One week after the official release of the iPhone 17, the most worrying thing has finally come.

Recently, the iPhone 17 series has been on sale for a week. According to foreign media data, the sales of the iPhone 17 series in the first week in multiple global markets have significantly increased compared to the iPhone 16 series, with a growth rate ranging from 19% to 25%.

Thanks to the enhanced appeal of the Pro and Pro Max models, on JD.com, the pre - orders of the iPhone 17 series in the first minute exceeded the total pre - orders of the iPhone 16 on its first day of pre - sale. In some regions, the waiting time for some models has even been extended to mid - October.

After waiting eagerly, many users found that the new iPhone was not as perfect as they had imagined.

Some netizens posted on Xiaohongshu that the back panel of the dark blue iPhone 17 Pro display model in the official store was significantly scratched.

A large number of posted photos and short videos quickly fueled the "paint - peeling" phenomenon, even attracting the attention of foreign media: "The new $2000 iPhone 17 Pro is strongly boycotted due to paint - peeling issues", "The iPhone 17 Pro is deeply involved in the scratching scandal", etc. The whole network showed a rare skeptical attitude towards Apple's product quality.

So, what is the actual quality of the new iPhone? Is it a design flaw? Hardcore Kanban will take you to find out.

The worst - quality generation?

On Xiaohongshu, discussions about the paint - peeling of the iPhone 17 Pro are very popular.

Xiaohongshu user Benson said that he "received the new phone in the first batch and found quality control issues such as scratches and dents when opening the box".

In addition to paint - peeling, the new iPhone also has the problem of being not drop - resistant. Xiaohongshu user shaddock shared his "first drop" experience of the new iPhone: without a full - coverage phone case, there was an obvious dent in the lower - left corner of the front of the newly bought iPhone after it was dropped.

Xiaohongshu user Chehaha also said that the aluminum alloy of the iPhone 17 Pro is really soft: "Once it hits the ground, it gets scratched easily."

JerryRigEverything, a YouTuber with 9.63 million subscribers, also conducted a comprehensive scratch durability test on the iPhone 17 Pro.

When using a utility knife to scratch the middle frame of the iPhone 17 Pro forcefully, the anodized layer on the surface can be easily scratched by the utility knife. At this time, the hardness level is about 6 - 7; at the sharp corners of the camera platform, due to the insufficient thickness of the coating, peeling occurs when the hardness is 4 - 5.

When scratching with items such as coins and keys, the coating at the sharp corners around the camera platform showed obvious peeling at the contact points, exposing the original - colored aluminum alloy body.

Moreover, scratches are more obvious on dark - colored models: the scratches on the dark blue and cosmic orange color schemes are more noticeable under light, which makes users worry about the reduced anti - wear ability of the phone body.

Another new anti - reflection coating on the screen launched by Apple also has an unsatisfactory actual effect. Compared with the previous generation, the iPhone 17 series does have a certain enhancement in anti - reflection ability, but compared with models like the Samsung S25 Ultra, it lags far behind.

From left to right: iPhone 16 Pro/iPhone 17 Pro/Samsung S25 Ultra

According to tests by review media such as NotebookCheck, TechRadar, and CNET, combining the mirror reflectance in a dark room and outdoor direct - light comparison, the average reflectance of the iPhone 17 Pro has decreased from 2.0% to 1.8%, a slight improvement but not leading.

The all - aluminum alloy body: lighter but more fragile

Returning to the "scratching scandal" of the iPhone 17 Pro series, the main reason is that the iPhone 17 Pro has switched from the previous titanium alloy middle frame to an all - in - one aluminum alloy body and uses anodizing for coloring.

This process forms an oxide film on the aluminum surface through an electrochemical method, which has corrosion resistance and wear resistance. However, the thickness of the anodized layer ranges from 2 to 25 microns and is not uniformly consistent.

The original intention of this design is definitely to reduce the weight of the structure. The density of aluminum alloy is 2.7g/cm³, much lower than that of titanium alloy (4.5g/cm³). Moreover, aluminum alloy has better thermal conductivity. Combined with the VC vapor chamber used in the Pro models this time, the performance of the iPhone 17 Pro can be better released.

According to tests by NoteNotebookCheck, in a 30 - minute continuous GPU transcription test, the temperature of the iPhone 17 Pro only rose to 29°C, while that of the iPhone 16 Pro rose to 40°C. The temperature difference of up to 11°C ensures a stable high - performance experience.

Nevertheless, the soft nature of aluminum alloy makes the iPhone prone to deformation and paint - peeling when dropped.

Xiaohongshu user BamBoo

Based on my years of experience, my iPhone 15 Pro Max, which I used for two years, had its front and back screens broken multiple times due to multiple drops, but there was no deformation or dents on the middle frame, only slight paint - peeling. However, when I used the iPhone 12 before, once it was dropped, the corners would be deformed at the contact points.

It should be emphasized here that don't think that titanium alloy is much stronger than aluminum. Titanium metal is not completely scratch - resistant. In the past, a scratch - resistance test on the titanium frame of the iPhone 15 Pro found that if the phone was placed with keys, scratches would appear on the edges. It's just that titanium alloy has slightly higher strength and is less likely to deform.

Regardless of the material itself, whenever Apple launches a new iPhone model, there will always be new discussions about the quality of the iPhone. It's like what the class teacher used to say: "You are the worst - performing class I've ever taught." People always think that the newly released iPhone has the worst quality.

Apple: We know, but we won't change

Facing the continuous fermentation of the "scratching scandal" on the Internet, Apple explained through multiple media platforms that the scratches on the display models in the stores are not real scratches but are caused by the wear of the brackets used to display the new iPhone. Apple Store has started to replace the material of the MagSafe base to avoid accidentally scratching the phone body due to the peeling coating of the base.

Some domestic self - media bloggers also went to Apple stores to confirm that when the display bracket of the iPhone slides on the back panel of the iPhone 17, it will leave scratch - like marks. However, this is not because the coating of the iPhone is scratched off, exposing the color of the aluminum alloy body. Instead, it is the wear of the bracket left on the phone body, which can be easily wiped off with a simple cleaning.

In addition, Apple also claims that the anodized aluminum process meets and exceeds industry standards. The bonding force between the coating and the metal substrate reaches 5MPa in the laboratory environment, far higher than the 2MPa of its competitors.

However, Apple still recommends that users use protective cases to avoid minor scratches caused by daily sharp - corner friction. This response also shows Apple's consistent attitude. When you ask about the feel, heat dissipation, battery life, or the protruding camera, Apple will tell you that it's part of Apple's quality and doesn't recommend using a protective case. But when you mention the poor scratch - resistance, it still recommends using a phone case.

Regarding this scratching scandal, foreign review media such as 9to5mac believe that "the actual peeling mostly occurs on display models", and there are almost no such problems with privately - owned new phones. They emphasize that excellent heat dissipation and performance experience are the core values of the Pro models.