
Apple Card can be damaged by wallets and jeans - jfk13
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-49435687
======
gourou
A few weeks before launch, Steve Jobs replaced screens on the iPhone because
they would get scratched too easily. You don't see this level of care anymore.

> For weeks, he had been carrying a prototype of the device in his pocket.

Mr. Jobs angrily held up his iPhone, angling it so everyone could see the
dozens of tiny scratches marring its plastic screen, according to someone who
attended the meeting. He then pulled his keys from his jeans.

People will carry this phone in their pocket, he said. People also carry their
keys in their pocket. “I won’t sell a product that gets scratched,” he said
tensely. The only solution was using unscratchable glass instead. “I want a
glass screen, and I want it perfect in six weeks.”

[https://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/business/apple-america-
an...](https://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/business/apple-america-and-a-
squeezed-middle-class.html)

~~~
dillonmckay
They showed Steve!

Now phones can’t fit in pockets, especially with other items.

~~~
joering2
Just thought about this comment now. I kept all my iPhone in pocket together
with keys never cared for scratches and never seen any. On iphone4, iphone5,
iphone6. Now im typing this message on horribly scratched iphone8 screen done
with same set of key that i carried my old iphone in the same pocket. That’s
sad. And few days ago i just discovered my old iphone4. Soeaker on it still
plays smooth with strong bass. Speaker on my iphone8 sounds like cheap crap
already after 6 months of ownership. Darn things really went south without
Jobs around.

~~~
Yetanfou
If you don't mind me asking, why did you change from that iPhone 4/5/6 which
withstood those keys so well and still sound good? I'm still using a device
from the iPhone 4 era - not an iPhone though - which still works fine and
continues to be useable as an 'outdoor' phone due to its smaller size and the
fact that it is waterproof. I was only forced to get a newer device about a
year ago due to the fact that the Swedish electronic ID app - without which it
is getting harder and harder to interact with many government services -
stopped supporting Android 4.4, otherwise that phone would have remained my
'daily' device.

------
suzzer99
Apple Card may suddenly accelerate to dangerous speeds. If Apple Card begins
to smoke, seek shelter and cover head. Do not taunt Apple Card.

~~~
NotSammyHagar
Still legal in 13 states, just like happy fun ball!

~~~
somesortofsystm
I would rather have a Happy Fun Ball Card, than this ..

------
gamedna
Press release: Belkin releases CCARDFORCE InvisiGlass Ultra Screen Protection
for apple card. $399.

THE NEXT GENERATION OF CARD PROTECTION InvisiGlass Ultra delivers screen
protection like no other. Ultra-premium glass is chemically engineered to be
even stronger than tempered glass. This added strength allows it to be
precision-cut so thinly that it delivers a flawless purchasing experience. The
top layer of the card protector is proven in testing to provide the highest
level of scratch protection available, to keep your Apple Card looking and
functioning like the day you brought it home.

------
notjustanymike
I'm pretty sure Apple is just fucking with us at this point.

\- They designed a $1000 phone that shatters when it's dropped.

\- A keyboard that fails after a single crumb.

\- A card that fails in jeans and leather.

I'm pretty sure they're aware of the real world, and intentionally building in
the opposite direction as part of some great cultural experiment.

~~~
somesortofsystm
Honestly, I'm coming to the conclusion that a lot of the designers of these
kinds of devices do not in fact live in the real world.

But then I wonder if the world I define as real, is really not just make-
believe..

~~~
notjustanymike
You mean you don't commute to work in a private air-conditioned bus to work in
an all-white glass UFO?

------
jsgo
Are there cards that don't?

I don't remember specifics as to what was making this card special (think it
had something to do with financing), but I'm pretty sure the physical cards
durability wasn't one of them (would've probably eye-rolled pretty heavily if
so).

~~~
donkeyd
No, but there are no other cards produced by Apple. Now that Apple has a card,
people have to complain, because Apple.

~~~
thrill
Now that Apple has a card, people who complain about its inadequacies have to
be ignored, because Apple.

------
delinka
I think the issue here is the definition of "damage." Think about this from a
design company's perspective. They've designed a Beautiful Looking Credit
Card. A credit card typically takes scuffs, scratches, wear and even tear from
everyday use - wallets, pockets, bags and purses. You put the Beautiful
Looking Credit Card in those places, and it'll get scuffed, scratched, worn,
etc, just like all the others. But now, because it's designed as a Beautiful
Looking item, customers are more likely to complain.

