Six days ago today, Apple released the latest additions to its long-running line of smartphones, the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. Since being issued, the iPhone 6 series has been snatched up by every man, woman and child who can get their hands (and wallets) on them.  
Along with the newest edition of the Apple mobile operating system iOS 8, the new phones boast several new features, the most significant of which is the size of the phone. The iPhone 6 measures  4.7 inches, while the iPhone 6 Plus has a length of 5.5 inches. That’s nearly half a foot of phone.
With phones that long and thicknesses ranging from 6.9 to 7.1 mm, these new smartphones  could be structurally questionable. Actually, it’s not even a question. Just one week on the shelves, the iPhone 6 series has come under fire for bending in consumers’ pockets. Several videos have appeared on YouTube with the new phones sporting obvious bends across the aluminum backplates.
If you can’t resist the groupthink consumerism and the temptation of a bright and shiny new product, there are several things you can do to win the Battle of the Bend:
1. Buy a solid phone case. There are countless brands of phone protection products. Top brands include Speck, Incase, OtterBox and LifeProof. These cases provide support to these fragile rectangles we devote our lives to.
2. If you can avoid it, don’t carry the phone in your pocket. Invest in shirts with front pockets to continue a hands-free, easily accessible lifestyle. If anything will come from this new phone series, it will be the swift resurgence of fanny packs in popular fashion.
3. Be phone aware. You’re carrying around the most expensive piece of aluminum and glass in your life. If you’re not going to buy an entirely new wardrobe, you need to be diligent of your phone’s place in space. If you’re sitting down, take your phone out of your front pocket. Definitely be wary if your phone is in your back pocket.
4. One last ditch effort for saving your tears for when you actually buy the phone: Wait it out. Control yourself for five minutes and wait out the masses. Give it a few weeks. If you’re lucky, the iPhone 6 series will be called back because of a software defect or the more apparent bending issue.
Follow any or all of these guidelines and you could be saved the heartache of wasting seven hours in line for a flimsy $200 Facebook machine.
You can reach Gerald Ducote on Twitter @geraldducote.