iPhone 6 Plus is back in the spotlight after one user decided to weigh two different models together and noticed a discrepancy of 21 grams (0.74 ounces, or 0.046 pounds). The user took to Reddit to share his story, escalating it to the point where it actually made the news.

Identified as doctorkuddles on the Reddit community, this person explains that he and his wife each got an iPhone 6 Plus about six weeks apart. While they are the same color and same model, one holds 16GB of storage while the other 128GB and there's a difference of 21 grams (0.74 ounces, or 0.046 pounds) between them (allegedly). The claim soon became headline material.

The tests

“We have identical phones minus the gb size (I have 128gb, she has the 16gb) Both are space gray. I started looking at both phones closely. First difference I noticed is the smoothness on the week 1 phone compared to the week 6 (?) phone. Completely softer and smoother. The second difference I noted was when I started tapping ('flicking') the back and sides of both phones. Right where the previous 'bends' were in previous 6 pluses (above and below the volume rocker), there is a night and day difference in sound,” writes doctorkuddles.

He relays to the thread’s readers that he even went and looked inside the phone “through the cracks of the volume buttons” using a microscope and noticed that the week-6 iPhone 6 Plus (the 128GB model) featured a a red colored object placed in the volume down button crank.

He reportedly proceeded measure both phones in all angles and concluded that they were identical in size. He then notes, “I weighed both, and my 6 plus is 21 grams heavier.. (128gb versus 16gb?) I just don't see the memory being that much heavier.”

The thread is getting quite a bit of attention as the claim being made is that Apple might have quietly added some new parts inside newer devices to prevent them from bending.

According to well placed sources speaking to 9to5mac, a difference in weight between two phones of the exact same model is expected, due to manufacturing particularities. However, these people said something along the lines of 1.5 grams, not 21.

Could the NAND flash add the extra weight?

It’s certainly possible, and even plausible considering the discrepancy. Had the 16GB phone been heavier, it would indeed be strange. But considering that the 128GB model is the heftier one, it’s reasonable to assume that the extra weight comes from the additional flash memory.

Anyone who has more knowledge of how these things work is more than welcome to jump in and save the day. Can additional flash memory add up to make a phone substantially heavier? Sound off in the comments section below.

Oh and, let's not forget that a single user's experience is nothing to go by.