The iPhone 6 Plus‘s reputation for bending in pockets is causing Apple’s PR a bit of a headache.
In case you missed it, disgruntled customers complained that after placing their shiny new iPhones in their front pockets (no one sat directly on their iPhones, as some confused Apple fanboys claim to be the case…), they later took the product out and discovered significant bending.
Word of this unique problem spread across the internet and eventually resulted in the #Bendgate Twitter hashtag.
Apple wants us all to know that #Bendgate isn’t nearly as bad as it’s been made out to be.
According to the company’s official response, only nine people actually bothered to complain about a bent iPhone 6 Plus.
That news didn’t stop Apple’s rivals from taking advantage of #Bendgate to poke fun at the entire situation in a hilarious fashion.
Samsung, who has been feeling the heat thanks to the popularity of Apple’s newest iPhone, tweeted “Curved. Not bent.” with the hashtag #GALAXYNoteEdge.
Curved. Not bent. #GALAXYNoteEdge pic.twitter.com/OTPIYlI07f
— Samsung Mobile (@SamsungMobile) September 25, 2014
Also getting in on the act was HTC, which bragged that their phones were meant to “withstand
the most demanding environments”. Like pockets.
Designed to withstand the most demanding environments. Like your pockets. #HTCOneM8
— HTC USA (@HTCUSA) September 24, 2014
LG hit out with:
Our phone doesn't bend, it flexes…on purpose. #bendgate pic.twitter.com/d1DudxDQgf
— LG USA Mobile (@LGUSAMobile) September 24, 2014
Probably one of the most ice cold responses came via competitor Asus, who even referred to Apple’s phone as “iBend”. Ouch!
The clear choice is the one that stands out. #ZenFone #BendGate pic.twitter.com/KxgKj4rW9N
— ASUS (@ASUS) September 26, 2014
The hits kept coming for Apple, with some of the best tweets coming from companies that have nothing whatsoever to do with the smartphone market.
Kit Kat shows us all that sometimes it’s better to break than to bend:
We don't bend, we #break.
#bendgate #iPhone6plus pic.twitter.com/uippCg4kCi
— KITKAT (@KITKAT) September 24, 2014
While Apple will likely recover from #Bendgate, one has to ask themselves how a company that prides itself on innovation wouldn’t take something as significant as pockets into consideration.
I mean not everyone can afford to walk around with their smartphone in hand. Especially since they’re regularly stolen.
Maybe Apple will give us a flexible iPhone 7? Just something for the tech giants to consider.
A phone worth hundreds of dollars shouldn’t be easily so compromised by a pair of skinny jeans.
