iphone 12 aluminum band scratches/scuffs too easily

It's aluminum, not tungsten steel.

I’m really annoyed because I had the iPhone 12 for about 2 months & I’m having the same issue. I always have my case on my phone & the only time I take it off is to clean it from the dust particles, which is everyday. Yesterday when I wiped my phone off, there was no scratches or anything. Now today, the aluminum band is chipped smh. This has to be a quality issue.

Sorry, but anything with a aluminum case whether it be a Watch (any watch), a phone, a knife, etc. will be prone to scratches. Some colors will show them worse than others. The way to avoid it is don't buy anything with aluminum.

This is unfortunately typical of Apple’s aluminium phones going right back to the iPhone 5, where ‘scuffgate’ created quite some noise.

The iPhones with steel bands don’t suffer from this (4, 4S, X, XS, 11 Pro, 12 Pro), nor do the iPhones with natural-colour aluminium.

Sadly, any iPhone with coloured aluminium to date is vulnerable. You need to put it in a skin/case or accept this will happen.

Strangely, the old iPods which had coloured aluminium didn’t seem to suffer so much, nor do the coloured aluminium Macs — not sure why the difference.

I have the same issue. And I put a cover on my iPhone 12 since day one. It's the first time I buy an aluminium iPhone, so I think the problem is the aluminium itself - that is softer than steel. Probably, everything bump the frame will scratch it more than steel... even dust! and I think it even depend on the color - mine is white

Ahhh, reminds me of the good old days of the iPhone 5 and that very dark Slate color which was gorgeous but scuffed way too easily. It was exactly because of that that Apple switched to a lighter shade of grey known today as Space Grey and I think that's why they stay away from too dark a finish ever since. I wonder how the Black iPhone 12 is holding up for people.

But regarding your issue. Its just the nature of the anodized aluminum (I think it is anodized and not simply a paint job). Even though they most likely bond the color to the raw metal chemically, if it wears off, it is just more prominent on the darker colors.

And I think this could happen even if you put it in a case that is not soft (leather or silicone) and microfibre lined. Those transparent plastic cases, if they trap just a little rougher piece of dust or a tiny grain of sand or anything like that, that will act just like sandpaper and wear off the finish.

You even have to be careful because a lot (most) of jeans have those small rivets right above the pockets. Those could easily scratch your phone as well. Or a ring on your hand. There are a lot of possibilities.

Your white iPhone 12, to my knowledge, however is the most forgiving in regard to how scuffs etc appear and how noticeable they are.

Yes, Aluminum is a lot softer than Stainless Steel like on the Pro, but at least if you got the silver (white) model there is no color being scraped off. The aluminum itself will scuff and scratch of course, as will the stainless steel but only not as easily.

If you got a case, preferably an Magsafe case, you shouldn't be too worried though. A tip: Make sure you give the phone a quick wipe and blow out the case so that no dust or something similar accumulated in the corners and edges before you put the phone in.

Thanks my friend for the advice!

I know that the white one is the most forgiving... I just don’t expected that it would have been so soft! I thought that with everyday use, with a cover, it would be safe (sorry for eventual grammatical mistakes) 😂

Yes, mine too. The apple logo at the back already had one nick, some scratches at the top edge. It’s bothering, tbh. Never had case too but this phone is not yet even my daily driver so i only use this for minimal sms, facebook, and mostly home and this usually sits idly by.

very disappointing for more than a thousand dollars worth of phone.

I thought I am the only one with the same problem. I have a 12 and I bought a case as soon as I got the phone but I noticed that even with a case the paint on the sides get chipped not actually that big but it really is concerning.

I don’t know how relevant this is but at least on the black iPhone 12s there is a good chance that those scratches aren’t actual scratches.

I left my 12 mini in the same pocket as my mask today which had an exposed metal clip for the nose and it left what appeared to be a scratch exposing the aluminium beneath.

I couldn’t believe that it would scratch so easily so I started rubbing on the silver mark, nothing happed until I rubbed a braided rough Type C cable across the spot and what appeared to be a scratch just rubbed off.

Tldr:

Check if it really is a scratch or perhaps just metal which rubbed off on the aluminium band.

Sorry for this long and pointless story but I hope this can help someone with a darker coloured iPhone.

my case hasn’t arrived yet for my 12 mini and i’ve had the exact same issue after using for a week. i’ve been forced to put the phone in a bag which may have contributed but the older iPhone 6s I used was never as fragile as this one and I never needed to use a case ever.

I have a small scuff near the bottom speaker grill and the silver metal thing is visible. I initially thought something is stuck there…and found it’s really scuffed a bit….My iPhone 12 is a new device and I have a case on. Never expected this to happen.