How often have you fumbled something in your hands, tried to catch it, but ended up deflecting it off your hand so the object got projected higher in the air and received more damage? Happens to me all the time. My favorite experience was slipping on ice with my car keys in my hand. My arm (by reflex) went straight up in the air to counterbalance, fingers extended (again reflex, allows for better cushioning upon falling), and the car keys went flying across the parking lot. I'm sure that if I had a phone in my hand it would have ended up destroyed.

Not the person you replied to but that's never, ever happened to me. Your life sounds like a Mr Bean episode.

Ok, so a follow-on question. For those who have very good hand-eye coordination (where you tend not to fumble an object you are trying to catch), do you wear glasses, and if so is the prescription strong enough to introduce a lot of distortion (curvature) along the edges? I noticed that when I switched to contact lenses for a few years, I was surprised that I could actually reliably catch a ball. Back to glasses now, but I can't catch anymore, play pool, bowling, etc.

This happens to me enough I’ve gone through three iPhone screens and one iPhone camera. I now keep my phone in a wallet case with an extra protective screen. There’s no attraction for me to have an iPhone with more glass

Maybe you need to buy some better shoes.

http://us.vibram.com/technology/arctic-grip/

CNET dropped it from 3 feet and it broke on the first drop.