Are Waterproof mobile Phones Actually Waterproof? Know the Truth Before You Make A Costly Mistake!

Countless times, I have stumbled upon the debate of whether phones with waterproof ratings are really waterproof. Are waterproof phones safe for underwater operations? saw a news about the waterproofing of the mobile phone, do not let the mobile phone into the water

A friend of mine bought a new Huawei P30 Pro and accidentally dropped the phone while going to the bathroom It happened so fast yet it was too late. In spite of the fact that this gentleman immediately fished out the phone, it was definitely toast.

The phone chose to go off on the spot, and it crashed with a black screen.

He expressed his doubts. Didn’t the phone say it was waterproof? He carefully checked the description of waterproofing on the official website and opened a support ticket to customer service.

The customer service explained to him that IP68 is tested under laboratory conditions, and since the daily use environment is generally more complicated, IP68 is only used as a reference

My friend later spend a huge amount of money to replace a brand-new screen, but it seems to be useless

Here is The Maintenance Report That He Was Provided With

So the maintenance staff told him, brother, you can’t see this, the main board of the mobile phone is also burned out, you have to change the main board.

Must Read: How to Choose the Right Protective Cases for Your Phone & the Advantages

As soon as the words fell, my guy was furious, and he could no longer control his distaste. Isn’t the phone claimed to be waterproof?

He directly requests Huawei’s official after-sales service to refund the maintenance cost of the mobile phone screen and replace him with a new Huawei P30 Pro. The two parties are currently negotiating

What is The Waterproof Integrity Of Mobile Phones? are Waterproof Phones Safe for Underwater operations?

I believe that after reading the news, everyone is also full of doubts, what is the waterproofing of mobile phones?

Using Huawei As A Case Study

Let’s take a look at the laboratory test conditions given by Huawei’s official customer service

If you put the mobile phone into clear water without flow, the water depth is about 1.5 meters, the experiment time is about 30 minutes, the water temperature and the temperature of the product are kept within a certain range, and the mobile phone can be preserved intact

The promotional image above is actually misleading

But there is a condition: before putting the phone into the water, the earphone port and speaker hole of the phone need to be blocked with special waterproof glue, so that it can support the waterproof function

“This mobile phone is not a professional waterproof mobile phone. For example, if you drop the mobile phone into the water and it will be submerged in water or liquid, this is not covered by the warranty. This is experimental data, which is conditional, and it is not guaranteed in our daily use.

This is the definition of waterproof in Huawei Mall, which is roughly the same as that described by customer service.

Mobile Phone Waterproofing According To Mobile Phone Manufacturers

1. Samsung’s description of IP68 is basically similar to that of Huawei, but it lacks the national standard supported by Huawei, GB 4208-2017, the protection level of the shell, but it has nothing to do with its performance
2. Apple also stated in the description of the iPhone Xs that it supports the international standard, IEC 60529
3. Sony’s official website also stated that the IP rating test is based on laboratory conditions At the same time, it is also recommended that users seal the phone before performing underwater operations

So, What is IP68 Rating In Electronic Devices?

The IP rating is an international standard used to measure the dust and water resistance of electronic equipment

The IP code is two digits, the first digit indicates the level of protection against solids (including dust), and the second digit indicates the waterproof level of the device

For details, please see this picture posted on Sony’s official website as shown below:

From this point of view, IP68 is the highest level of waterproof and dustproof

But it needs to be said that the current protection ability of the mobile phone can only be regarded as water resistance at best, not waterproof. This might seem like a word difference, but in fact, the difference is huge

What is Real Waterproofing?

The so-called waterproof should refer to the characteristics of the object itself, such as some waterproof umbrellas, due to their own material properties, they can prevent water and leave no residue

And like rain boots, although they can also prevent water from entering to a certain extent, the water will still remain on the upper, which should be called water resistance.

The same is true for mobile phones, although they claim to be waterproof, all they do is block moisture from entering the internal components and use a waterproof coating on the surface of the components

But at best, the inside of the mobile phone is still “afraid” of water, and it does not have the characteristics of waterproof, but it is difficult for water to enter under external influence.

In fact, there are indeed some manufacturers who are more cautious in terms of words, such as Apple and Huawei, and they all use “water resistance” in their descriptions.

However, manufacturers like Sony and Samsung, which have earlier laid out waterproof mobile phones, use the word “waterproof” instead.

But in any case, once water enters, it will not be covered by the warranty, so we still need to pay attention to this

CONCLUSION

The waterproofing of mobile phones, to put it bluntly, is just an enhanced feature of mobile phones, and it can only be used for emergencies.

If you want to be really waterproof, you still need to start with yourself. If you really want to make your phone waterproof, you can buy a cheap universal phone waterproof pouch from local stores or on reputable online marketplaces such as amazon or eBay.