S4 is water resistance? - Galaxy S 4 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

It looks like our S4s are water resistance
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105...phone-5-in-our-brutal-destruction-test-video/

Interesting...seemingly full recovery after over two minutes submerged!

I wouldn't even dare. Even if I can afford to buy another one.

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[Q] Waterproof Nano-Coating - Which is best?

I was once interested in the Galaxy S4 Active, but four important things have kept me away from it altogether:
I just got the S4 in April, so I'd need to sell it to buy a new Active (and there would be a price difference of course).
The S4A is only waterproof to 3ft or so (some reports of less than that). And for only 30min at that.
Probably most importantly: I hear there's no liquid coverage in the warranty still, even though it's designed to be submerged!
8MP camera? What gives? One of the biggest bragging rights of the S4 is the 13MP camera.
That being said, I want to waterproof my S4, so that I can completely submerge it. I mean, like bottom-of-the-14ft-pool submerge, while still taking pictures, even. I'd consider hacking the S4A camera app onto the S4 just for the Aqua mode it has (and maybe try to hack in the 13MP capability too?).
Key thing, though: I don't normally use a case on my phone. I like the slimness of my naked phone.
So, I've seen different nano-coatings (liquipel for example - or even the NeverWet spray). Most of them coat the outside of the phone, and don't offer submersion as an option. They're designed for "accidental spills only". Here's what I want from a nano-coating:
Submersible to say, 15ft. Maybe 10ft would be acceptable.
No time limit.
I'm willing to completely disassemble my phone to coat the motherboard, inside and out, if needed.
Some form of guarantee against water damage would be nice. I swear that I saw one company that offered this, but I can't seem to find it now.
I'm curious how this stuff would work with heat dissipation on the motherboard components. Also, how well would the contacts work after? Examples would be the connections to the motherboard (for the screen, or daughterboard, or cameras...), or even the battery connection? Does nanocoating interfere with these?
Anywho, the point of this thread is to ask the S4 community about different brands of nano-coating/water-proofing options. It might be impossible to get exactly what I want, but I'd be curious to see how close I could get.
Thanks for your time.
I highly doubt you will find a nano coating that can meet your needs.
Regarding the neverwet spray, I recently read a review on it and it only lasted roughly 30 minutes in water before the coating began to deteriorate plus it makes the device sticky.
Your best bet would probably be a case even though you specifically asked for a nano coating. LifeProof juat recently released an S3 case and its safe too assume an S4 case is in the works aswell.
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msavic6 said:
I highly doubt you will find a nano coating that can meet your needs.
Regarding the neverwet spray, I recently read a review on it and it only lasted roughly 30 minutes in water before the coating began to deteriorate plus it makes the device sticky.
Your best bet would probably be a case even though you specifically asked for a nano coating. LifeProof juat recently released an S3 case and its safe too assume an S4 case is in the works aswell.
Sent from my SGH-I337M using Tapatalk 4 Beta
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Yeah, that's what I'm gathering. Thank you for the feedback. I did find that it was Liquipel that offers the guarantee against water damage, but only with accidental exposure only (explicitly prohibits intentional submersion). I happen to be travelling over in the L.A. area soon (near their HQ), so I've asked them two questions this weekend, without response:
If I were to bring in my device to have it treated, would they allow me to physically disassemble the device and let them place the individual components into the chamber?
If I were to invest in a nice waterproof case, and for some reason the case failed to protect the device, would the Liquipel guarantee protect the device at this point?
I'm thinking that a lot of these nano-coatings will give-out after 30 minutes of continuous water exposure. That's why I'm thinking of a really good waterproof case for intentional diving with the phone, and then the liquipel for all the accidental stuff (as intended). It'd be nice to go to a theme park and ride the water-rides without risking anything.
Eventually when LifeProof releases their Galaxy S4 case which shouldn't be that bulky in comparison too other waterproof cases you could buy the case and apply the Liquipel coating. This way you have a 2 step barrier for any water damage, if the case gives way too water, the liquipel should protect it and any damage should be covered by their warranty.
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msavic6 said:
Eventually when LifeProof releases their Galaxy S4 case which shouldn't be that bulky in comparison too other waterproof cases you could buy the case and apply the Liquipel coating. This way you have a 2 step barrier for any water damage, if the case gives way too water, the liquipel should protect it and any damage should be covered by their warranty.
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I called Liquipel today, because apparently the monkeys behind their keyboards don't respond to emails.
- They will allow me to disassemble the device, have it coated by them, and then I would have to re-assemble it myself. No problem.
- They recently had another customer with a LifeProof case file a claim. The LifeProof case leaked on his iPhone (dunno which model) without the customer knowing, and the water sat for a long time. The corrosion/etc. that resulted was too great, and Liquipel would not cover the device. The customer had to buy a new device, which Liquipel subsequently treated the new device for free.
But yeah, if LifeProof created a case for S3, there's little doubt they would not create one for the S4. The only fallback would be if the S3 case didn't sell well - at which point they might re-think creating a case for the S4.

