Galaxy Note 7 Screen Turns Out To Be Scratch Resistant

Although it is definitely its most fatal flaw, the Galaxy Note 7's first major criticism wasn't actually about its literally smoking hot battery. Instead, it was about the display that was strengthened by Corning's new and extra strong Gorilla Glass 5. Smartphone torture expert Zack from JerryRigEverything refuted the marketing, even causing Corning itself to put out a statement in its defense. Now, nearly three months later, JerryRigEverything admits an innocent error in his test and, in a complete U-turn, proves that the Galaxy Note 7 doesn't scratch easily after all. Too bad it's all moot now.

When it launched, the Galaxy Note 7 became the poster boy of the new Gorilla Glass 5, touted to be even more resistant than its predecessors, naturally. A scratch test using a set of Mohs picks, however, showed that the smartphone screen scratched even at the lowest level 3, disproving Samsung's and Corning's claims.

Corning would later explain that the phenomenon seen on Zack's tests were actually due to material transfer. In a nutshell, Corning is implying that the Gorilla Glass 5 is so hard, harder than the level 3 Mohs pick, that it was the pick itself that was being damaged, leaving traces of its metal on the glass. On the one hand, the transfer still looked like scratches to any user. On the other hand, apparently Corning wasn't kidding about the toughness of Gorilla Glass 5.

In performing another test using a newly purchased set of picks, JerryRigEverything surprisingly discovered that the Galaxy Note 7 actually didn't scratch until Mohs level 6, just as advertised by Corning. In investigating the matter, Zack concluded that it was, in fact, a mea culpa on his part. Apparently, before performing the test, he sharpened the picks on a block included with the picks. The block itself was a Mohs 8. That had the effect of transferring material onto the picks, including the level 3 pick, practically turning it into a level 8, the highest level.

So yes, JerryRigEverything admits a fatal flaw in his testing method, but for the Galaxy Note 7 only. He claims that his other picks were never sharpened and that he will never do so in the future, buying a new set instead when he needs to. Sadly, that won't be saving the Galaxy Note 7 from its fate, but it's good to know that the Corning Gorilla Glass 5 works as advertised.