iPhone 12 pro scratched screen

Yep. Apple really messed up. All the klutzes that broke their screens that had Apple Care were probably draining too much money/profit. So they opted to sacrifice scratch-proofing in order to tackle the proverbial glass shatter issue.

here’s the issue for me. I got my iceRink 11 (my nickname for the iPhone 11) in December. Got the screen replaced free of charge by Apple for reasons I posted before (mix of return policy and covid restrictions).

I did install a glass screen protector. But guess what. It looks ugly, collects dust near the edges and distorts glare, has some haze to it. So I ultimately removed it!!! I am just being extra careful now. I switched my phone to my left front jeans pocket which doesn’t have rivets above it (from the pocket-watch/coins pocket). And just being extra careful not to put it in a pocket with any other items in it.

To me putting a screen protector on an iPhone is as off-putting a plastic protector on a Diamond ring or on a MacBook Pro screen.

I’m gonna risk it and do what I can not to get scratches. I just don’t want to use the protector. I peeled it off last night. We’ll see if I change my mind in a month or so and put one of the remaining 2 protectors on.

i’m kinda hoping Apple addressed this issue secretly and that my replacement screen is more scratchproof than the original. ;) but that’s anyone’s guess. (Probably it’s the same... but so far so good. Two days and no scratches.. lol. Most likely bc of the extra care taken

when summer finally comes to Toronto and I go the sandy beaches I may have to leave my iceRink 11 at home (?) or put it in a case that has a built in screen protector if one exists that I can take off when I get home.

Lain443 wrote:

I just got my iphone 12 pro today and when I gently took off the front seal, guess what I saw.. A TINY SLIGHTLY DEEP SCRATCH ON THE CERAMIC GLASS NEAR THE EDGE BY THE POWER BUTTON!

That's called a manufacturing defect and the phone should be exchanged by Apple.

As stated, if they don't want to, return it for a refund and purchase another if you so choose.

I’m pretty upset. I had an iPhone 6+ for years in my pocket, well...over 5 years with no screen protector and no scratches.

New iPhone 12 Pro, randomly scratched. It looks like the scratch matches the exact profile of my nail, but might be a coincidence. Matches exactly though, 100%. Unhappy customer😤😤😤

Welcome to the club, misiu21. Sorry to hear this happened on your expensive new phone.

I too had a 6 Plus that never scratched once in 6 years.

Apple has gone for shatter resistance instead of scratch resistance with disastrous results for those of us that expected the same durability as past iPhones.

if you are still within the product return period, return it or have them replace the glass free as they did for me. I don’t have a protector (will never use one- hate the look and feel) and so far so good with being careful with my iPhone 11 with replaced glass and no protector. Maybe they tweaked the replacement glass? Not sure. So far no scratches after a whole week ;). I keep it now in my Jeans left front pocket. I used to keep it in the right pocket where the rivets are due to the extra little change pocket.

Best regards

It’s not disastrous at all for the many who would otherwise be replacing their shattered screens following a small drop.

You can prevent scratches with a $30 screen protector; a smashed screen not so much.

No. I want a high end iPhone with a screen that doesn’t scratch. Next thing you’ll be telling me is to put bumpers on all my fine wine glasses so they’ll look and feel ugly but won’t shatter if knocked over. Some people take care and some don’t. For those of us that do take care and don’t drop our phones, and don’t use our phones outdoors over concrete unless it’s done **** carefully, we deserve pristine screens without the ugliness and hassle of constantly buying and changing screen protectors that collect dust around their edges, accentuate the notch at the front camera that would otherwise blend in, don’t look or feel as good as the bare glass. I don’t even use a case. I’m just mindful of what I’m doing with my phone. Stop trolling and apologizing for Apple’s lack of regard for the people that don’t shatter their phones! I have never shattered an iPhone glass ever, and I’ve owned iPhones since 2009.

Regardless of what you WANT, what you've got is a phone whose screen harder to shatter, while easier to scratch.

It's not "trolling" when you tell someone facts. You can complain here till cows fly, but it won't change the composition of the glass on your phone. Nor can anyone here on this user to user only forum do anything to change the composition of the glass.

Believe what you think you deserve or accept reality of what you've got.

Your choice.

It is trolling. We don’t care about the shatter issue. We care about the scratch issue. Apple reads these forums they say so themselves. I also know you and William think you are getting Apple brownie points and I see you both are at levels 7 and 10. You troll around denying people’s valid concerns. Apple - please note you are encouraging and rewarding trolls and it’s wearing away at my NPS score because it’s so aggravating that the issue isn’t acknowledged by these trolls.

Thank you Apple, tho, for acknowledging the issue and replacing my iceRink 11 screen free. I am taking care of it without a case or protector and so far so good after a week. Perhaps the replacement screen is better and less prone to scratches. Or perhaps I’m being more mindful. But, Apple- please stop encouraging people to patrol the message boards and denying the valid concerns of posters. It’s very disconcerting.

Trolls/apologists/points-gainers like William and lobster ghost: please leave this thread. Your comments are not constructive or helpful and if anything are insulting. I’m a grown man. And if I want a scratch-resistant screen that I used to have until 2021 when I bought my first iceRinkPhone I deserve to complain and to be heard without denial that I have a valid issue. So please go away and let those with legitimate complaints just be heard and offer constructive advice to one another.