so is there any sort of water resistance?

I have read rumors the Note 4 is not water resistant certified but that at least the boards inside have a similar type of coating as the s5. Has anybody heard any new information about this?
ranchosteve said:
I have read rumors the Note 4 is not water resistant certified but that at least the boards inside have a similar type of coating as the s5. Has anybody heard any new information about this?
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It is not water resistant with or without nanocoating protectiong, but it would be cool if the note had it.
They're designed to resist downpour for at least like ten minutes
Kawaisa said:
They're designed to resist downpour for at least like ten minutes
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The Note 4? I'd like to see a source for that information.
theres not necessarily water resistancy going on, but just like my note (which i use under the rain) it can survive a splash here and there. Unless if you plan on dropping your phone into an ocean for long period of time/toilet/swim with it...i doubt should worry
My friend got caught in a heavy rain while biking, his Note 3 in pants pocket. Afterwords it didn't boot up for 3 days, then it dried out to boot but his home button was shorted so he still couldn't use it at all. After another 2 days in rice it finally started working again with no visible long lasting damage, but his water exposure was minimal, it didn't even trip water sensors on the battery nor phone (he claims only bottom part, where USB port is, got wet.). I don't think any phone is safe when exposed to water, unless properly sealed inside, like GS5. My biggest complain about Note 4 is lack of waterproofing.
Not officially, but we'll have to wait for teardowns to see if any water resistance is built in.
The Galaxy Alpha is not IP certified but teardowns found many of the same gaskets used on the S5 throughout it. Either Samsung couldn't get it completely protected or they gave up to maintain size. But it's better than non-S5 Samsung phones due to the partial protection.

