By David Pierce
Want to live on the edge? Go get a glass of water -- or, if
you're feeling extra lucky, a beer or a Coke -- and pour it on your
phone.
Wait! First of all, I, David Pierce, am not liable for any
phones destroyed during this, um, experiment. The reason I dared
you at all is that if you have a recent smartphone from Apple or
Samsung, this is theoretically no problem. Many phones are now
advertised as "spillproof" or "water-resistant," meant to survive a
spilled drink, a tumble into the toilet or even a fall into the
pool. Definitely a little glass of water.
But you might not feel like taking the chance anyway -- and you
probably shouldn't.
My goal with this column was to recommend the best gadgets to
use in and near the water, because it's summer and what better way
to while away a beach vacation than by staring at your favorite
screen? What I found instead was a mess of standards and
manufacturer half-promises that make me reluctant to trust anything
claiming to be water-resistant.
After spending hours in the water testing some of these devices
until my fingers and toes pruned to unprecedented levels, I did
find a few gadgets safe to take swimming. With phones, though, I
found there is no guarantee they'll survive more than a quick
splash or spill, and it probably isn't worth the risk.
Let me rephrase that: I basically killed an iPhone X.
Something in the Water
Companies denote product ruggedness using an IP rating. Created
by the International Electrotechnical Commission, the ratings
typically contain two numbers. The first, on a scale of 1 to 6,
represents protection against "foreign solid objects," like dust
and sand; the higher the number, the better the theoretical
protection. The second, on a scale of 1 to 8, represents the
device's ability to resist moisture.
You'd think devices like Apple's iPhone XS or Samsung's Galaxy
S10 -- both rated IP68 -- would be as dust- and water-resistant as
it gets. You'd be wrong.
Apple says the iPhone XS's rating means the phone can be
submerged in water up to 2 meters deep for up to 30 minutes.
Samsung says its protection extends only to 1.5 meters deep for the
same half-hour. Both companies, however, strongly recommend against
actually submerging your phone -- and both will void your warranty
if the phone suffers liquid damage.
That's largely because tests don't reflect real conditions: Most
water-resistance tests are done with clean, fresh water. You're
probably safe to spill a bottle of Fiji water on your phone, but
all bets are off if it's beer or coffee -- though they are the
sorts of "accidental spills" Apple has said recent iPhones can
likely survive. Water that you swim in might be worse.
"Designing something to be used in the ocean, or even worse, a
pool, is a lot harder than just water," said Scott Walker,
co-founder of swim-gadget manufacturer Underwater Audio. "The
chemicals that are in your neighborhood pool are really, really
caustic."
I can vouch for that. I spent an afternoon at a pool with an
IP67-rated iPhone X. It was in the water frequently, but never
longer or deeper than it is specified to handle -- and the touch
screen stopped working properly. Now I can barely type, scroll or
even swipe to open the camera. The Galaxy S10, which went through
the same tests, survived. This time.
Devices that are water-resistant today might not be tomorrow.
Most gadgets use watertight seals to keep moisture out, like the
caulking in your bathtub. But these seals don't hold forever.
"The IP rating they give phones is valid the first day you buy a
phone and invalid the day after that," said Kyle Wiens, chief
executive at gadget-repair site iFixit. The adhesive degrades, and
if you crack or bend or in any way compromise your phone, the
protection quickly becomes useless. Some newer gadgets use what is
known as a "nano coating" to keep bad stuff from reaching sensitive
components, but even that can degrade over time.
Even though there's no guarantee of your phone's survival, my
testing showed that if you have a recent high-end phone or other
device rated IP67 or IP68, small spills and splashes shouldn't
cause problems. Even a fall in the pool probably isn't the end of
the world. Anytime your device gets wet, though, it's important
that you rinse it with fresh water (a quick dunk under the tap
should do it) and then dry it off thoroughly. Wait as long as you
can before charging the device again.
Ready for the Deep End
My absolute favorite new "waterproof" gadget, the latest Kindle
Paperwhite, can be your poolside pal or even bath-time buddy, but
don't take it swimming. If you want to use gadgets underwater,
there are some other, more limited, options.
Here are a few of the gadgets I've tested that will actually
survive in the deep.
Recent Apple Watch models can withstand water up to 50 feet
deep, as long as you are careful to rinse it off when you are done
and use the Water Lock feature to get excess moisture out. Being
underwater makes the touch screen useless and limits your Bluetooth
range, but you can still track your workout.
For listening to music while you float the day away, I recommend
Logitech's $100 Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 2. This squat Bluetooth
speaker actually floats, so it can stay connected to your phone. It
sounds quite good, too, and its battery keeps chugging long after
you're a full prune.
If you'd rather have headphones, I like the $40 Underwater Audio
Swimbuds. They use a long, Christmas tree-shaped tip to create a
good seal in your ear, so water doesn't get in -- and the one-year
warranty includes water damage. Same goes for the Delphin, the
company's $220 Android-powered mini music player, which syncs
Pandora, Spotify and other music-streaming services.
For underwater photography, the easiest thing to do is buy a
case like the $100 Hitcase Pro. When properly sealed (which takes
some work), it protects your phone down to 33 feet. The screen
won't work, but you can snap photos and video by using the volume
keys as the shutter.
If you'd rather not risk your $1,000 smartphone -- and I don't
blame you -- get the $450 Olympus Tough TG-6, which can go as deep
as 50 feet. That'll cover any pool or snorkeling activity. My
favorite option, though, is the Sony RX100 in its humongous but
useful $280 underwater housing. With camera, the whole package can
run well over a grand, but it's scuba-ready -- down to a
brain-bending 130 feet. And the camera, without housing, is the
best point-and-shoot camera on the market.
One day, every gadget might be safe to use in the water. Our
phones in particular are so important and expensive, they ought to
be able to withstand the elements. For now, though, scroll
Instagram from poolside, but leave it on your seat (and maybe hide
it under a towel) when you take the plunge.
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 23, 2019 09:14 ET (13:14 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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