So iPhone 21 Ultra will be the last titanium flagship. What's next? Adamantium?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Other Revert back to aluminum on the 17 Pro and Pro Max
- Thread starter iPhone2019
- Start date
-
- Tags
- aluminum iphone 17 pro
- Sort by reaction score
While i am not a fan of glas, its the one which doesnt scratch that easily.
The alternatives would be some kind of plastic, epoxy w carbon or maybe wood.
But all scratch easily and wood is problematic with water.
That was a plane. It was the weight to strength ratio.
In the current iphones the 7000 series Aluminum is very similar to Titanium.
In fact 7000 series Aluminum is Aerospace grade which was developed to be a cheaper alternative to Titanium and has very similar characteristics to titanium.
it does dissapate heat much better and is nearly as strong. The use of Titanium has no practical usage other than marketing purposes. They added a metal cage around the pros battery this year to dissipate heat since titanium is so poor at it.
Aluminum has no such issues. Would be and is the better choice for use in a phone.
That isnt true. Apple is using 7000 series Aluminum, not regular Aluminum. 7000 series Aluminum is aerospace grade, was developed as a cheaper alternative to Titanium having similar characteristics as Titanium.
It is certainly not 2x as strong. Not even 1x. It is on average between .5 to .6 stronger or 40 percent with much lower heat conductivity.
7075-T6 Aluminum vs. Grade 5 Titanium :: MakeItFrom.com
The tensile strength and sheer strength appear to be double that of the aluminum according to that link.That isnt true. Apple is using 7000 series Aluminum, not regular Aluminum. 7000 series Aluminum is aerospace grade, was developed as a cheaper alternative to Titanium having similar characteristics as Titanium.
It is certainly not 2x as strong. Not even 1x. It is on average between .5 to .6 stronger or 40 percent with much lower heat conductivity.
7075-T6 Aluminum vs. Grade 5 Titanium :: MakeItFrom.com
www.makeitfrom.com
That is just two factors that make up the overall strength. You have to look at everything. Look at the bottom graph that calculates everything. Those are the calculated numbers.Its under common calculations.That isnt true. Apple is using 7000 series Aluminum, not regular Aluminum. 7000 series Aluminum is aerospace grade, was developed as a cheaper alternative to Titanium having similar characteristics as Titanium.
It is certainly not 2x as strong. Not even 1x. It is on average between .5 to .6 stronger or 40 percent with much lower heat conductivity.
7075-T6 Aluminum vs. Grade 5 Titanium :: MakeItFrom.com
Strength to weight for example.
The Cold War plane that’s still the world’s fastest airplane | CNN
During the Cold War, the SR-71 Blackbird spy plane could fly higher and faster than any other – and 55 years after its first flight, it still does.
www.cnn.com
Titanium skin
Because the aircraft was designed to fly faster than 2,000 mph, friction with the surrounding atmosphere would heat up the fuselage to a point that would melt a conventional airframe. The plane was therefore made of titanium, a metal that was able to withstand high temperatures while also being lighter than steel.
The Cold War plane that’s still the world’s fastest airplane | CNN
During the Cold War, the SR-71 Blackbird spy plane could fly higher and faster than any other – and 55 years after its first flight, it still does.
Yes i know that. I provided a link comparing titanium to 7000 series aluminu. Titanium was used for strength to weight and its ability to expand extreme heat and not changing shape. For example the SR 71 leaked during takeoff because the titanium plates would close the gaps when in flight.
The Cold War plane that’s still the world’s fastest airplane | CNN
During the Cold War, the SR-71 Blackbird spy plane could fly higher and faster than any other – and 55 years after its first flight, it still does.Titanium skin
Because the aircraft was designed to fly faster than 2,000 mph, friction with the surrounding atmosphere would heat up the fuselage to a point that would melt a conventional airframe. The plane was therefore made of titanium, a metal that was able to withstand high temperatures while also being lighter than steel.
The use in a phone is not comparabl.
For the flagship phone I prefer a premium material and hardware that makes it different than the standard model. I also preferred stainless steel to aluminum when the X was released. I had no problem when the flagship was aluminum, 6S was one of my favorite phones but for me personally, when they offered stainless or titanium for the Pro models I liked the change
That is assuming 7000 series Aerospace grade Aluminum is not a premium material. it is. It is more expensive than Stainless Steel. A much more premium material.