Water Damage - My story

It's pretty late here so i'm going to keep this simple.
I preordered a black s7 the day it was announced, got it on March 7. Had an s6 before.
It's amazing and all, but what was not so amazing for me was the water resistance.
It got pretty dirty after 1 day of use, so I thought it was a good idea to gently wash it with water and soap - Samsung claims it's water resistant, right?
As soon as i finished washing it, the phone started acting like I was pressing the volume down button. Shortly after that, it started showing the wireless charging animation, again and again.
I decided to power it off, I got my hair dryer and I ejected the sim tray ; was very surprised to find water all over my sim card and the sim tray itself. The water damage indicator/sticker was also touched by the water, making it turn from white to red/pink.
After heating it up with the hair dryer moderately, I powered it on. Surprise, it won't get past the "Galaxy S7" boot screen, like most Samsung Galaxy phones do in case water enters the phone.
It was rebooting after 10 seconds and doing the same thing. This lasted for 10 minutes. My biggest concern here was amoled burn in (google it if you don't know what it means). I managed to boot to recovery and power it off.
I waited for this phone a lot, 3 months to be exact, and turning it into a brick after 1 day of having it is not a good feeling at all.
I put my phone in a bag of rice and left it on the desk. 3 hours later (i had to go somewhere), I got it out of the bag of rice, and powered it on. It went to recovery, I chose to reboot to system, and it did boot. All the features and sensors were working.
Last night I tried rebooting it and it would do the same thing like it did after I washed it. Left it in rice overnight and today morning it booted up. So yeah, something is still broken, but at least I have it working now.
I think the soap caused the water to enter the phone.
I suggest you don't try to wash your phone like I did.
wow. so much for water resistance.
*edit*whoops didn't read the part about soap. yeah, only like lukewarm water they suggest.
Water Resistant, Not waterproof. Tell Samsung about this and they'll tell you all about it.
Water resistant means just that it doesn't mean that it is solvent or cleaner resistant, no cleaners ever just water I feel your pain sir I had to learn this the hard way as well.
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Why on earth did you use soap? :silly:
Soap lower water surface tension and make water more intrusive though small opening I guess.
So don't use soap lol.
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OP, you'll have fanbois jumping all over you wanting to educate you on water resistance and water proof like its rocket science. Point is that they are all wrong. IP 68 means you should be able to do exactly what you did - wash your phone off in water for a few minutes. These S7s just don't seem to be holding up to their IP 68 ratings (I returned an Edge because an underwater photo caused water resistance to fail and fast charging to not work anymore).
Feel your pain. Send it back under buyer's remorse and get another one.
xxaarraa said:
OP, you'll have fanbois jumping all over you wanting to educate you on water resistance and water proof like its rocket science. Point is that they are all wrong. IP 68 means you should be able to do exactly what you did - wash your phone off in water for a few minutes. These S7s just don't seem to be holding up to their IP 68 ratings (I returned an Edge because an underwater photo caused water resistance to fail and fast charging to not work anymore).
Feel your pain. Send it back under buyer's remorse and get another one.
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OP used soap. It wasn't the water, it was the soap. Soap is a base and messes up all kinds of things. Possibly reacted with the nano coating or the seals.
I've washed my S5 several times with soap - and that is only IP67-rated. Should be fine.
ironbesterer said:
OP used soap. It wasn't the water, it was the soap.
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+1
This is a fact:
NonXtreme said:
Soap lower water surface tension and make water more intrusive though small opening I guess.
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A few weeks ago I watched a video on how Samsung obtained it's IP68 rating for the S7/E. The video explicitly mentions relying on the surface tension of water to keep it out of microscreens for components like the speaker. Lower the surface tension of water, and it will flow places it didn't before.
Lesson learned for all of us.
mstrandbo said:
I've washed my S5 several times with soap - and that is only IP67-rated. Should be fine.
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Apples to oranges. The two devices have totally different construction. Anyone who takes your advice with an S7/E is headed for the same trouble as the OP.
After checking out a teardown of an S5, I do see the difference speakerwise - the S5 have a selfcontained speaker, which can handle water - while the S7 doesn't and as you said, relies on surface tension. That's not good..
mstrandbo said:
After checking out a teardown of an S5, I do see the difference speakerwise - the S5 have a selfcontained speaker, which can handle water - while the S7 doesn't and as you said, relies on surface tension. That's not good..
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And the S5 doesn't have internal gaskets on an SIM/SD slot or it's USB port.
wpbogdan said:
It's pretty late here so i'm going to keep this simple.
I preordered a black s7 the day it was announced, got it on March 7. Had an s6 before.
It's amazing and all, but what was not so amazing for me was the water resistance.
It got pretty dirty after 1 day of use