~~~
kuu
I mean, they made it to be "resistant". Now it's not...

 _The Apple Card is a relatively plain matt white credit card made of
titanium, which was designed to stand out against other credit cards._

------
nickthegreek
I wish they had some photos of the damaged cards. It's not like they have to
hide the cc#. I have one coming soon and would like it to stay nice and fresh.
I remember getting my first debit card from a local bank back in the 90s and
it came with a protective paper sleeve which most people promptly discarded.
That sounds like a simiple solution to this problem.

amazon has a pretty big selection.
[https://www.amazon.com/s?k=credit+card+sleeve](https://www.amazon.com/s?k=credit+card+sleeve)

~~~
ceejayoz
Here's an example, apparently after two months of use.

[https://i.imgur.com/Bg8yOKT.jpg](https://i.imgur.com/Bg8yOKT.jpg)

~~~
crazygringo
That looks pretty much like any other card of mine after a couple of months.

In other words, not news?

~~~
stunt
Perhaps "white" is the last color you want to choose for the same reason.

------
delish
I have a leather wallet. What material should my wallet be made of?

Apple's page says: Store your titanium Apple Card in a wallet, pocket, or bag
made of soft materials.

What is soft wallet material other than leather?

~~~
gamedna
The apple card dock. Its supposed to be amazing, but they are having technical
issues with overheating so the release is delayed.

------
ceejayoz
"Damage" is a bit of an overstatement.

The white will get discolored. I've got an all-white card from Simple, and
yep, it's all scuffed up from my wallet. Who cares?

~~~
RonaldSchleifer
People who have an inverted sense of prestige from the use of credit cards.
That's who.

It's really not a health or even all that smart community once you start
thinking about it. It's almost like the Apple Card is a kind of peak travesty
... a card made of titanium (think about that), that has cleaning and care
instructions, that has such sharp edges that it is cutting people; not to
mention that it's a credit card, a signal that would tell people in a healthy
society that "this person does not know how to manage money and therefore has
to borrow money for basic daily things". The use of a credit card for anything
but mid tier level purchases or where the secondary/ancillary benefits are
useful, should make one not trust such a person for their inability to manage
their finances. Think about it, credit to buy dinner and/or drinks. It should
be a clear sign of untrustworthiness.

Yes, I realize that credit cards offer and obscure the reality of the matter
through ancillary benefits that I also utilize on occasion. Those are not
there though as the primary purpose of the card, they are there to obfuscate
and obscure and mask through justifications and rationalizations, the use of
the real reason that the financial institutions want you to use the cards, the
credit feature that will rack up profits that are then also rolled into the
cost of the goods you purchase. People don't realize that every credit card
purchase drives up the cost of goods and services, especially due to the
contractual agreements of payment processors that prevent different prices for
card over cash use.

At the heart of it all, the whole credit card industry is a kind of con job
monopoly by the very definition of the term: "an act or instance of duping,
swindling, or persuading by deception." or a "trick of confidence", imbuing
the target with confidence (in this case by tapping into the odd apple fan boy
confidence through the shiny titanium apple card) in order to dupe them into
using the credit card that will result in interest and fees and conversion
arbitrage profits over n% of charges and balances; and all that through the
forced monopoly of contractual limitation of competition of cash transactions.

I don't know about you, but if the free market/competition were not limited by
this cartel of colluding payment processors (MC/Visa, mostly) I would use
cash/debit if it meant I could save money (likely more than the cash back
amount offered on credit cards). But that's precisely why they limit
competition by cash

~~~
jonfw
People use credit cards for almost everything because cashback is free money
and so are 0% interest introductory period.

You act like credit cards are for the financially irresponsible, but IMO it's
almost financially irresponsible to use cash. Why give up free money? Why
ignore the time value of money when somebody offers you 18 months interest
free?

Obviously there are significant repurcussions if you misuse them, but there
are also significant benefits if you manage them well.

------
airstrike
From Apple's Support Document on these cards:

 _" Some fabrics, like leather and denim, might cause permanent discoloration
that will not wash off."_

Good think I use a money clip. Oh, wait

 _" Store your titanium Apple Card in a wallet, pocket, or bag made of soft
materials."_

I guess the solution is to buy a suede wallet to hold just the Apple card.
Can't believe they haven't added that to their accessories...

