Counterclockwise: the rise of the metal phone

22 April 2018
Plastic is cheap and easy to work with, but it didn't cut it for premium handsets. Will another material overtake metal in phones? Not any time soon.

Sort by:

  • O
  • OSasmatteroffact
  • tEZ
  • 23 Apr 2018

Actually, Carbon Fiber would fit the category, it delivers the premium side, being stronger than metal and can't bend like plastic while giving expensive feel to touch.

    • ?
    • Anonymous
    • 39x
    • 23 Apr 2018

    Who cares if the phone is glass or metal body, buy a case if you can afford one. I own both and glass and metal phones and glass are more prestine condition than metal phones are prone to having some paint chipping that leaves some residue which is beyond repairable.

      • Y
      • Yann
      • stv
      • 23 Apr 2018

      Too complicated to say it right.
      Glass looks beautiful, but it is fragile, metal looks nice but interference with radio waves, poly-carbonate is durable, but not feeling nice...
      My old NOKIA 930 was metal frame with poly-carbonate back was great phone.
      Still, it is a matter of preference and everyone like different look and style.
      That's why we have variety of OEM's.

        • ?
        • Anonymous
        • 6XU
        • 23 Apr 2018

        Metal looks cool but plastic is more durable. Metal can bend plastic won't bend.

          • ?
          • Anonymous
          • JG0
          • 23 Apr 2018

          Plastic is the best material for phones. End of discussion.

            • ?
            • Anonymous
            • IV8
            • 23 Apr 2018

            3. Polycarbonate
            2. Carbon Fiber (last one was Droid Razr)
            1. MAGNESIUM!!

              • b
              • brandstifter
              • vNs
              • 23 Apr 2018

              Glossy glass and glossy plastic are the worst options. I've only seen glass back done right in Sony's Z5 series where it was matte. In all other cases a glass back is a huge disadvantage as it forces us to use cases.
              The best option is textured metal like Nokia E51 as smooth metal may be almost as slippery as glass.

                I'm not here for the looks. I'm using a phone for practical use. Glass phones are for "reviewer's phone" only because they are expensive and the most fragile of them all. Mostly, people love using aluminium and plastic phones because they are comfortable using it than slippery Galaxy flagship phone.

                  Rather than give a dissertation of exotic materials that no company is ever going to use (though I appreciate those posts on here), here are some phones I've owned that didn't need a case and survived many falls unscathed:

                  Nokia E61i, steel and plastic
                  https://m.gsmarena.com/nokia_e61i-1858.php

                  Samsung Galaxy Nexus, plastic, rubberized plastic battery cover
                  https://m.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_nexus_i9250-4219.php

                  Nexus One, metallic plastic?, plastic
                  https://m.gsmarena.com/htc_google_nexus_one-3069.php

                  Clearly I'm a fan of plastic. I blame the iPhone 4 for the idiotic glass sandwich trend. So many shattered dreams ;)

                    Materials such as polycarbonate is good as a phone frame material, however, the problem is it gets scruffy and scratches somewhat easily since its softer. My glasses for example are polycarbonate and unless it has a scratch-resistance coating, it'll get scratches. Plus, you have to use thicker material, which makes the phone thicker. On the plus side though, it has better impact resistance than metal, so it can absorb energy from impact.

                    Personally, I prefer metal but no glass on the back especially if the phone doesn't have any wireless charging (using glass on the back but having any wireless charging is kinda stupid, having an additional piece of glass to shatter instead of just the screen). Anyway, I always put a case on my phone to protect it material doesn't matter much.

                      • K
                      • Kangal
                      • uCX
                      • 23 Apr 2018

                      Kangal, 23 Apr 2018When it comes to BUILD MATERIAL there are some aspects that... moreThe way I would “weigh” the characteristics of these Build Materials would be like:
                      A – 20% – Price (inc labour)
                      B – 15% – Availability (production constraints)
                      C – 15% – Durability (shape-preserving)
                      D – 15% – Fragility (impact absorption)
                      E – 10% – Grippy-ness (inc Fingerprint Smudginess)
                      F – 10% – Premium Look and Feel (Subjective)
                      G – 5% – Hardness (Scratch Resistance)
                      H – 5% – Heat dissipation (For fast camera/processor)
                      I – 5% – Signal retention*
                      Total – 100% – All properties based on a 5-star system

                      And based on what I know, I think the different materials behave in each characteristics in a fashion similar to this below.