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should have learned at the physics classes in school that water does not conduct electricity, but as soon as you add soap it becomes a conductor. So you have shorted all the exposed connections, like the USB pins, headphone jack pins and what not. The water resistance of the phone is not based on protecting the SIM tray, the seals are between the SIM tray and the rest of the phone, so you also shorted the SIM contacts.
At least now you know
Cst79 said:
You should have learned at the physics classes in school that water does not conduct electricity, but as soon as you add soap it becomes a conductor. So you have shorted all the exposed connections, like the USB pins, headphone jack pins and what not. The water resistance of the phone is not based on protecting the SIM tray, the seals are between the SIM tray and the rest of the phone, so you also shorted the SIM contacts.
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Click to collapse
And that's why all my phone's features still work and nothing is damaged?
Thanks to everyone who replied to my thread, I went today to the carrier I bought the phone from (Orange)'s store and they told me to send it to warranty, and that's what i'm going to do. Hopefully i get my phone replaced, lol
It sucks that if i want it to boot i have to wait a day with my phone in rice, that also means bye bye installing new firmware which is the reason why i'm sending it to warranty since I always loved flashing custom roms, besides that I wouldn't really mind waiting a day for it to boot but I'm afraid that one day it will not boot anymore.
wpbogdan said:
And that's why all my phone's features still work and nothing is damaged?
Thanks to everyone who replied to my thread, I went today to the carrier I bought the phone from (Orange)'s store and they told me to send it to warranty, and that's what i'm going to do. Hopefully i get my phone replaced, lol
It sucks that if i want it to boot i have to wait a day with my phone in rice, that also means bye bye installing new firmware which is the reason why i'm sending it to warranty since I always loved flashing custom roms, besides that I wouldn't really mind waiting a day for it to boot but I'm afraid that one day it will not boot anymore.
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You don't have "buyer's remorse" where you live? Here in the US, we get 14 days (20 in some cases) to return the phone no questions asked for a full refund.
wpbogdan said:
And that's why all my phone's features still work and nothing is damaged?
Thanks to everyone who replied to my thread, I went today to the carrier I bought the phone from (Orange)'s store and they told me to send it to warranty, and that's what i'm going to do. Hopefully i get my phone replaced, lol
It sucks that if i want it to boot i have to wait a day with my phone in rice, that also means bye bye installing new firmware which is the reason why i'm sending it to warranty since I always loved flashing custom roms, besides that I wouldn't really mind waiting a day for it to boot but I'm afraid that one day it will not boot anymore.
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Click to collapse
Hmmm, I could swear I saw somewhere that Samsung will look for the white tags that turn pink when wet. If they see that the tag got wet then they won't honor a warranty. Not sure if this is true but somewhere today I read that. I think it was that tear down of the S7 ifixit did. or it was a link from there.
Corwinder said:
Hmmm, I could swear I saw somewhere that Samsung will look for the white tags that turn pink when wet. If they see that the tag got wet then they won't honor a warranty. Not sure if this is true but somewhere today I read that. I think it was that tear down of the S7 ifixit did. or it was a link from there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can see them clearly in this video:
I have an update, and I want to describe here exactly what happens every time I power it on:
Galaxy S7 screen -> boots straight into recovery.
Every time I reboot from recovery it does the following:
Galaxy S7 screen -> completely black screen -> Galaxy S7 screen -> recovery.
Every single time it enters recovery, it displays an android figure with two refresh arrows spinning, then displaying a yellow exclamation mark warning and shows the recovery options. Does it do this only for me or for you guys too?
I have tried to:
reflash the rom both via odin and kies
factory reset a bunch of times
wipe cache a bunch of times
I have done everything possible to get rid of ALL the water, and I'm sure there is no more water in it. I vacuum'ed the motherboard and left it in rice for 3 nights. does the same thing.
Warranty is also gone because the water damage indicator turned red/pink from white.
I think it's either permanent physical damage to the motherboard, or the water damaged the emmc chip and somehow corrupted the memory (???)
I also made a video of me powering it on, then rebooting it, but I'm unable to post it because new members can't post links until they've reached 10 posts.
also sorry for any grammar mistakes it's 6am lol
Corwinder said:
Water Resistant, Not waterproof. Tell Samsung about this and they'll tell you all about it.
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Actually by stating that it's IP68, it should mean that the device is indeed water PROOF. IDK why would samsung conflict the two things. If it's water resistant only, samsung should've stated that it's only IP67. False advertisement don't you think?
True story:
When he was 8, my little brother snuck our pet snapping turtles out into the woods behind our house and played with them in a muddy puddle. Thinking he would get in trouble for taking them out of their bowl and getting them dirty, he washed them with soap and hot water, which killed them. I was traumatized by their deaths, and have never used soap since.
So at least my S7E is safe.

