« Best cartoon of the month — by Sam Gross | Home | Galactic Shield! — 'Blitz that untimely zit!' »
May 30, 2008
You just dropped your cellphone in the toilet — now what?
We'll assume for the sake of argument that it was an accident.
You aren't the first nor will you be the last to have this happen.
Lucky for you J.D. Biersdorfer, the inimitable New York Times all-things-computer columnist, is all over it and feels your pain enough to offer excellent advice that just might save your phone.
Here's what she had to say in her May 22, 2008 "Q&A" column.
- Tip of the Week: Saving Your Cellphone From Water Damage
A bag of dry, uncooked rice can save your bacon if you accidentally drop your cellphone in a puddle or some other body of water. If your phone takes a splash, get it out of the water as soon as possible and take out the battery and SIM card (if it has one) immediately.
Pat the phone parts as dry as possible with a paper towel and seal them in an airtight container full of dry rice for a day or two. The rice helps draw out the moisture. You can also substitute a desiccant like silica gel packets — which may work even better. A video [top] at www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7lR6HC8Akk demonstrates the process, and you can find more tips at www.wikihow.com/Save-a-Wet-Cell-Phone.
May 30, 2008 at 04:01 PM | Permalink
TrackBack
TrackBack URL for this entry:
https://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d8341c5dea53ef00e552952ac08834
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference You just dropped your cellphone in the toilet — now what?:
» mobile phones with free gifts from mobile phones with free gifts
If this looks to be good to be true... its through Tesco! Valuable free gifts such as laptops, HDTV, Wii, PLaystations and Tom Toms all for ordering your next mobile from a name you can rely on. All handsets and tariffs avaialble [Read More]
Tracked on Sep 13, 2009 9:50:59 PM
Comments
What about when someone puts their pager in the dryer? ; )
Posted by: caroline | May 31, 2008 10:43:32 AM
My phone has never been wet, but these tips sure are useful.. I'll pass them along to the next friend who screws up.
(Me, I never will because I am just that smart.)
Posted by: Jen | May 31, 2008 9:38:26 AM
one winter a couple years ago my cell phone bounced across the apron of a pool and plunked into 12 feet of water. on its last bounce before hitting water the battery popped off so the phone was off when it got wet. i left the battery off and placed the phone on a floor vent of my 104 year old house and let it lay there in the warm breeze until the fog of moisture disappeared from the screen. it took 4 days. i powered it up and the phone worked perfectly.
patience and hot air is everything.
Posted by: rob | May 30, 2008 10:34:45 PM
If your phone warranty and insurance policy don't cover water damage (most don't), you might still be able to get a new phone for cheap if you tell the insurance agent the phone was "lost" entirely, rather than merely "damaged". As they don't have and won't get the water-damaged phone, they can't tell you're lying.
Note this is probably also illegal. If you are actually paying for insurance, knowing that water damage is statistically by far the most likely accidental thing that could kill your phone, and insurance is kind of pointless if it won't pay for likely mishaps... you should decide for yourself whether that's reasonable.
Posted by: Phone Loser | May 30, 2008 8:39:21 PM
The comments to this entry are closed.