                      Cheap Plastics:
                      A: 5/5, B:5/5, C:1/5, D:4/5, E:2/5, F:1/5, G:1/5, H:1/5, I:4/5 =
                      = 20 + 15 + 3 + 12 + 4 + 2 + 1 + 1 + 1% = 59/100
                      = 60% Kangal Score (cheap, not good, not appealing)
                      ______8th / 9 contestants

                      High-Grade Matte Polycarbonate:
                      A: 4/5, B:5/5, C:3/5, D:5/5, E:3/5, F:2/5, G:2/5, H:2/5, I:5/5 =
                      = 16 + 15 + 9 + 15 + 6 + 4 + 2 + 2 + 5% = 74/100
                      = 74% Kangal Score (cheap, good, not too appealing)
                      ______2nd / 9 contestants

                      Resins (Denim, Nylon, Kevlar, Carbon Fibre):
                      A: 3/5, B:3/5, C:4/5, D:5/5, E:4/5, F:4/5, G:3/5, H:3/5, I:5/5 =
                      = 12 + 9 + 12 + 15 + 8 + 8 + 3 + 3 + 5% = 75/100
                      = 75% Kangal Score (affordable, good, appealing)
                      ______1st / 9 contestants

                      Leather:
                      A: 2/5, B:3/5, C:3/5, D:3/5, E:5/5, F:4/5, G:2/5, H:2/5, I:5/5 =
                      = 8 + 9 + 9 + 9 + 10 + 8 + 2 + 2 + 5% = 62/100
                      = 62% Kangal Score (expensive, good, desirable)
                      ______7th / 9 contestants

                      Wood:
                      A: 3/5, B:5/5, C:4/5, D:5/5, E:5/5, F:3/5, G:1/5, H:1/5, I:5/5 =
                      = 12 + 15 + 12 + 15 + 10 + 6 + 1 + 1 + 5% = 77/100
                      = 77% Kangal Score (labour intensive, great, appealing)
                      (gold medal, if only the necessary industrial precision is possible)

                      Cheap Aluminium:
                      A: 4/5, B:4/5, C:4/5, D:3/5, E:2/5, F:3/5, G:2/5, H:4/5, I:2/5 =
                      = 16 + 12 + 12 + 9 + 4 + 6 + 2 + 4 + 2% = 67/100
                      = 67% Kangal Score (cheap, good, appealing)
                      ______6th / 9 contestants

                      High-end Metal Alloys:
                      A: 2/5, B:3/5, C:5/5, D:4/5, E:4/5, F:5/5, G:4/5, H:5/5, I:2/5 =
                      = 8 + 9 + 15 + 12 + 8 + 10 + 4 + 5 + 2% = 73/100
                      = 73% Kangal Score (expensive, excellent, desirable)
                      ______3rd / 9 contestants

                      Watch-grade Sapphire**:
                      A: 1/5, B:1/5, C:5/5, D:3/5, E:1/5, F:5/5, G:5/5, H:4/5, I:5/5 =
                      = 4 + 3 + 15 + 9 + 2 + 10 + 5 + 4 + 5% = 57/100
                      = 57% Kangal Score (expensive, good, desirable)
                      ______9th / 9 contestants

                      Tempered Glass:
                      A: 4/5, B:5/5, C:4/5, D:1/5, E:1/5, F:5/5, G:4/5, H:4/5, I:5/5 =
                      = 16 + 15 + 12 + 3 + 2 + 10 + 4 + 4 + 5% = 71/100
                      = 71% Kangal Score (cheap, poor, appealing)
                      ______5th / 9 contestants

