Galaxy S III suffers a bit more than iPhone 4 in drop tests

By Michelle Maltais

June 7, 2012 12 AM PT

The people who drop tech devices are at it again. This time they’ve tested Samsung’s hot new Galaxy S III smartphone to see how it fares against life’s little traumas of clumsy owners, kids and cars.

Tech-warranty retailer SquareTrade pitted the S III against Apple’s iPhone 4. Based on its drops, the Galaxy S III is better with flailing kids, and the iPhone 4 stands up better to slips from the ear and slides from the car.

The first fall, which was more of a release than a drop, was from ear level. The iPhone suffered mostly cosmetic scrapes and damage on the sides, but the screen was unscathed. The Galaxy S III looked fine from the back, but once it was flipped over, a single slim crack from top to bottom of the screen was visible.

Next, even though the phones got exuberantly tossed by mini-superheroes “Batman” and “Superman” in the video, they seemed to withstand the impact fairly well. The back of the iPhone did shatter, but the front of the phone escaped unscathed. It was technically still usable. The back of the Galaxy S III flew off intact, and the phone showed only minor scuffing.

In the car test, the iPhone flew off the top of the vehicle at the first hint of a screaming tire, whereas the Galaxy S III hung in there for a second. That probably didn’t serve the Galaxy too well, though: Its screen got trashed. All over the screen was a spiderweb of cracks. From what SquareTrade showed in the video, the iPhone was only a bit roughed up around the edges.