Apple is very good at marketing, so most believe what they say. They make space craft and satellites out of it. It is stronger than mild steels.
Stainless Steel is cheap in comparison, is heavy and conducts heat poorly. Apple should have never used it in the first place.
Titanium is more expensive than both, but is heavier than 7000 series aluminum and is a poor conductor of heat.
Remember 7000 Series aluminum was developed as a replacement for Titanium in the Aerospace industry. It isnt cheap, far from it. And it has better heat conductivity and is almost as strong.
Apple screwed up by using SS. They couldnt backtrack and use 7000 series aluminum so they had to go with Titanium.
Jony Ive didn’t use SS for the reasons stated above, he highly protested it and was very vocal on Apples use of it When he left. He wanted thin and light and they did the opposite.
He knew what was best and he was right.
Samsung uses it for a reason. They never switched, and they were right not to do so. If SS or Titanium was so great for devices why doesn’t Apple use it in anything else? Cost? Heat? Weight?
i worked in marketing for Alcoa and i know this inside and out. I delt with this for two decades.
Going away from 7000 series aluminum was one of the biggest plunders Apple ever made. So you like your devices to be heavier and run hotter?
Last edited:
Yes.
I would rather Apple continue to treat us like adults and give us the premium devices with the premium features leaving the details of caring for the devices up to us rather than redesigning the phones and removing features in order to satisfy the lowest common denominator when it comes to standard of care.
Samsung's flagship the S24 Ultra is made from the same materials as the iPhone Pro's, titanium bonded to aluminum..
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra review: Doing (and costing) the most
Is Samsung's latest and greatest worth an ever-increasing stack of dough? Find out in our Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra review.
Whereas Apple made the change to save a few grams from its hefty Pro models, the Galaxy S24 Ultra adopted titanium purely for its improved durability. It only shaved about a gram off the weight of the previous Galaxy S23 Ultra, but the titanium frame has a slight texture, making it much more comfortable in hand than the previous model. Oh, and the textured finish is pleasingly fingerprint-averse, too.
The stainless steel on my White 14 Pro was super nice to look at and much prettier than the titanium. But, I prefer the titanium overall.
Last edited:
That was actually stainless steel and not aluminum. Steel polishes up very nicely compared to titanium and aluminum that form a dull but strong oxide layer at their surfaces.
I much prefer the functionally lighter weight and higher conductivity of aluminum vs the functionally stronger rigidity and aesthetically “better” look/feel of titanium. I think weight and thermals are much bigger problems in iPhones than rigidity, and aesthetics is extremely subjective, plus putting aesthetics above function is generally unwise.
Poor conductor of heat. Worse than SS or Titanium.
The iphone pros are straight grade 5 titanium. They switched to a titanium alloy instead of straight titanium because of the thermal conductivity.Samsung's flagship the S24 Ultra is made from the same materials as the iPhone Pro's, titanium bonded to aluminum..
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra review: Doing (and costing) the most
Is Samsung's latest and greatest worth an ever-increasing stack of dough? Find out in our Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra review.www.androidauthority.com
Whereas Apple made the change to save a few grams from its hefty Pro models, the Galaxy S24 Ultra adopted titanium purely for its improved durability. It only shaved about a gram off the weight of the previous Galaxy S23 Ultra, but the titanium frame has a slight texture, making it much more comfortable in hand than the previous model. Oh, and the textured finish is pleasingly fingerprint-averse, too.
The regular s24 is still 7000 series aluminum.
They did it for marketing purposes, not because they wanted to. They had to.
Still the wrong decision. 7000 series Aluminum is superior for a phone for the reasons stated. There is a reason they had to put a heat sink on the batteries on the smaller pro models. I am not sure if the max has one too.
They make satellite, spacecraft, fighter jets out of 7000 series aluminum. If it can handle that just fine it can handle an iphone.
Had plenty of aluminium iPhones in the past and they’ve been great. My current phone is titanium and it might as well be aluminium as it’s in a case and the finish is similar anyway.
That's why I don't think the titanium Apple Watches are worth it. To me, they look so similar to the aluminum versions.
Can you tell us what those benefits are or is this just something you heard in the Apple keynote?