If you believe the reports and images on Reddit, there are some iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange phones that are inexplicably turning pink. There aren’t many reported cases, but enough that some have already coined the term “Colorgate.”
It’s fun to have a new “gate” to consider, but what if there’s a simple, scientific explanation for these potential color shifts and the answer has been staring us in the face from one of Apple’s own support pages all along?
First, we reviewed the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max here and have yet to experience any fading. Even scratchgate hasn’t reached our new iPhones yet, but the hue and cry surrounding this new issue is such that it’s worth investigating.
Let’s start by stepping back to understand the iPhone 17 Pro’s (and 17 Pro Max) finish, the process by which it’s made, and how it differs from the iPhone 16 Pro line’s titanium finish.
Titanium is a heavier, stronger metal than aluminum, and when it’s anodized (an electrochemical process), it adopts a smooth, non-porous finish. Anodizing aluminum, on the other hand, results in a porous finish that can be bathed in a special dye that soaks color into those pores and then is specially sealed.
Those differences in materials and the process by which the iPhone 17 Pro chassis is made allow for the richer iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max colors: Cosmic Orange and Deep Blue.
Anecdotally, Cosmic Orange has turned out to be the more popular color, which may account for the number of reports. But how might that lovely orange fade to an almost equally attractive reddish pink?
Oddly, a partial answer might be found here on this 2013 PF Finishing Products post by Mark Jazefowicz, VP of Technical Services, Reliant Aluminum Products. In it, Jazefowicz writes:
“Color anodized aluminum is widely used as a material in the medical device industry. From tool handles to trays, these repeat-use devices undergo regular cleaning and sterilization treatments, and it is vital that the original finish remain preserved throughout.
Several types of sterilization methods are in use today, but those that incorporate hydrogen peroxide injection are particularly challenging for a color anodized finish to endure, since fading or significant discoloration typically occurs after only a few sterizliation cycles.”
So, according to Jazefowicz, hydrogen peroxide, a chemical that’s occasionally used to bleach hair, is no friend to an anodized aluminum finish color.
If we needed more evidence, we need only look at Apple’s own guidance for iPhone cleaning.
Yes, 70% isopropyl alcohol is okay, as is a 75% ethyl alcohol wipe. Even Clorox Disinfecting Wipes pass muster when used gently. But the language is crystal clear: “Don’t use products containing bleach or hydrogen peroxide.”
Apple isn’t explaining here why you should never use those solvents, but based on the information from that decade-old-plus article, we can guess why.
Granted, this isn’t quite a smoking gun. We do not know the exact makeup of Apple’s Cosmic Orange dye or sealing process. There have been advancements in dye types and “anodic coatings” that can help, a least anodized aluminum surgical equipment, avoid fading even when they are exposed to hydrogen peroxide.
However, since Apple recommends against using hydrogen peroxide to clean your iPhone, we might surmise that color fading might at least be one of the concerns.
Apple, by the way, is not commenting on the controversy so far. But perhaps their support pages speak for themselves.
Is this why the colors on the best iPhones are possibly fading? Maybe. Reddit posts do not describe using hydrogen peroxide. Most complain about sun exposure, and anodized aluminum has been known to fade in some UV lights.
Put another way, nothing is conclusive, but there is a decent possibility that someone, somewhere, has been wiping down their new iPhone 17 Pro Max Cosmic Orange edition with the wrong solution.
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