Have your skinny jeans started warping your shiny, new iPhone 6? Don’t assume that Apple is going to do your repair for free just because the Internet is buzzing about #bendgate. Bent iPhones will have to pass a Visual Mechanical Inspection. If yours doesn’t, the repair is going to cost you.
So just what is a Visual Mechanical Inspection? It’s Apple’s way of determining whether or not a customer’s device qualifies for warranty service. Last year one of the company’s official guides was leaked to the web, and there’s one image in the “paid” section that will probably make some #bendgate victims cringe. Right there in the bottom row, you’ll see “bent enclosures”:
It’s worth noting that this particular guide was published in 2012. It’s possible that Apple’s guidelines have changed since then. There’s also a decent chance that the Genius Bar will be a bit moreflexible with their current flagships while they try to figure out what exactly is to blame for the unintentionally bendy iPhone 6.
Bear in mind that this protocol applies to pretty much any iPhone repair. Apple — or any smartphone manufacturer for that matter — isn’t in the habit of repairing or replacing every damaged device that customers drop off at the service counters. If it’s obvious that you intentionally bent your iPhone 6, well, you’re probably going to have to pony up for the repair.
Apple’s Early Field Failure Analysis team is no doubt investigatng #bendgate right now. We should find out soon enough what the company’s official line is, though it seems likely that the phrases “isolated issue” and “limited number” will be included in the press release.
