With a lock screen clock showing an earlier time the next instance it is visible, redditors have called into question Unbox Therapy's video that alleges to depict Lewis Hilsenteger bending and permanently deforming an iPhone 6 Plus with his bare hands.
Apple has stated that it has fielded nine reports about bent iPhone 6 handsets and called the contorted phones "extremely rare," but Unbox Therapy's Lewis Hilsenteger set out to show just how easily the smartphones could be bent.
Hilsenteger has since posted an uncut video of him bending an iPhone 6 Plus with his hands, but the first video he posted depicting himself accomplishing the feat was struck down and deemed a hoax.
At about the 1:38 mark in the first video, the iPhone's clock reads "2:26" and it reads "1:58" 40 seconds later. Hilsenteger blamed the apparent time-travel incident on its production, specifically the mix of angles the video uses.
After being ruled a hoaxer, the Unbox Therapy personality released a 3-minute long video that appears to be uncut or stitched. As was in the case of the first video, Hilsenteger bent the iPhone 6 Plus with his hands.
While consumers on social networking sites have complained of bending the phones by simply carrying them in the front pockets of their pants, Apple and several independent organizations have asserted that all versions of the iPhone 6 have held up exceptionally well under stress tests.
Consumer Reports is one such independent entity that stepped up to weigh in on Bendgate. The consumer watchdog group says its stress tests were much more brutal than those applied by Apple.
"The reports stated that Apple applies 25 kilograms (slightly more than 55 pounds) of force to an iPhone 6 Plus to test flex," states Consumer Reports. "What does 55 pounds mean in context? Using our Instron, we found that it's approximately the force required to break three pencils. Consumer Reports' tests pushed the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus much further than 55 pounds."
Consumer Reports determined that the iPhone 6 Plus deformed under 90 pounds of pressure and its case began to come apart under 110 pounds of force. The smaller iPhone 6 deformed under 70 pounds of stress and separated under 100 pounds.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and the iPhone 5 were the two most durable phones Consumer Reports tested, with both handsets holding it together until 150 pounds of force was placed on them. The Note 3 deformed under 150 pounds of pressure and the iPhone 5 bent under 130 pounds of stress.
Check out Hilsenteger's second Bendgate video here:
