For Samsung, turns out Karma’s a ’bendgate’
- apr
- 03
"Bendgate" was last year's largely manufactured media crisis — you know, the negative attention grab that always seems to come up any time Apple launches a new iPhone.
Six months later and it's recognized now as the theater some of us saw it for back then. Indeed, my own iPhone 6 Plus, bought at launch day and kept in my front pocket almost constantly ever since, remains as flat and solid as a board. That didn't stop some of Apple's competitors from jumping on the hype in hopes of scoring some cheap attention of their own.
Samsung, for example, was quick to point out everything they do to keep phones safe in pockets. From YouTube:
And apparently, our hips are strong – stronger than we give it credit for. Leaving things in your back pocket can lead to, well, bent things.
More recently, via the Huffington Post:
Samsung's Younghee Lee, executive vice president of the company's mobile division, seemed to relish the opportunity for a jab during Sunday's press event.
"This stuff will not bend," Lee said.
Samsung would, of course, have been better off ignoring Apple and concentrating on its own products, but the company seems institutionally incapable of doing that. The result — the just-released Samsung Galaxy S6 is now suffering from a "bendgate" controversy all its own. Also from YouTube:
SquareTrade Shows Samsung S6 Edge as Bendable as iPhone 6 Plus & More Likely to Crack Under Pressure
Turns out, physics. And when you have glass on both sides, shattering physics.
My guess is we won't hear word-one about this from any executive vice presidents at Apple, though, nor see any snide YouTube videos on Apple's channel. My guess is Apple is, even if Apple weren't classier than that, the company would be too busy working on its own products to waste the time.
Should the way a company conducts itself influence whether or not you buy its products? I don't know what your answer is, but I increasingly know mine.
