Apple Patent Could Solve Cracked Screens
PASADENA (CBSLA) — Apple is exploring a new patent for a high-tech magnetic case that would protect your iPad or iPhone from shattering.
But it's just an idea right now. There's no guarantee the company will ever make it.
Julian Shabtai sees a lot of broken iPads and iPhones come into his Studio City store.
"Pretty damaged, most of them," said Shabtai.
He owns the Cellphone Factory and iPhone Repair shop on Ventura Boulevard. He says his customers can easily pay hundreds of dollars to repair their Apple devices.
"Sometimes even with the protective screens it still hits hard," said Shabtai. "It can also do damage inside the board."
But a new concept is floating around. According to AppleInsider, the company is toying with the idea for a case that could protect your iPad or iPhone during a fall.
The patent describes using electromagnets within Apple devices to detect when the device is falling and those magnets would "pull" the device away from the side that is expected to crash into the floor.
"It would help a lot of people because the new phones are all glass in the back," said Ashley Catano, who says she likes the idea.
She stopped by the Apple Store in Pasadena with her mom Thursday after shattering the screen on her iPhone for the third time.
Her mom is more skeptical of the case actually being something she would use.
"Who wants to carry around something bulky? Something that can fit in your pocket easily. I think it would have to be something convenient and of course cost-effective," said Marianna Catano.
Everything has its weak points, said Shabtai. "Look at Star Wars. Had a little spot in the big ship and then you hit that and it can be destroyed. Everything can be broken."
Apple does register a lot of patent applications every week, and not all concepts make their way into commercial products.