How waterproof is your smartphone?

As people try to beat the heat in summer by going to the beach or taking a dip in the pool, smartphones have inevitably fallen victim to drops in the water. Would your phone survive?

The answer depends on which IP rating they have; this designation represents how dust and water-resistant a device is.

Below you’ll find out how well some of the most popularly used devices in 2019 (according to the up-to-date device repository Device Atlas) stand up to an accidental swim.

Apple

iPhone XR. Picture: Apple

iPhone X and XR series – IP67 rating: Both the iPhone X and XR models are splash and water-resistant and can survive in depths up to 1 metre deep for a half an hour. With either of these models, a drop in the water won’t hurt your phone.

iPhone SE – no rating: While Apple has not publicly disclosed the iPhone SE’s waterproof rating, iFixit discovered that the internal components are protected by foam silicon seals to keep water out. Tests conducted by numerous SE owners have demonstrated that the model can survive being submerged under a few inches of water for up to an hour.

iPhone 7 and 8 series – IP67 rating: Apple confirmed that the iPhone 7 and iPhone 8 have the same waterproof rating as the X and XR models meaning that it can survive 1 metre underwater for 30 minutes.

iPhone 6 series – no rating: All the models in the iPhone 6 series are not officially waterproof; however, iFixit did discover rubber gaskets around the power and volume buttons offering the models a bit of water resistance. If you’re the owner of an iPhone 6, you should be extra careful around the pool.

Samsung

Galaxy S9. Picture: Samsung

Galaxy S9 series – IP68 rating: The Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ can both survive for up to 30 minutes in water that’s 1.5 metres deep.

Galaxy S8 series – IP68 rating: Like the generation that came after, the Galaxy S8 series can survive in 1.5-metre-deep water for up to a half an hour.

As a rule of thumb based on these specs, owners of Galaxy devices can be more careless with their smartphones than iPhone users.

It’s important to know that IP ratings are given based on a phone’s resistance to fresh water. While these measurements offer users a good estimate for how waterproof their device is, the presence of chemicals or minerals in the water a phone falls in will affect its level of resistance.

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