When the iPhone 17 Pro originally came out, there were reports of potential discolouration and build quality issues in its aluminium alloy build. However, Apple waved the concerns off, labelling it as regular wear and tear. With the iPhone 18 Pro expected to launch soon with the same aluminium build, reports suggest it could exhibit similar characteristics.
iPhone 18 Pro May Get Scratched Easily
According to Fixed Focus Digital on Weibo, the next generation iPhone 18 Pro will feature aluminium alloy, the same material used in the iPhone 17 Pro. The tipster claims that the alloy boasts good heat dissipation, but won't be immune to potential discolouration and paint peeling issues.
For those unaware, iPhone 17 Pro exhibits an issue where the paint around the edges of the camera module that runs across the entire top portion of the smartphone peels off easily.
We explained it in our iPhone 17 Pro scratchgate article when iFixit did a teardown of a Cosmic Orange iPhone 17 Pro and found out the phone's anodised colour finish over the aluminium was prone to scratching.
This phenomenon is known as spalling and it occurs when anodised colour sticks weakly to the aluminium material. Besides, there were also reports of iPhones changing colours, specifically the Cosmic Orange variant turning rose-gold around the camera module.
Apple brushed these off as a regular part of wear and tear, and will continue to use the same material in the new iPhone 18 Pro colours, namely, Dark Cherry, Light Blue, Dark Grey and Silver.
Interestingly, when replying to a user comment about when Apple could potentially switch to a titanium build, the tipster replied that the next generation may have a chance. However, those planning on owning the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro might need to invest in a good screen protector and case with raised edges to protect the camera module from day-to-day nicks and wear.
