How (un)stable is the Lumia 920?

[Fresh0razoR]

Hello everyone,

just an hour ago I was walking on a wall and I lost my phone (I was trying to use with only one hand -> failed!). It fell down (height: about 2 meters/6-7 feet). Since then I have a clicking in the sound. I will try a hard reset later. Maybe it helps. But my question is: Is this normal?? Doesn't survive my phone falling down a height of only 2 meters?
Any other experiences like that?

Regards
Fresh

 

[Ed Boland]

You were "walking on a wall and lost your phone"? I don't get it... and what does this have to do with stability?

 

[metalchick719]

Rock climbing, maybe?

 

[mase123987]

Also, 6 to 7 feet is a HUGE fall for a cell phone or any electronic for that matter.

 

[Fresh0razoR]

Also, 6 to 7 feet is a HUGE fall for a cell phone or any electronic for that matter.

really? its a phone, not a laptop. omg. my old iPhone was going through MUCH more without probs...

 

[edv2009]

Well, my 920 fell from about 4' out of my pocket, but I was doing about 160km/h (100mph for my Yankee friends) on my sportbike. It cracked the glass, but the display and everything else worked still. I'm hoping its survived being driven over by a combine though... New touch screen will be here any day. They're tough phones. I wonder if ur speaker came loose from the fall... Watch the YouTube vid if u feel comfortable disassembling it.

 

[mase123987]

really? its a phone, not a laptop. omg. my old iPhone was going through MUCH more without probs...

The 920 is a more durable phone than the iphone. That said, no phone was built to handle drops from 6 to 7 feet, esp. multiple drops.

 

[hcrick]

Hello everyone,

just an hour ago I was walking on a wall and I lost my phone (I was trying to use with only one hand -> failed!). It fell down (height: about 2 meters/6-7 feet). Since then I have a clicking in the sound. I will try a hard reset later. Maybe it helps. But my question is: Is this normal?? Doesn't survive my phone falling down a height of only 2 meters?
Any other experiences like that?

Regards
Fresh

Yes, it is normal. Anyone dropping an electronic device 6ft shouldn't be surprised if some damage occurs. Sometimes you get lucky, depends on what it landed on and how it landed (ie. angle of impact). Torture tests and comparisons have been done and they show the 920 as being significantly more durable than iphone, so maybe it was just an unlucky day for you.

 

[hcrick]

You were "walking on a wall and lost your phone"? I don't get it... and what does this have to do with stability?

I'd say walking on a wall has lot to do with stability...just not in relation to the phone

 

[angusdegraosta]

The 920 is a tank. I always say it can hammer nails, but I wouldn't want to test that out. I have a thin black Nokia case on it, mainly for grip.

 

[Fresh0razoR]

What I think at the moment is that the spend a lot time to make a stable display (e.g. Corning glasses) and a hard cover. But the inside is just not build very good into the form so that a fall can destroy the mainboard or something like that. This way I have a huge stable display but the rest inside is like inside my stomach :/

 

[Coreldan]

In the end the height of the drop is mostly irrelevant when dropping phones. You can drop an iPhone just 10cm and have it shatter the screen or it can survive a fall from a three story building, same goes for Lumia, even if my experience tells me that Lumia typically has a bit better chances to not break when falling than most others phones.

What matters is how the phone lands. Apparently you didn't shatter a screen though, but just some audio related issues. But as said, this is as anecdotal as it gets. It's like me saying the 920 is indestructible cos I've dropped it several times and theres not even a scratch on mine, let alone any flaws in the inside hardware. You got bad luck, maybe next time don't walk on walls and drop your phone?

 

[mase123987]

In the end the height of the drop is mostly irrelevant when dropping phones. You can drop an iPhone just 10cm and have it shatter the screen or it can survive a fall from a three story building, same goes for Lumia, even if my experience tells me that Lumia typically has a bit better chances to not break when falling than most others phones.

What matters is how the phone lands. Apparently you didn't shatter a screen though, but just some audio related issues. But as said, this is as anecdotal as it gets. It's like me saying the 920 is indestructible cos I've dropped it several times and theres not even a scratch on mine, let alone any flaws in the inside hardware. You got bad luck, maybe next time don't walk on walls and drop your phone?

I get what your first paragraph is saying, but maybe it should be more like "A phone can suffer major damage from almost any height if it lands just right. It can also suffer little damage at many heights if it lands just right." I wouldn't call height irrelevant though.

 

[Coreldan]

I get what your first paragraph is saying, but maybe it should be more like "A phone can suffer major damage from almost any height if it lands just right. It can also suffer little damage at many heights if it lands just right." I wouldn't call height irrelevant though.

Pretty much this, yes.

 

[Fresh0razoR]

I hope I will get warranty for this. Probably something like this is not under warranty. But my guess is still, that the focus of stability is just on the display. Maybe because of marketing or something like that. So they can say this phone falls down and there is no scratch whereas the other stuff inside is screwed...

 

[mase123987]

I hope I will get warranty for this. Probably something like this is not under warranty. But my guess is still, that the focus of stability is just on the display. Maybe because of marketing or something like that. So they can say this phone falls down and there is no scratch whereas the other stuff inside is screwed...

Again, no phone is designed to be dropped 7 feet. That said, based on pictures, Nokia does a really good job at laying out the internals of a phone. There is no secret scheme to make the insides break while the outside stays pretty.

I hope your warranty does cover it. That said, you are going to be breaking many phones dropping from that height.

 

[Games Goblin]

That is sad to hear - you should be lucky that your screen did not shatter - if your phone is under warranty, I think Nokia will fix it for you - just don't mention to them it happened due to a fall :wink:

Whenever 920 build toughness/reliability is called into question:

Drop Test

At around 3:19 into the drop test, the reviewer drops it from head height - 920 was unfazed - not to mention it survived their whole round of testing of multiple drops from various heights etc -- after this in another video they subject the drop tested 920 to a knife and hammer test (cutting it with knives, pounding it with hammer and using the phone itself as a hammer) - and amazingly it survives this torture test with flying colors - with the display and touchscreen still intact! That video never ceases to amaze me :excited:

but I have read cases where screen shatters from drops of less height - so it's all about lady luck being on your side - but overall I think it's safe to say that the 920 is a phone with excellent durability

Iphone 5 drop test in comparison

iPhone 5 vs Samsung Galaxy S3 Drop Test - YouTube

1:14 -- Screen cracked when dropped from chest height.


EDIT: I would recommend getting a good sturdy case+screen protector for your phone

 

[gsquared]

I hope I will get warranty for this. Probably something like this is not under warranty. But my guess is still, that the focus of stability is just on the display. Maybe because of marketing or something like that. So they can say this phone falls down and there is no scratch whereas the other stuff inside is screwed...

Maybe you should get one of those phones construction workers use. Those are pretty durable. Oh wait "stable".

 

[boovish]

I'm 6 foot 5, an I kept dropping my launch day iPhone 4 from my ear onto the pavement. I had it until I bought a 64GB Gold iPhone 5S. Never had a problem.

 

[Giddora]

Yeah... Same with my Lumia 800 and my Lumia 920 too... But two days after I sold my Lumia 800 to a girl that's around 162 cm 5 foot 3, she dropped it from her lap and cracked a corner in the screen.