Coming soon to a smartphone near you: it's Gorilla Glass 6, the latest version of Corning's ubiquitous smartphone display cover. Gorilla Glass typically sits between the display and the outside world, protecting your precious pixels from damage. Lately, manufacturers have been using it for the back of the phone, too.

Every year, Corning says the newest version of Gorilla Glass is better than the last. Gorilla Glass 4 survived drops "up to 80 percent of the time" when dropped "face down from one meter," while Gorilla Glass 5 survived "80 percent of the time" from 1.6-meter drops onto a rough surface. This new glass concoction is designed to take multiple drops, though, with Corning saying it can survive "15 drops from 1 meter onto rough surfaces." (One meter is a little more than three feet.)

This year, the company is tackling repeated damage that is inflicted on a display. While a brand new piece of Gorilla Glass might survive any single drop, the micro abrasions incurred from multiple drops weaken the display panel and make it more likely to break next time. Corning says Gorilla Glass 6 should reach the market in "the next several months."