American iPhone users have spent nearly $6 billion in repairs , according to SquareTrade, a company that offers device warranties.
The company surveyed more than 2,000 users and looked at various factors including “cost of repairs, replacements and insurance deductibles for cracked, dropped, pummeled, kicked, and water-damaged iPhones.” It concluded that, between June 2007 — when the first iPhone was launched — and last month, the total cost of repairs equaled $5.9 billion.
SquareTrade said the top reasons for repairs were: iPhones being dropped — on the floor, in the toilet, sink, or other bodies of water; iPhones falling from people’s laps; liquid being spilled on the device; people knocking the device off the table.
The company also concluded that nearly a third of all owners had damaged their iPhone.
Unfortunately for the accident-prone iPhone owner, protective cases won’t be available for at least a few weeks , Wired reports. That means the more than 2 million people who will be buying the device will have to be extremely cautious with the phone until cases are released.
Incase CEO Dave Gotto said, “There is a misconception that we get some information early.We wait until devices are in the store. It’s not so black and white in that we don’t do anything till then.”
Incase is just one of many manufacturers of Apple-related accessories. The company is taking pre-orders on iPhone accessories, but the final design specifics won’t be completed until the phone actually goes on sale.
According to ABI Research, and reported by CNN, 38 percent of smartphone buyers purchase a case at the same time as a new handset, so the lag between the release of the phone and the case may be detrimental to accessories manufacturers. However, 75 percent of owners purchase a case at some point during the phone’s lifetime, so there will be still time for the company’s to recoup their losses after missing the launch.
Do you own an iPhone? How much have you spent on repairs so far?