Nope. You can use any words you like, but nothing changes the fact that iPhone screens can scratch and in particular, iPhone 12 is far less likely to shatter, yet it is not scratch-proof. That is NOT trolling. That is telling you fact. And it is FACT that installing a screen protector protects your phone from scratches.

I will not leave this thread. Did I somehow miss that you've purchased the forum? If you have, then you can tell everyone what they are allowed to say. But since I know you haven't, you can't ask me to leave anymore than I have the right to tell you what to do.

Have a nice evening buzzgary!

Many of us, I’m sure, agree with buzzgary. Although you and our Phantom-Crustacean friend are of course correct that there is a trade off between increased toughness and reduced hardness, most people’s gripe is that this was not made clear in the marketing of the iPhone 12.

Perhaps if you follow Apple forums religiously and buy every model then you would have been aware of the issue, but most customers do not, and so were not aware of the need to place a screen protector on their iPhone 12 immediately. I read the advertising on Apple’s UK website and the only mention of the glass was as follows (and I quote verbatim) “ Dual ion-exchange process. Tough is great, but we also wanted to make it scratch-resistant. So, using the same dual-ion exchange process we use on the back glass, we protect from nicks, scratches and everyday wear and tear.“ 

The main point of complaint (certainly mine is) relates to this misleading advertising about the screen. I mean this in the context of anyone who has previously had an older model of iPhone in the past. Having been happy with three previous models (3G, 4S and 7) which had no major scratch issues (but of course, before you bother to re-state it, were more likely to crack if dropped) I read that this new model has tougher glass AND its less likely to scratch, so why on earth would I realise that there was now a requirement to place a screen protector on immediately? 

No, I do not read complaint forums before buying a new phone, I read the advertising of a company that I trust and have stuck with for 10 years. 

Then within two weeks of normal use two very deep scratches appear and I have no scoobie what could have caused them. So I Google search and come across this forum and see many people have experienced the same issue. Posting my comment in support of someone else who has experienced the same issue as me, I am enlightened by you two that this is obviously my fault. My complaint was compared to a new car customer complaining about damage to his car upon scraping the paintwork on their garage and stating they’d never had an accident before. Bull. It is more comparable to a new car customer arriving home to find every fly on his windscreen has caused a pockmark in the glass, and on complaining about it is told “ oh, but surely you know our new tougher glass needs a windscreen protector on before you drive?”

I bought and applied a screen protector straight after reading the forum posts but it was too late by then, and the two scratches are very annoying and clearly visible whenever the screen isn’t lit up. This is clearly a first-world-problem, especially in the context of current issues, but I feel the complaint I and others have raised is legitimate. 

If you think that raising it with Apple customer complaints directly has any chance of resulting in a repair then I’m happy to try but your previous comments have dissuaded me from trying. However posting this still adds to a mounting body of evidence ( that WILL be seen by Apple) that this IS an issue and their marketing needs to be amended.

Sent from my (scratched) iPhone

Initially I read a news article about many people complaining of scratches on their new iPhone 12s. So I searched and found a place to vent. Regardless of whether or not Apple have seen these, it is a place for people to vent. Don’t discourage that. We’re venting to other Apple users, let it be mate. Maybe you can make a forum were you and the other Apple defenders can vent about us.?

We don’t like it how Apple sold us a snowflake screen and called it Ceramic Shield. Even more than that, we don’t like it when someone then places the blame on the buyer for not knowing they needed a screen protector when they’ve never needed one before to prevent easy scratches. There was no forewarning. That is it in a nutshell.

You’ve read it many times already. I’ve myself said it many times already. This is not a car without insurance, this is not a human in the sun, it is a phone screen that is so weak against scratches. My view is, if it NEEDED something to PREVENT damage, then it should NOT be a choice; something should have been factory applied before sold to us which would have prevent all this talk! Why didn’t Apple leave the camera lenses exposed on the iPhones, why place them behind sapphire crystals? Because they NEED to be protected to PREVENT damage. Same same.

No one, including me is trying to stop you from venting. Though I will tell you venting/ranting is a violation of the terms of use we all agreed to when we joined the forum.

At the end of the day however, what does your vent get you? Hint: Nothing

Even if, in reality Apple never sees these, at least a potential buyer searching for iPhone 12 reviews will be warned. To buy or not to buy, to buy with NEEDED protection, or buy something else? Can we both agree that this is very possible and serves a purpose in that regard?

We have become the warning which Apple themselves neglected to do.

Venting isn't the purpose of this site; there are plenty of sites that are.

Apple sold you a phone with a screen containing ceramics called Ceramic Shield.

It's not "so weak" against scratches, it is more scratch-resistant than the iPhone 11 and Galaxy S20, as Corning's "Gorilla Glass" has also moved towards shatter resistance in favor of lower scratch resistance.

Perhaps Apple can make you happy and instead of allowing you to buy a $30 screen protector, they will apply one at the factory instead and raise the price of the phone by $100.

You're absolutely right. A potential buyer will come here and see they can have the best of both worlds. A phone with a very shatter resistant screen and one which won't scratch if they make a very minor investment in a good screen protector.

That's an excellent point you've made.

And I see William posted the Terms of Use for you to read, so you can see I was indeed telling you FACT about ranting on this forum as it is a violation. So is disparaging anyone along with other things we aren't permitted to do in this Apple hosted user to user forum.