My opinion of the iPhone, while I’ve never owned one, was that the glass was not prone to much breakage due to their impact resistant glass. In the iPhone 4S Apple is stating it is aluminosilicate glass; stuff they use in the windshield of high-speed trains and helicopters. Unlike the older iPhone models, the iPhone 4 has both the front and back made of this kind of glass, which Apple says is chemically strengthened to be “20 times stiffer and 30 times harder than plastic.”

Acording to  “iFix your i” , the glass covering the display on the older iPhones was recessed and protected by a chrome bezel, while on the iPhone 4, the glass sits on top of the steel frame, which exposes it more to damage.

For reference I’ve never been a fan of the Galaxy S models because I’ve seen a lot of breakage in their screens as well. But check out this video:

So basically if you drop it from the height of your ear down to a solid surface after some prior abuse (which you could fully expect from any user), there’s a good chance your iPhone will be no longer usable without glass shards getting stuck in your ear.

Here’s another video to back that test up:

I personally own an HTC Incredible and have never broken my screen even after a number of drops. I remember going into Verizon’s store one day and the sales associate dropped the Samsung phones about 6″ and then the HTC phones 6″. You could hear how more solid the HTC’s where compared to the Samsung, also stating that the Incredible’s where using Gorilla Glass for the screen. So I’m glad I made that choice.

None of these drop tests where scientific, but it appears Apple really dropped the ball on durability with the iPhone 4. But I’m sure iFixYouri appreciates the business.