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iPhone 7 Plus and Galaxy Note 7 face off in extensive drop tests

Published Sep 21st, 2016 6:00PM EDT
iPhone 7 Plus vs Galaxy Note 7 Drop Test
Image: PhoneBuff

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The iPhone 7 Plus and the Galaxy Note 7 are the only two phablets making headlines this fall, if for very different reasons. But aside from the fancy cameras and built-in hand warmers, it’s good to see the physical robustness of both handsets put head to head.

That’s exactly what happens in this drop test video, which pits an iPhone 7 Plus against a Galaxy Note 7 in a series of drop tests onto concrete. It’s glass versus metal the whole way, and the results probably aren’t going to shock you.

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After one drop from hand height onto a pad of rough concrete, the back of the Galaxy Note 7 isn’t doing so good. The glass casing has two cracks along the bottom, while the iPhone 7 Plus just has a few scuffs on the aluminum back.

The same drop onto the bottom isn’t too good for the Galaxy Note 7 either. While the iPhone has cosmetic damage, the Note’s glass shatters even more. Both phones shrugged off the side drop.

So, it mostly came down to the face drop, aka the most catastrophic thing that I regularly do to a phone. Both phones had their screens cracked by the worst-case scenario, although the actual display and touchscreens continued to function.

Side-by-side tests like this with no variables are the closest thing we’re going to get to scientific drop testing, and in this case, the result goes to the iPhone. While both devices are broken by the worst-case scenario, the iPhone shrugs off edge or back drops with ease, while the Note is visibly cracked. Although, on the plus side, the battery didn’t explode, so Samsung does get to breathe a small sigh of relief.

Chris Mills
Chris Mills News Editor

Chris Mills has been a news editor and writer for over 15 years, starting at Future Publishing, Gawker Media, and then BGR. He studied at McGill University in Quebec, Canada.