Apple has just launched the iPhone 12 series. The new lineup of smartphones includes four devices, the iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, and the iPhone 12 Pro Max. And all of these devices feature Ceramic Shield display protection.

Apple is promising the Ceramic Shield to offer “4x improved drop performance” compared to older iPhones. The company says that the Ceramic Shield is “tougher than any smartphone glass,” making the iPhone “more durable than ever.”

So, what is Ceramic Shield? It is a thin, glass-like sheet that is made using glass-ceramic material. It protects the display against scratches and impacts. The glass-ceramic material was developed by Corning, the very brand that Apple has worked with to create the Ceramic Shield. According to Corning, the glass-ceramic material consists of nano ceramic crystals embedded in the glass matrix. The glass-ceramic is tough, lightweight, virtually impervious to heat and electricity, and highly transparent, making it the best material available in the market for display protection.

However, Apple isn’t the first brand to use glass-ceramic material.  Smartphones like Samsung Galaxy S10, Xiaomi Mi Mix, and the Essential Phone come with glass-ceramic protection. However, these smartphones use glass-ceramic for back panel or camera-lens protection. Apple, on the other hand, has used glass-ceramic for the display, which makes sense as protecting the display of your smartphone is more important than protecting its back panel.

If Apple’s claims about the Ceramic Shield are true, it could be tougher than Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus that is used in the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. The Gorilla Glass Victus has already proved to offer excellent protection against impacts. Considering that Ceramic Shield is tougher than Gorilla Glass Victus, it could simply be a breakthrough in the smartphone industry, offering peace of mind to the buyers of the new iPhone.