iPhone 3G - Cracks in Plastic Housing

my week 27 white iphone has one tiny crack by the charging port. not enough for me to complain but its obviously a widespread problem

My white iPhone was made in week 27 in factory 88 and I have absolutely no cracks.

Hey,

Last post got deleted or something so reposting in the hopes that others with this problem will do the same.
Black 16gb iPhone serial number says week 28.
Two pretty big cracks between the on/off button on top and the metal frame, looking as if the little plastic bit in between the two cracks could chip off any day. Also several hairline cracks running from the earplug socket down the back of the phone. One of those is about half a centimetre long.
Hope apple do something. Would be very unimpressed if they don't. Already tried rining them once, got turned to Optus. Wait to see what they will do.

I just got my defective (light leakage, faulty silent/ring switch) iPhone 3G 16 GB black model swapped for a new one today from Apple and noticed a plastic film slightly pulled up near the SIM card port. It doesn't really bother me as it's barely visible but I'm wondering what Apple used during the manufacturing process to seal in the plastic shell? I've heard people using TurtleWax on their iPhone to stop cracks from spreading and wondering if applying it would help better protect the iPhone 3G from cracking to begin with. If it works then maybe Apple could pass this tip on to their manufacturing plant instead of using the thin plastic film for protection.

I'm starting to think this is not the week that the phone was made but rather the factory. I saw someone above mentioned a factory 88 with no cracks and I also have no cracks with an 88. The factory might be key to this issue.

I was thinking that most of the cracks occurred in 88, but I guess that theory was wrong. At first, everyone thought week 28 was a bad week, but there have been several other weeks mentioned, too. I guess there's no way to pinpoint it exactly.

I'm in The Netherlands, have the cracks as well. Here at a local Dutch/Belgium forum there has been numerous reports of people who have a cracked case.

Factory 88 as well, with cracks so factory were it's made makes no difference at all.

Message was edited by: Batumulia

Are the people experiencing the 'cracks' in their iPhone 3G's using hard cases?

Lot's of places are still selling cases for iPhone (both hard and soft) but these cases were designed for the original iPhone with a flat back. Using a hard case designed for the original iPhone (assuming iPhone 3G fits in it) could cause structural intolerances to show up in the back plate of iPhone 3G, hence cracking at vulnerable points. Only use cases which state iPhone 3G on them.

Do not try and force iPhone 3G into the dock that came with the original iPhone. It does not fit. This would also allow structural intolerances to be displayed.

Based on the images posted by some users, their iPhones look very badly treated, especially the black iPhone 3G, what's all the damage around the SIM removal slot (the hole where the paper clip fits)? Looks more like somebody was trying to get the back off (wonder if that could cause the cracks?)

I am not defending Apple, I've had my fair share of run ins with Apple over the years regarding quality control, but I have a black iPhone 3G, which has been cased in a soft silicon case since coming out of the box. I have inspected it thoroughly with a very powerful Macro lens on a Canon 1Ds MkII under very good lighting. No cracks or scratches.

I place my iPhone 3G 8GB, in a dedicated pocket (yes all my trousers have at least 8 pockets) and treat it just like I have treated all my other mobile phones including the original iPhone. Use it regularly, since I got it on launch day, throughout the day, no problems with build quality so far.

I have a soft fabrix case always treated like a baby just like my previous phone. My k800i from SE looks like new with just a few usage spots on it. Owned it for 2 years.

Update - I went to the apple store for my appointment and left with new phone.

I showed them the small hairline fractures that were developing on the top of my phone and the Genius told me that they would exchange it...without me having to ask! I tried to get a black model in the exchange but no luck. I like my white one but just wanted to alleviate noticing more cracks later. The Genius also mentioned that the sim card slot was gapped to wide and that the edges were really sharp..not normal.

I asked if they were seeing a lot of this type of issue and she hesitantly responded that it was a widespread issue and they were exchanging at this point. I also asked if it were to happen again with the new phone, would I be covered? She said yes, just bring it back.

They did ask a few questions about my use of the phone:
1. Did you use a case? if so, what kind?
2. how do you store or carry the phone most (pocket, hip, etc..)?
3. When did you notice the cracks?
They are trying to narrow this issure down! That's good.

Excellent Experience with Customer Service at the Fashion Valley Apple Store!!! Thank You!

I just returned my White iPhone 3G this morning.

It was a week 30 model. I bought it friday, and yesterday when I woke up I noticed three cracks on the rounded part of the top left corner. So I called the Apple Store at 6pm and asked them about it. They said bring it in today and they would take care of it.

When I woke up this morning to take it in, there were more cracks around the SIM slot and On/Off switch. I took it in and they replaced it, no problem.

I must admit though, my replacement was from the same week (30), and I'm worried this one will do the same thing. Thirty-six hours of strictly hand-to-pocket use, with nothing else in the pocket, and this happens. It has to be a design flaw, there's no other possibility. I hope that I'm not back in the store in a few days getting this one replaced too.

Glad to hear everything worked out and that Apple is investigating the root cause. My guess is that it's either an assembly line issue or the plastic backing can't dissapate the heat as well as the iPhone EDGE which used a metal casing.

After reading several posts about people having cracks in their iphones, I took a flashlight to my 16g black iPhone and sure enough there are cracks. I haven't called Apple, yet, but I did go onto the web site to try to schedule an appointment and there aren't any mac genius appts available for the iPhone. I don't really want a replacement phone because aside from the cracks I have no serious problems. I just want the defect documented in case Apple decides to replace the phones at a later date. Do you think that's possible?

My white 16gb is also showing cracks near the headphone jack area, going in to see an apple genious on tuesday, Apple seemed to know about the problem on the phone.

I hope we are fully covered for the first year if this keeps happening, i'm not happy to just accept having a cracked phone.