Sapphire screen scratch or coating?

[Manny13840]

I was pointing my iPhone flashlight to my AW4 and on the right top corner there was a tiny tiny scratch not noticeable at all without a flashlight not even under the sun I kind of freaked out. I researched if sapphire can get scratched, and saw that the actual glass doesn't get scratch but the coating it has does. To find out if it's the glass or not is to use fingernail to see if I feel it which I don't. What keeps me calm and not led my OCD go a nuts is that it is super small and not even noticeable.

I don't like SP on watches never had one for the original watch which was the ion x screen. Any of you experience to have scratches on your SS Watch (Sapphire screen). Good thing I have Applecare+ so maybe in future i can just send it back and get it fixed for $69.

 

[TripleOne]

I have never had a scratch on a sapphire crystal. It resists scratches very well.

 

[metllicamilitia]

Well, unfortunately, Apple doesn’t use a “true” sapphire glass. They have some sapphire sandwiched between regular glass. JerryRigEverything did a video on this some time ago. The glass will register as sapphire, which doesn’t scratch until a level 9 in the Mohs scale (diamond level), however, Apple’s sapphire glass still scratches at a level 6 and level 7 just like any other regular glass panel. Simply because the glass is not all sapphire. He hasn’t done a test on the Series 4 that I’m aware of, though I don’t expect different results.

 

[NEPatriot]

I've done a lot of looking in to this, and I'm not sure JerryRigEverything's findings are definitive. There are other test out there, one by Consumer Reports.

There are 2 likely causes for what we're seeing.

First, the Apple is using a oleophobic coating on the sapphire. One trade off to sapphire vs glass is reflection: sapphire is much more reflective than glass. Mechanical watch makers use AR coatings on sapphire to reduce this.

On a regular watch, AR coatings can be underneath, on the outside, or both. When used on the exterior, the down side is this coating can scratch, or wear off.

With an AW, the sapphire is bonded to the screen beneath, so it may not be possible to use an AR coating underneath. We do know the AW oleophobic coating is on the surface. Many of the marks and scratches we see in the AW are clearly in the oleophobic coating. Because the AW, unlike a regular watch, required constant touching and swiping of the screen, we also see examples of the oleophobic coating wearing off sections. All the swiping and so forth, combined with dirt and dust particles on the surface, can have a micro-abrasion effect.

These are not in the sapphire, but the oleophobic coating.

Second, sapphire is very strong, much stronger than glass, but it is more brittle. One reason gas dive watches used to always use plexiglass or other synthetics for crystals vs sapphire is that under pressure, as in diving below 200M, even a modest hit on the sapphire could cause the entire crystal to shatter. Seiko's Hardex, or plexiglass, can take a harder hit, may chip or even crack, but not shatter. The result is water may say stay out of the watch, allowing the diver to still see the time, and make an ascent.

The sapphire on the AW, because it has to bond with the screen and allow touch sensitivity, may be very thin. The AW also has pressure sensitive control. Pressing too hard on very thin sapphire, especially if here is even the smallest flex in the screen below, may result in fine cracks. These could look like scratches.

So my take is Apple is using sapphire, but very thin, and exterior coated to reduce glare. These too factors are can cause 1. scratches in the oleophobic coating, and 2. fine cracks in the sapphire from applying too much pressure, or a hard hit, due to flex below.

 

[NEPatriot]

I've done a lot of looking in to this, and I'm not sure JerryRigEverything's findings are definitive. There are other test out there, one by Consumer Reports.

There are 2 likely causes for what we're seeing.

First, the Apple is using a oleophobic coating on the sapphire. One trade off to sapphire vs glass is reflection: sapphire is much more reflective than glass. Mechanical watch makers use AR coatings on sapphire to reduce this.

On a regular watch, AR coatings can be underneath, on the outside, or both. When used on the exterior, the down side is this coating can scratch, or wear off.

With an AW, the sapphire is bonded to the screen beneath, so it may not be possible to use an AR coating underneath. We do know the AW oleophobic coating is on the surface. Many of the marks and scratches we see in the AW are clearly in the oleophobic coating.

Because the AW, unlike a regular watch, requires constant touching and swiping of the screen, we also see examples of the oleophobic coating wearing off sections. All the swiping and so forth, combined with dirt and dust particles on the surface, can have a micro-abrasion effect.

These are not in the sapphire, but the oleophobic coating.

Second, sapphire is very strong, much stronger than glass, but it is more brittle. One reason gas dive watches used to always use plexiglass or other synthetics for crystals vs sapphire is that under pressure, as in diving below 200M, even a modest hit on the sapphire could cause the entire crystal to shatter, as in implode. Seiko's Hardex, or plexiglass, can take a harder hit, may chip or even crack, but not shatter. The result is water may say stay out of the watch, allowing the diver to still see the time, and make an ascent.

The sapphire on the AW, because it has to bond with the screen and allow touch sensitivity, may be very thin. The AW also has pressure sensitive control. Pressing too hard on very thin sapphire, especially if here is even the smallest flex in the screen below, may result in fine cracks. These could look like scratches.

So my take is Apple is using sapphire, but very thin, and exterior coated to reduce glare. These too factors are can cause 1. scratches in the oleophobic coating, and 2. fine cracks in the sapphire from applying too much pressure, or a hard hit, due to flex below.

 

[Manny13840]

Thanks guys good thing it's very small but now I see scratching is still possible.

 

[Jude526]

I use tempered glass SP. can’t tell it’s on the watch and doesn’t hamper its working. I want the screen protected like I do in my phone