iPhone Air goes under the infamous bend test in front of senior Apple leaders, and it…

The infamous bend test is back, and this time for the iPhone Air, the thinnest iPhone ever. Here's what happened.

The iPhone Air is the thinnest iPhone ever at just 5.6mm, beating the iPhone 6 from 2014 – which launched more than a decade ago. But do you remember the infamous “bendgate” that troubled the iPhone 6 series? Yes, the one UnboxTherapy made popular, where the iPhone 6 models were bending due to the thin nature of the phone. And with the iPhone Air again being a device focused on thinness, conversation about bending has once again risen.

A new shape joins Apple’s line-up. (Apple)

By Shaurya Sharma

Shaurya Sharma is the Technology Editor at Hindustan Times Digital Streams, where he oversees technology coverage across digital and social platforms. With over eight years of experience across editorial, video production, and digital media, his work focuses on smartphones, AI, consumer gadgets, and shaping audience-first content strategies for modern tech consumers.

He began his career in 2018 as a fashion cinematographer before turning his lifelong passion for technology into a profession. From spending his childhood immersed in tech magazines, video games, and the latest gadgets to covering the global consumer tech industry today, technology has remained a constant throughout his journey.

Over the years, Shaurya has worked with some of India’s leading media organisations, including CNN-News18, Sportskeeda, and Guiding Tech, where he led video initiatives that combined strong editorial storytelling with engaging visual and social-first execution.

A graduate in Journalism and Mass Communication from Manipal University, Shaurya has reviewed hundreds of products across categories including smartphones, laptops, gaming consoles, cameras, and wearables. Beyond work, he is passionate about animal welfare, environmental causes, and automobiles, particularly turbo-petrol cars

Read moreRead less

But now, even before the devices have reached reviewers’ hands, there is a new bend test available for you to see. And the funny part is: it happened right in front of senior Apple executives John Ternus and Greg Joswiak, after Tom’s Guide’s Mark Spoonauer, in an interview with them, bend-tested it live.

Here’s what happened

Mark from Tom’s Guide, in conversation with Apple executives, pointed out the bendgate controversy, and it was then that Joswiak picked up the iPhone 17 Air and tossed it to Lance Ulanoff from TechRadar, asking him to try to bend it.

“Try to bend it. It’s on me,” he said.

Then Mark and he both tried to bend it, but it didn’t break. It shows how confident Apple is about the durability of the iPhone Air, and during the presentation at the Awe Dropping event, Apple even called the iPhone Air “more durable than any previous iPhone”. This is a big claim, and that brings us to what the new Air is made of.

What is the iPhone Air made of?

Unlike the iPhone 17 Pro, which switched to aluminium this year, the iPhone Air is made of titanium, and Apple has paid a lot of attention to the front and back glass.

Apple says that the back of the iPhone Air is now protected with Ceramic Shield, and the front cover uses Ceramic Shield 2. This also allows for much better scratch resistance than before.

Apple says its Ceramic Shield 2 is “tougher than any smartphone glass or glass-ceramic, with a new Apple-designed coating,” and it allows for 3x better scratch resistance and improved anti-reflection to reduce glare.