Stress test indicates the iPhone 11 Pro is quite durable, but don't expect miracles

During its iPhone 11 launch event earlier in September, Apple has put a lot of emphasis on the devices' increased durability.

All three phones -- the iPhone 11, 11 Pro, and the 11 Pro Max, have an IP68 water and dust-resistance rating (though the Pro models can withstand being submerged in deeper water than the 11). And all three use a new, custom-designed glass from Corning, the company that makes Gorilla Glass.

Now, protection plan provider SquareTrade has tested the new iPhones and found that Apple's phones were quite sturdy, especially the iPhone 11 Pro.

Don't expect miracles, though. The phones survived being dunked into five feet of water for 30 minutes (though the iPhone 11 and the iPhone 11 Pro Max did suffer some audio damage). The iPhone 11 Pro also survived being tumbled around in a box with "virtually no damage," while the iPhone 11 and the iPhone 11 Pro Max suffered a cracked screen.

But dropping the phones onto concrete from a six-foot height, both front and back, resulted in a cracked glass in every single case.

This may sound disappointing, but SquareTrade's tests are quite harsh. I'd expect six-foot drops to be rare in real-life usage, and basically all of the tests go beyond Apple's specifications.

In a recent iPhone 11 Pro/Pro Max drop test, conducted by EverythingApplePro, the phone fared a little better. On the other hand, Tom's Guide performed some testing of its own, and found the iPhone 11 Pro to be quite fragile.