Moisture protection of your smartphones: what you need to know?

Definition confusion

Let's say right away that "protection from moisture and dust" is currently present mainly on flagship smartphones or mid-priced smartphones. It is extremely rare to find it on cheaper models. At the same time, if you have a hypothetical iPhone 14 Pro Max, then you should not rejoice in advance - with protection, not everything is so simple. 

At the moment, there is a main standard for protection against moisture and dust – IP. Unfortunately, not everyone understands the basics of this classification and what it means. IP (Ingress Protection Rating) is a classification system for the degrees of protection of the electrical equipment casing from penetration of solid objects and water in accordance with the international standard IEC 60529. 

The degree of protection is understood as a method of protection, verified by standard testing methods, which is provided by the device casing from access to dangerous parts (dangerous current-carrying and dangerous mechanical parts), penetration of external solid objects and (or) water into the casing. In this case, it is often not water that is meant in the context of drowning a phone, but moisture or drops of the same rain. 

What do manufacturers say?

Happy owners of the latest iPhone, Samsung and Google Pixel lines may notice that advertising campaigns for their favorite devices often focus on a few things – the shock resistance of the case and its protection from moisture and dust. Apple has been especially focusing on this in recent years. 

Just 5 years ago, smartphones for the general public could only dream of such protection. Back then, it was equipped with “unkillable phones” - bulky smartphones in a shockproof case. These could often be seen among builders or tourists. These were models from different and not the most famous brands were available in a wide range. At the same time, “unkillable phones” can really survive a short drowning to a depth of one or two meters without any problems. 

Now manufacturers are equipping even mid-range smartphones with protection. Often you can find an inscription on the box of a smartphone: “Protection against moisture and dust level ...” and then there are alphanumeric names IP67, IP68, IPX8. It is they who indicate what kind of protection your phone is equipped with. The numerical parts of these names may differ.

What do the numbers in the designation of the protection level mean?

The first letters, as we have already found out, are the name of the IP classification system (Ingress Protection Rating). What's with the numbers? The first number usually indicates the degree of protection against the ingress of solid objects (do not forget that “protection against moisture and dust”). Such objects include, in fact, dust of all kinds, pollen, sand, earth. Dust protection is divided into levels - from 0 to 6.

Particulate Protection Levels:

• 0 - no protection
• 1 - protection against particles with a diameter of more than 50 mm (large objects)
• 2 - protection against particles with a diameter of more than 12.5 mm (fingers)
• 3 - protection against particles with a diameter of more than 2.5 mm (tools, cables)
• 4 - protection against particles with a diameter of more than 1 mm (wires, bolts)
• 5 - dust protection
• 6 - full dust tightness

The second number indicates the level of protection against moisture and/or liquid penetration. There are more levels here - from 0 to 9.

Liquid Protection Level:

• 0 - no protection
• 1 - protection against vertical drops
• 2 - protection against drops at an angle up to 15 degrees
• 3 - protection against rain and drops at an angle up to 60 degrees
• 4 - protection against splashes in any direction
• 5 - protection against a jet of water under pressure of 30 kPa in any direction
• 6 - protection against a jet of water under pressure of 100 kPa in any direction
• 7 - protection when immersed to a depth of 1 meter for up to 30 minutes
• 8 - protection when immersed to a depth of more than 1 meter for more than 30 minutes
• 9 - protection against hot water under pressure

Sometimes, instead of the first number, you can see the Latin letter X. Thus, the protection standard for a smartphone is IPX8. The letter X means that dust protection has not been officially confirmed. That is, the manufacturer has declared the presence of such protection, but has not submitted official testing reports. At the same time, water protection has been confirmed and has level 8. 

For example, iPhone 14 Pro Max and Samsung Galaxy S22 are IP68 rated. Is it possible to bathe your iPhone or flagship Samsung at the same time? Of course not. Now we deal with assigning a rating and immersion in water.

Assigning an IP rating

In order for a smartphone to be accredited according to its rating, it must undergo testing. Thus, to obtain IPX8, the smartphone must survive immersion in water to a depth of at least 1 meter for 30 minutes.

These values are the minimum acceptable threshold for passing the test. Of course, manufacturers are lying a little. Often, the advertised moisture protection just meets the minimum acceptable threshold, upon reaching which the device will be hopelessly damaged. 

Therefore, do not forget to study the so-called “fine print”, which will indicate exactly what tests your smartphone has passed. Often, the rating (level) of moisture protection only indicates that the phone “out of the box” was able to pass the immersion stage, and after that was able to turn on. There is no talk of greater performance, especially on budget smartphones.

Is it cheating? More like a marketing ploy. Companies use a completely legal loophole, and sales from this only grow. 

Features of immersing a smartphone in water

Companies can advertise their product however they want, but it's important to remember the following. All tests and trials are carried out under ideal conditions. Was to take a tank of still water, under constant pressure. This fact alone calls into question the real degree of protection of the device. 

Keep in mind that if your phone drowns, it will be exposed to currents, uneven pressure, and all sorts of other types of damage. In real life, it is easy to drown a phone at a depth of even 1 meter so that it can no longer be turned on. Salt water also causes disproportionately greater damage to electronics. The charging port and/or headphone jack are the first victims of salt water. 

Even if the manufacturer indicates that the smartphone has protection, it should be treated as a “last chance”. That is, try to prevent water from entering the body of the device at all. Such protection is insurance, as they say, just in case. If you drown your phone, the best thing to do is to try to get it out of the water as soon as possible, even if it is not salty. 

Even such a giant as the Nokia 3310, which was famous for its “indestructibility”, took about 6 minutes in salt water to have to change the battery and charging socket (personal experience of the author). What can we say about modern smartphones, which are much more sensitive than old phones. 

Instead of a conclusion

And yet, not everything is so bad. A splash of water will survive any smartphone. In the rain, too, noticeable problems will not arise. Naturally, within reasonable limits. 

By itself, the technology of moisture protection will develop and eventually become the standard. Yes, the phone is unlikely to survive an hour-long immersion of two meters under water, but at least a full immersion for thirty seconds due to the carelessness of the owner will definitely master it. 

Until then, we recommend that you carefully treat your devices and do not subject them to excessive loads, as well as sudden immersions.

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15.10.2022