[https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210399](https://support.apple.com/en-
us/HT210399)

------
heavymark
Or put in another way, credit cards can be damaged by wallets and jeans. Apple
recommends best ways to care for your credit card. I don't think the Apple
document means their card is more susceptible to damage, if anything I imagine
its far less so that plastic, but unlike other card companies who don't have
to tell customers the obvious like other objects can scratch an object such as
a card, apple has to since unlike other companies, apple knows people will
immediately try to put it through stress tests because apple x product has x
issue gets lots of ad views compared to other companies.

------
ortusdux
They had to make it white. You can adjust the thickness of the oxide coating
on titanium to refract a wide range of colors - just not white.

~~~
ceejayoz
The white (and the magstripe) is just a coat of something _on top of_ the
titanium.

~~~
ortusdux
Exactly. They could have picked any color other than white and had a nearly
indestructible titanium dioxide coating.

~~~
ceejayoz
Not for the magstripe, they couldn't.

~~~
wongarsu
But I haven't seen any complaints about the magstripe, just about visual
blemishes.

~~~
ceejayoz
The magstripe seems particularly prone to damage.
[https://i.imgur.com/Bg8yOKT.jpg](https://i.imgur.com/Bg8yOKT.jpg)

------
RyJones
And blood. I cut my thumb trying to get mine out of my wallet - I would like
it if they rounded the edges a little.

~~~
RonaldSchleifer
I guess it wasn't enough that they cut your wrists when using their MBP, now
they want you to bleed every time you pull out their card. I see a disturbing
trend here. Who knew that metal has sharp 90º edges?

On a side note: This makes the thumbnail for TechLead's video review of the
Apple card that much funnier (it's the card slicing through a steak)

~~~
ceejayoz
This winter will bring complaints that it scratches windshields when you use
it as an ice scraper, I guarantee it. Quite a few folks use plastic CCs for
this in a pinch.

------
dillonmckay
I personally don’t associate prestige or beauty with MasterCard.

It would be like Apple partnering with Buick, instead of BMW.

~~~
whamlastxmas
The only card I've ever seen places not take is MasterCard, which is funny
given their slogan of it being everywhere you want to be.

~~~
52-6F-62
Oh so many places don't take Amex. Funny enough, I run into more places that
don't take Amex in the US than I do in Canada.

------
4ntonius8lock
What a vapid article.

Their card can be damaged?

Yes, all cards can.

The main thing is: is this more easily damaged than other similar metallic
credit cards.

The article doesn't mention this at all.

Next up on the news:

X Product can be Damaged, Will yours be?

Then just write generic text with no sources, comparisons or data of any kind.

------
zeveb
I'm reminded of modernist buildings, which looked nice and gleaming white the
day they were built, and have looked old and shabby for decades since.

How long until folks realise that the real world is not a pristine white cube?

~~~
lostlogin
I agree, but there are some great exceptions. Le Corbusier’s Villa Savoye
still looks sharper and more modern than many new builds and it’s approaching
90.
[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villa_Savoye](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villa_Savoye)

------
sxp62000
It would be hilarious if they were to sell a case for the card too hahah!

------
bradgessler
I’m sure you’ll be able to get a case for your Apple Card to protect it or buy
3 years of Apple Care for $49 (there will be a $19 co-pay if Apple replaces
your jeans or wallet, up to 2 accidents)

------
Flavius
Another thing: metallic cards feel unnaturally heavy, I don't understand why
would you choose them over the plastic ones.

~~~
freeone3000
BECAUSE they feel unnaturally heavy. It's a status thing. When you hand your
card over to the person at the till, you feel important, because your card is
metallic, instead of plastic.

~~~
cm2187
Kind of like business cards in American Psycho:

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cISYzA36-ZY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cISYzA36-ZY)

Some people still aspire to behave like that.

------
marban
I for one am all for Wabi-sabi when it comes to Credit Cards, Cameras or
iPods/Phones. The more, the better.

------
throw03172019
My wallet is leather but the credit card slots have a cloth material.

I better book a Genius Bar appointment to verify it is OK.

------
JoshTko
It would have been perfect if they made the card out of frosted gorilla glass
with maybe a anodized alum rim.

~~~
somesortofsystm
.. and if it maybe had a next-gen tiny little chip thingy that still does
something super Apple'y, but over your money instead of .. pics and things ..

------
JTbane
Can't be worse than my bank card, thing gets mangled and chewed up by both
ATMs and my wallet.

------
sys_64738
Do Apple make a sleeve for the card? I think there’s a market here for a 29$
sleeve.

------
altmind
Cant you order a free replacement card if you care so much about scuff and
marks?

