Water, the bane of the smartphone’s existence, has been responsible for the deaths of Androids, iPhones, and pretty much every other neutral-colored, metal, and glass-covered mobile device. Users have gone out of their way to protect their companions, but the fact of the matter is they just keep finding their way into water–it’s the toilet, the bath tub, the pool, the sudden rainstorm of biblical proportions–the point is, there are lots of ways to destroy your phone, but there are only a few ways to bring them back.
To start, let’s eliminate the dark magic practices of using blow-driers and ovens. Would you try and bring your friend back to life by sticking him in the oven? No. So don’t put the thing that knows more about you than anyone on this planet into a contraption that will bake it at temperatures up to 500 °F. The heat would melt the electronics.
Here’s the proper way to save your mobile, which will be explained by Steve, the guy who compulsively drops things:
Steve just had a good night out. He comes back, smiles at himself in the mirror, and goes to reach for his toothbrush. There’s a small “ploop” and the slightest splash of water. Steve looks horror-struck. He turns around, ogling at the toilet. His iPhone sinks slowly towards the bottom of the bowl, it whispers, “Saaavee meeee…”
He springs into action, forsaking cleanliness for his friend who is in danger of being referred to in the past tense. His hand fishes around and he gasps as he wrenches the device from the small pond. Staring at its now banded and multicolored screen, he calls out to it, “I’m going to save you! Don’t you let go!”
Luckily for Steve’s phone, this is not Steve’s first rodeo, and he is well-versed in the art of phone resuscitation. He powers off the iPhone (if you have a removable battery, that works too). “Cut power,” he says to himself, “check.” He places the phone on a towel, drying it, and pulls a small device that blows compressed air from a small box labeled “Phone Emergency Kit.”
Careful to avoid not blowing water further inside the phone Steve masterfully clears excess water out of the crevices. Now, he could put his phone in rice to absorb the excess moisture, but Steve is a man of the 21st century. He elects to use synthetic desiccants and a Tupperware container (those little packets that you get in a new pair of shoes). “Less messy, and you need to be saved quickly,” Steve exclaims. He waits by the phone for hours, he removes it, and hits the power button. He gazes intently at the screen. It flickers on and Steve promises, “I will never, ever drop you again.”
If you follow the same tips that Steve did, you will put yourself in a good position to save your mobile device. An untimely plunge can destroy your phone, but there’s always a chance you could save it. Don’t give up hope!
For more tips on how to protect your smartphone, stay up to date with TCI Tech’s blog.
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