Are the new glass trackpads fragile or durable?

Although the glass would feel better on the fingers than the current polyurethane on the old trackpad, is the glass easier to break? Glass is more rigid, but is less flexible than other materials. Why use glass and not some other compound less susceptible to shattering?

The reason I am asking is because 2 of my friends have iPhones with cracked glass screens. Will the Macs face the same problem?

Does the glass trackpad help the user or is it money-making repair scheme for clumsy users? Apple does not offer accidental damage warranty on the MacBooks and MacBook Pros.

Is this new glass trackpad feature an upgrade or a downgrade?

 

The reason I think it is glass is because of what you said, it's more rigid so they can use it as a button. That's my guess why they went with glass. Haven't heard of anyone breaking one yet.

 

It a bit too early to determine durability.. but as seshan said there have been no reports yet, so I guess you can say that they are ~2 months durable !
also I think your friends are in the minority with the iphone screen. They so far have been exceptionally strong and durable... considering the large surface/target area for possible damage. I have had mine in my pocket for ~1 year everyday, and so far not one scratch even from keys etc... and no I don't have a screen protector.
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just because it's made from "glass" doesn't mean its the same kind of chemical composition as your average wine bottle. the only way it will break/crack is the same way old trackpads will break/crack: with a solid hammer hit square in the center.

with the unibody construction being the number 1 new feature, i would peg the touchpad as number 2 (as long as you dont use it in windows). i think its a fantastic upgrade.

 

I think it's an overall upgrade too. People I know who have them definitely think glass is better than other materials.

The likelihood of the touchpad breaking is low. When traveling it is inside the laptop and protected by the rest of the laptop. If you drop the laptop, the least of your worries is the touchpad cracking. You're only going to break it by dropping something heavy right on it. Conveniently since the whole thing is a button, if something's dropped on it, it'll probably depress to help absorb the impact.

 

Yes, the trackpad is definitely an upgrade, and ltcommander data put it just as I would.

 

trust me, the glasspad is so fragile that if a mug falls on it, it will break..but it feels better than any touchpad i've had between my hands till date

 

Really? Has anyone done that? I haven't heard of anyone breaking one so no one knows how fragile it is.

 

I saw this Youtube video of a 7 pound fan falling on top of the Macbook and all it did was dent ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Z1ZpvlwT-I). Of course the touchpad is made of a different material, but I can't imagine the trackpad is THAT fragile.

 

Whoever manages to drop a 7 pound object onto a laptop should not own a laptop anyway.

 

The person was in a hurry to pack, and placed their Macbook on the floor. The fan just happen to fall on it. It happens, it doesn't necessarily mean they don't take care of their laptop.

 

i think the glass i reinforced by a trackpad itself.

there is a lot of different kind of glass, i think this is the shock resitant one, by the look and feel of it. the same goes for the screen.

 

it seems you are misinformed, my friend :

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=594724

 

Seems to be a broken attachment. It only goes to half the keyboard.

 

Very durable and THE best trackpad I've ever used in my entire life.

 

Same here!

 

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=594724

Yikes, well I guess it is pretty fragile after all. I'll be sure not leave any coffee cups around my MBP.

 

Ouch, that's gotta hurt the wallet.

 

The cost came out to be $220 pounds, they have to replace the whole unibody .

 

That's the only problem with a uni-body, you have to replace the whole body.

 

Go on the original thread....

the unibody is expensive to repair... i heard that the keyboard is not replaceable... if the keyboard breaks down, the whole bottom part needs to be changed..there are more than 100 screws holding the keyboard in position, according to ifixit

 

Yeah, I found it. Yeah, as for anything that needs to be replaces on a Uni-body notebook, it's a huge hassle to swap something out because they have to switch out the whole body. That's the only thing that is a drawback to something so ascetically pleasing like that.

 

actually i think that they just replace the bottom part and the used one is sent to china, they remove the defective parts, replace them with new parts and the whole is assembled with a top lid and sold as refurbished..so there`s minimal loss of money on apple`s side....