How tough is your phone?
Water, dust and technology – understanding your smartphone’s IP rating.
A MOMENT’S inattention and your smartphone slips into the sink, the pool or even the toilet. What was once often the end of a phone is now harmless for many smartphones. But which phones have enough protection to survive a dunking?
There are several degrees of waterproofing – some phones can survive a few splashes, others can even shoot photos underwater.
The level of protection against liquids and dust is indicated by the device’s IP protection class, says florian muessig from c’t magazine.
most new waterproof phones have an IP67 rating. The 6 stands for protection from dust entering the device, the 7 means it can survive 90 seconds of immersion in water.
“In the case of tablets, the IP protection is important, for smartphones too. But for laptops this is rarely of interest to the average consumer,” says consumer goods tester Christian van de Sand.
“for all smartphones, we do a water sprinkling test by default in which the mobile is sprinkled for five minutes with water,” says van de Sand.
There are “ruggedised” phones, laptops or tablets available which are particularly suitable for extreme conditions. They provide strong water and dust protection and some can survive a serious fall.
However, these devices are significantly more expensive than standard ones and are generally used by the military, in workshops or on oil rigs.
Another solution can be waterproof cases, bags or rucksacks to protect your digital camera, smartphone or tablet.
Protecting a laptop against the ingress of dust or liquids is much more complicated than for smartphones or tablets.
for one thing if the device is completely sealed it can’t be cooled by an internal fan. If you need that level of protection you’ll have to spend more than you would on a conventional laptop.
“IP65 is the maximum we can achieve,” says Peter Beck, a product marketing manager with Dell. This means protection against water shooting from any side. “But we can’t officially prove protection against water getting in during submersion.”
most computers can stand some water on the keyboard or the casing. “It always depends on where the liquid flows and what kind of liquid it is,” says muessig.
for example, water isn’t as bad as something like cola which contains sugar that can stick to a keyboard or internal components.
So what should you do if liquid is spilt on your laptop? fast action is essential, muessig says: “Switch it off, remove the battery and let it dry for a long time. That way every computer has a chance.”
In the case of a non-waterproof smartphone that’s taken a dunking, the device should be dabbed dry as much as possible and then placed in a bag of dry rice for a day or two before you try turning it on again.