                      Overall, price was a major factor. So I think its completely fine to use Glossy Plastic or Tempered Glass which are both cheap as a Build Material for phones sold for the US$150 or €100 discount-bin market. Once you increase the price, you get leeway to add better materials. At the low-midrange (US$150-US$250 or €100-€200) you should demand something like High-Grade Matte Polycarbonate. Whereas at the high-midrange (US$250-US$450 or €200-€400) you should demand something like Kevlar. The high-end (>US$600 or €500), where almost anything goes, demands exclusively the Top-Shelf Alloys. Of course, this isn’t a perfect world as the industry persuades the dumbm-asses into accepting cheaper materials by the use of marketing.

                      *Signal Attenuation is not very important for the material covering the device’s sides and back, as the radio can connect through the front glass fine.
                      **watch-grade sapphire is technically a glass-like ceramic, and is much much harder than the average ceramic. The average ceramic is identical in properties to good tempered glass. Cheap glass is worse, but not by a large margin.

                        • K
                        • Kangal
                        • uCX
                        • 23 Apr 2018

                        When it comes to BUILD MATERIAL there are some aspects that need considering:
                        – Fragility (ie Drops/Cracks)
                        – Durability (ie Bending/Shape restraint)
                        – Scratch Resistance
                        – Heat Dissipation
                        – Signal Attenuation
                        – Mass Productability
                        – Price
                        and lastly Feel/Luxury (subjective)

                        The way to order one Material over another depends on how you weigh each field.
                        The types of materials that can be used range from Glossy Cheap Plastic, High-Grade Polycarbonate, Resins (Carbon Fibre/Kevlar), Leather, Wood, Cheap Aluminium, High-Grade Aluminium (7000-series), Ceramic, Sapphire, Tempered Glass.

                        I might come back to weigh these BUILD MATERIALS in terms of stats. However, it must be well-understood that we are not talking about BUILD QUALITY as many people confuse the two, they are mutually exclusive properties.

                          All metal. Metal+glass isn't practical, wireless charging isn't an important feature & isn't used by most people owning a phone capable of wireless charging. Most people buy glass back phones for reasons other than the glass back. Glass back is a compromise they are willing to make for rest of the specs.

                            • ?
                            • Anonymous
                            • sXb
                            • 22 Apr 2018

                            Mirkran, 22 Apr 2018Plastic is basically a byproduct of oil. So, unless we want... moreand to make those metal frames factories use oil to power and transport the material after that on trucks

                              Metal block the signal reception and it also slippery and it is cooler when in cold regions. Metal also can dent and can be scratched and it is heavier than glass by same volume.

                                • ?
                                • Anonymous
                                • Nt$
                                • 22 Apr 2018

                                kupfernigk, 22 Apr 2018Problem with metal bodies is they block the signal, so you ... moreWrong ... i have the galaxy c5 pro with a metal body and never have problems with signal ... everything is top network , gps and wifi .

                                  • ?
                                  • Anonymous
                                  • 4A0
                                  • 22 Apr 2018

                                  Glass is only "reviewer friendly", since it leaves a nice short-term impression, especially right out of the box. For practical use, I find it too slippery and brittle. I prefer slightly textured polycarbonate plastic. Aluminum is ok too, but it's uglier when scratched.

                                    The volume of the material is also important, example a 0.1mm of metal is so fragility, a 2mm of reinforced plastic is more durable. The design also play a important roll, example a piece of flat metal is easy to twist, but the anti-twist metal is more durable and sturdy.

                                      • ?
                                      • Anonymous
                                      • m5N
                                      • 22 Apr 2018

                                      I dont go for looks i go for practicality so bring back plastic anytime. Especially if it brought the cost of a phone down.

                                        • D
                                        • AnonD-227943
                                        • 3Jn
                                        • 22 Apr 2018

                                        Instead of maching billets of metal for for chassis,machine them out of solid billets of nylon 66,it seems strong enough and cheap enough for use in phones,we know plenty about it by now,its been used for all sorts of things,so why not phones as well ?
                                        Wooden body panels..

                                          2 of 4