angles. The machine rotates to apply the pressurized water on the screen and back of the iPhone. In turn, the iPhone spins around, exposing the ports and speaker holes to water.

IPX6 resistance

This is one of the most surprising tests, because it addresses a fire hose jet on the iPhone. In this case, the pressure is much greater and the iPhone must not only resist the water itself, but also the force it exerts on itself.

IPX8 resistance

The ultimate water resistance test is to lock the phone underwater and add extra pressure to simulate that you have been at the bottom of a river, a swimming pool, a lake… for a long time. This is neither the first nor the second news that we write in Applesfera about an iPhone recovered from the bottom of the sea and still functional.

A robot specially designed to throw the iPhone to the ground again and again

Another of the biggest fears is that we drop our iPhone on the ground and it breaks. New materials are becoming more and more resistant, and the situations to which an iPhone 15 Pro is subjected in Apple’s laboratories are good proof of this. In fact, he They use different types of materials for fall. Wood, stone, metal…

This robot picks up the iPhone and throws it at a multitude of different angles. Plus, he does it in a very natural way when he throws the iPhone to the ground. Concert impulse and with the exact direction as if we were holding it in our hand.

When falling, a super slow motion analyzes body deformations of the iPhone to find the weak points and thus improve it. An essential process to strengthen a new generation, like the current one, but also future ones like the iPhone 16.

Simulation of vibrations similar to those of a motorcycle or subway car

I admit that every time I ride a roller coaster (especially a wooden one), I fear for my iPhone and especially for its camera stabilizer. Fortunately, Apple takes this into account and there is a table that takes care of it.

On this table the devices are placed and begins to vibrate and move from side to side. In this way, the movements of the metro, of the cars, when we run, are inside a backpack… The best thing is that on this table we were able to see both iPhones, iPads, Macs and even Apple Vision Pros.

More than 10,000 different iPhones before shipping them to customers

Apple tests over 10,000 different devices before starting to manufacture them and finally shipping them to us, the customers. During all these tests all kinds of responses and anomalies are observed. Additionally, year after year the laboratory expands with new machines and tests that reflect the needs and problems of users from previous years.

Why are Apple devices so difficult to repair if they go through so much testing?

YouTuber Marques Brownlee I couldn’t help but ask this question to John Ternus, vice president of hardware engineering at Apple. Without a doubt, the most appropriate person to answer this interesting question.

On the one hand, we have a product that is infinitely repairable, but can be trusted for its durability. On the other hand, we have a very durable product, but more difficult to repair.

Using John Ternus the example of water resistance, which only arrived with the iPhone 7 and was heavily beefed up with the iPhone 12. According to him, there is a threshold at which allowing greater repairability would affect users more. For example, they would have to remove seals, stickers, everything so that anyone can open the iPhone. However, you would drop a glass of water on it and the iPhone would be completely useless.

Seeing all these tests on video is impressive, so you can’t miss Marques Brownlee’s X Thread in which he shows all the tests of Apple devices in action.

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