iPhone 6 users find devices more prone to surface scratches

Apple has been hit with claims from iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus users that their devices are prone to scratching even with minimal use and excellent care.

As reported by Apple Insider, and based on posts made by disgruntled users on Apple's Support Communities forum, many have noticed their iPhone screen becoming scratched very easily, and so far 626 people have taken to the forum to discuss the problem. The thread has been viewed more than 103,000 times.

The scratches seem to most often appear in the corners of the display, though some have pointed out that models previous to the iPhone 6 have not exhibited the same level of surface scratching even after years of normal use. As a result, many reported the problem after just one week.

The problem, then, has been attributed to the material used to protect the handset's screen, widely thought to be Corning's Gorilla Glass 3 alkali-aluminosilicate glass, though that assumption has not been officially confirmed by Apple.

Apple claims to have used "strengthened Ion-A" glass to reinforce the phone's screen.

According to Apple Insider, one reason for the iPhone 6's tendency to become damaged more easily is the curved display glass, as it is the first of Apple's smartphones to include no bezel "lip".

"Previous iPhones like the most recent iPhone 5s used flat pieces of glass surrounded by a thermoplastic peripheral material housed in a harder polymer wrap," they say. "This structure helped for shock protection, deflecting encounters with foreign objects and would keep the screen protected if laid down on its face."

In September, it was widely reported the iPhone 6 Plus was prone to bending when kept in pockets for extended periods of time.

Apple has so far not responded to news of the problem.