Warranty for water damage

I have a question, it seems both LG and Samsung say they won't warranty the phone for water damage even though its supposed to be waterproof for up to 30 minutes or whatever. But if its waterproof and falls in water and gets damaged, would't that qualify as a defective phone?
I've been dying to get a waterproof phone as it is just easier when I'm in the pool with the kids and can keep the phone near by, in the jacuzzi etc, but does no good if the phone could be defective out of the box and the companies won't cover it.
It's not waterproof, it's water resistant. That's why they won't warranty for water damage.
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The below is a quote from a Samsung PDF I just found on their site about the S7 series. Clearly they are made to survive being dropped in water same as the s8. But what if I or you or anyone else gets the one that isn't completely sealed?
"The Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 edge devices
have been certified to an IP68 rating. The Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 edge are built to do
more, in more places. With an IP68 rating, they’re water resistant to a maximum depth of 1.5m
for up to 30 minutes, and are protected from dust, dirt and sand - all without the need for extra
caps or covers. Now there’s less to worry about. You can enjoy more freedom to explore, stay
connected, and capture the adventure."
Nota-joke : I'm wondering if OEMs are not just anticipating people who would daily wash their phone with soap (detergent)...
oF2pks said:
Nota-joke : I'm wondering if OEMs are not just anticipating people who would daily wash their phone with soap (detergent)...
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**** we're not supposed to do that now???
I have a Sony that's IP68 and this has always been a perplexing question. Sony changed their warranty terms a couple of years ago to make it worthless. If water intrudes through the port seals, then it must be user error. But what if the seals are defective?
I don't blame them for not warranty water proof. You can only go so deep in the water for this phone and there is no proof of how far the person put it
My son was watching the sexy Sax man video in the tub last night underwater on the s8+... No problems at all but wifi starts having trouble while in the water lol
Don't worry about if if you have insurance, enjoy.. I'm ready to take off the case as well to enjoy the phone ad the designers intended..
If you want to live in fear and not enjoy the device go right ahead.. But life life.. Its only a phone.
Sincere11105 said:
I don't blame them for not warranty water proof. You can only go so deep in the water for this phone and there is no proof of how far the person put it
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Exactly, they'd just open the floodgates for all sorts of dubious claims.
Just be sensible. It's not like Samsung are just making it up, it's rated by an independent body. You'll be fine with it next to the pool, just don't start putting it in salt water (or chlorine?) or going deep sea diving with it.
nope
robl45 said:
I have a question, it seems both LG and Samsung say they won't warranty the phone for water damage even though its supposed to be waterproof for up to 30 minutes or whatever. But if its waterproof and falls in water and gets damaged, would't that qualify as a defective phone?
I've been dying to get a waterproof phone as it is just easier when I'm in the pool with the kids and can keep the phone near by, in the jacuzzi etc, but does no good if the phone could be defective out of the box and the companies won't cover it.
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I fixed phones for Samsung and I can tell you, liquid damage does not fall under the warranty. Even if the phone is in perfect state.
They even make commercials with people jumping in a pool with an S8, but I wouldn't risk it if it's not insured.
I am talking mainly about S7 and S7 edge here because there are more S7 owners. But that one also has a water resistant label on it. Yet I always had to charge people for it. Not sure about the S8. Most S8 with liquid damage I fixed had cracked screens. They did seem more protected on the inside and thicker tapes.
Biggest thing I tell people is just because it is dont mean you have to...
Think about repeated water contact on the usb ports I dont care all metals will eventually oxidize or corrode which will lead to usb problems at minimum..I have a rubber plug in mine as I live in a near 6 months out of the year winter area means loads of salt and snow or moisture....
The whole idea rite now of water resistant phone is basically if you get soaked in the rain or somethin you phone is not destroyed...
1.5 m means standing water...No showers no pool showers are jets of pressurized water and can compromise the water seals...
Most swimming pools public at least are more than 1.5 meters deep.....
Why risk a 5 6 7 hundred dollar device to Go swimming or stuff like that...
*Galaxy S8 and S8+ are rated IP68, meaning they were tested to be resistant to dust and up to 1.5 meters of water for 30 minutes.
As advertised on there website.
My S8 fell into a bowl of cold fresh water about 5 inches deep for about 5 seconds, now its stopped working and Samsung telling me manufacture warranty is void for liquid damage.
My Note 8 had a few dead pixels in bottom left corner. I sent in for warranty repair (11 months old). The phone has never been near water. I got phone back from service center with a water damage note saying warranty was void. Its a Standard Samsung reply to void all warranty claims. They included a photo of a mother board with my IMI number hand written on it. In my experience tearing down older phones the IMI number is clearly labeled on the Motherboard which it wasn't in the case of the photo sent to me.
I expect dead pixels on the screens are going to be a big warranty Item for Samsung and they are trying to mitigate using the water damage clause. I will never by a Samsung product again.
S8 plus water resistance issue
I m the owner of an s8 plus and Samsung says that the phone comes with ip68 and my question is since I was in water park and after coming from water my phone's display got colour damage there is not even a single dent in screen or in the phone but when I do the brightness low the phone start's becoming like rainbow and now I'm in the service centre of the Samsung and know they are saying the warranty of of ip68 is only stands for 1 year
Lavikacher said:
I m the owner of an s8 plus and Samsung says that the phone comes with ip68 and my question is since I was in water park and after coming from water my phone's display got colour damage there is not even a single dent in screen or in the phone but when I do the brightness low the phone start's becoming like rainbow and now I'm in the service centre of the Samsung and know they are saying the warranty of of ip68 is only stands for 1 year
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Click to collapse
Samsung does not cover water damage. The phones warranty is only 1 year salt and pool water are devastating to the seals. Samsung is being sued in Australia over this on the s10

