While it may survive drops on relatively soft surfaces like wood or carpet, I can only assume that materials such as ceramic or concrete will win over glass. I

While it may survive drops on relatively soft surfaces like wood or carpet, I can only assume that materials such as ceramic or concrete will win over glass. I say that as someone who has worked with glass, albeit not with Corning Gorilla Glass in particular. My naked original iPhone and 3GS phones have been dropped many times on hard surfaces (like concrete), and have only had minor dents and cracks in the plastic and metal, which I'm totally fine with. Having the glass shatter is not OK, hence the need for it to be recessed behind a protective rim, or failing that, the entire phone enclosed in a protective case, which adds to the device thickness and makes it ugly.