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Apple tries to close iPhone 6 Plus 'bend-gate' as fashionistas come to grips with larger iPhones

Source: Unbox Therapy via YouTube

Apple on Thursday responded to the the flood of criticism leveled at the supposed ease with which the jumbo-sized iPhone 6 Plus bends during normal use, saying that just nine customers have complained about such an issue, while fashion-conscious consumers have once again proven that Apple can't please everyone.

"With normal use a bend in iPhone is extremely rare," a member of Apple's media relations team told the Wall Street Journal. It now seems that more iPhone 6 Plus units were bent by YouTubers taking advantage of the media kerfuffle than were bent by actual consumers.

Similar issues befell Apple's iPhone 5, though the public's reaction was not nearly so intense. That handset was seen bending in approximately the same place as the iPhone 6 Plus — near the volume buttons —  but it is likely that those devices, as with the bent iPhone 6 Plus units, were subject to unusually high strain forces.

At least one AppleCare representative is said to have told a concerned consumer that Apple Store employees would perform a "visual mechanical inspection" of the customer's bent iPhone 6 Plus to determine whether it is eligible for replacement under warranty. It is unclear what that inspection includes.

Apple's new, larger iPhones have also caused a stir in the world of fashion. According to the New York Times, fashionable consumers are finding the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus a tight fit.

Fashion designers and retailers have responded to the call of overstuffed pockets. Internet-based apparel company Bonobos said they would make adjustments.

"If none of our pants fit the iPhones, that would be a real problem," Bonobos design chief Dwight Fenton said. "You ignore them at your own peril."

One fashion source that spoke to AppleInsider said that at least one other famous company — haute fashion house Rag and Bone — would be "adjusting pocket size to compensate" for the larger devices.