Another year as brought another iPhone, and as has been the case all too frequently, yet another controversy. Sure, the problems haven’t been on the same level as the Antennagate scandal of 2010, and perhaps not even as significant as the battery issues with the early iPhone 4S devices, but the metal backplate of the iPhone 5 has certainly agitated more than a few consumers.
Indeed, it’s not just early adopters of Apple’s latest and greatest smartphone that have been up in arms about the materials used to encase it. Workers at Foxconn – the main manufacturer of the device and most other Apple mobile products – have also been in hot water with quality control staff for accidentally damaging the product before it has been shipped, and the process of meticulously piecing the iPhone 5 has been described as one of Foxconn’s spokespeople as "the most difficult" the company has had to deal with to date.
There’s little doubting the introduction of the metal backplate is an aesthetic plus, but with more and more people scratching up their new devices in the most harmless of circumstances, some people are already on the hunt for a way to fix their device up.
If you’ve damaged your iPhone’s aluminum shell to an unsatisfactory level, you can now grab yourself a replacement for as little as $99, courtesy of iPhone5mod. The company, which also filled another gap in the market by bringing the first Lightning docks to the masses, claims they’re original parts, and will supply you a replacement for the Black & Slate or White & Silver model of iPhone 5.
The China-based outfit has seen many a takedown notice from Apple in the past, so this opportunity might not last long, and if you wish to revert your device back to its original state, this is the best opportunity currently available.
Phil Schiller, Senior VP of Marketing over at the Cupertino company, has defended the new iPhone’s design, dubbing the scratching “normal” for aluminum products. The backplate of the iPhone is treated with a coating, so any scratching on the aluminum shows considerably clearer than on the old glass exterior.
If you wish to grab your replacement backplate, simply follow this link.
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