Waterproof question after test on new phone?

Hello all,
Quick question, got my new S8 unlocked from bestbuy yesterday and have been testing the phone for issues, redtint, bluetooth wifi etc. Tested the waterproofness in my sink with no soap, no high pressure or anything and i notice after i dried the phone off there was a bit of water oozing from around the rear camera cutout. After i dried off the phone i shook it to help water out of the ports and thats when i noticed some water oozing from around the cutout. Not behind the glass. The phone works fine and so does the camera.
I just want to make sure this is normal for this phone. Obviously the speaker/charge port/head phone jack fill with water and dry out. Hoping someone can tell me if their phone does the same thing?
I came from the S5 which has a worse water rating and i did nothing different then i have been doing for the last 3 years on a monthly biases to my S5. And i wanted to test waterproofness quick in case this phone had bad seals!!!
Thanks
dpelletier said:
Hoping someone can tell me if their phone does the same thing?
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Click to collapse
Can't tell you, i'm not brave enough to test the phone like that. The phone is water resistant, not waterproof.
The same thing happend with my Samsung Galaxy s8 after I got it wet. There was a little bit of water oozing out from around the camera cutout, and I also did not observe any issues after that. I think its just water getting trapped under and/or around the metal ring. I've seen it happen a couple of times, and I am sure that if there was an opportunity for water to get inside the housing then it would have done so by now. I would still be careful, as the phone is only water resistant.

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