iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus Were 'Never' Targeted to Get Sapphire Displays

The sapphire screen was one of the features many tech analysts and industry watchers had predicted to be used the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus ahead of their official launch. However, Apple never planned to use sapphire material for the screens, tips a new report.

Tim Bajarin of Time reports that "sapphire was never targeted for the iPhone 6 or 6 Plus and its role in future iPhones hasn't even been decided yet."

Bajarin even contradicts some earlier reports that showed the sapphire could resist drops, scratches, and was flexible enough. He adds, "I was told by multiple sources that various field tests subjected sapphire to scratch and break tests against strengthened glass. It performs better on scratch resistance, but when you drop it, it is more likely than glass to break. Glass actually flexes and can absorb the shock of a drop more successfully than sapphire. Sapphire is prevalent on luxury watches and other products that don't experience the same drop risk as smartphones."

"Once sapphire is exposed to a scratch or a flaw, visible or invisible, its risk of breakage and eventual failure is high," Bajarin added further.

He also goes on to claim citing sources that the use of sapphire could result in at increase of least $100 to the iPhone base cost. "Our researched opinion early on was that if Apple did add a sapphire screen to the new iPhone, it would add at least $100 to the base cost. That could be a deal-breaker for mainstream iPhone customers" notes Bajarin.

The in-depth report also claims that the use of sapphire material in the screen could adversely affect the battery life of the iPhone. Meanwhile, sapphire being a bulkier material could lead to a heavier iPhone. The material would also be required to be cut into shape, adding to the cost and production issues.

The sapphire material use in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus rumours kicked off when GT Advanced Technologies was reported to have received sapphire crystal display tool components from Apple, which was said to be enough to manufacture between 100 and 200 million 5-inch iPhone displays in Arizona.

Ahead of Apple's new iPhone launch, an analyst (who also happened to be an investor at GT Advanced Technologies) claimed that select iPhone 6 models would feature sapphire screens. Reports even suggested that the larger iPhone model (5.5-inch) would only sport sapphire screen and will have limited production, while only few versions of the smaller (4.7-inch) iPhone 6 will sport the premium sapphire material on the display.