Apple's Phil Schiller: white iPhone 4 isn't thicker than original

Initially it was reported that the main difference between the white and black versions is just the color, but the subsequent reports claimed that the white version is slightly thicker than the black version.

White iPhone 4 is thicker?
It is said that the ivory-tinted model of Apple’s iPhone 4 is 0.2 mm thicker than its ebony sibling.

Ryan Cash first noticed the difference in thickness between the white and black iPhone 4 and posted comparison shots of the two models on his blog post. Though he didn’t give exact measurements of the devices, but the difference is noticeable with the naked eye.

Subsequently, the TiPb blog took the measurements and showed 0.2 millimeters difference in the thickness of the two versions.

“After 10 months of delays, the white iPhone 4 has arrived, and at closer inspection it turns out it’s not only late, but also thicker than its black sibling,” reported Daniel Ionescu of PCWorld. “The difference is very small, 0.2 millimeters to be more precise, but it’s enough to give headaches to some users who would find their cases wouldn’t fit on the white iPhone 4.”

“The difference, from roughly 9.3mm thickness of the black iPhone to 9.5mm of the white model, doesn’t come from the steel frame of the device, but from the white glass part on the front of the device,” Ionescu reports. “Apple doesn’t list any difference in thickness on its website between the white and black iPhone 4.”

Apple denies
However, Apple Senior Vice President Phil Schiller denies that the white iPhone 4 edition is thicker, saying observers have got it all wrong.

Ryan Cash first noticed the difference in thickness between the white and black iPhone 4 and posted comparison shots of the two models on his blog post. Though he didn’t give exact measurements of the devices, but the difference is noticeable with the naked eye.

A report on 9to5Mac, which digs details of a Twitter exchange between a reader, Ernesto Barron, and Schiller, states that when Barron asked why the white iPhone was thicker than the black one, Schiller replied: “It is not thicker, don’t believe all the junk that you read.”

In an interview with All Things Digital yesterday, Schiller said that in making the white version of the iPhone 4, the company found that the manufacturing processes were needed to rework to make the device more durable, which included extra protection against UV.

"It's not as simple as making something white," Schiller said. "There's a lot more that goes into both the material science of it--how it holds up over time...but also in how it all works with the sensors."

The White Apple iPhone 4 smartphone is available for a suggested retail price of $199 (US) for the 16GB Apple iPhone smartphone, and $299 (US) for the 32GB Apple iPhone Smartphone with a new two year agreement at Apple’s retail stores, AT&T and Verizon Wireless stores and select authorized Apple resellers.