IP ratings is a code consisting of two digit that help to indicate the amount of dust and water that a particular phone can resist. The first digit within the IP rating indicate the amount of resistance that the phone has against dust, while the second digit within the IP rating indicates the water resistance of the phone. Higher numbers within the IP rating indicate more resistance against both water and dust, but these ratings are only indicative of how well the phone perform within a laboratory environment.
Many of these laboratory environments use only fresh water and controlled amount of dust, limiting the ability of the IP rating to indicate the phones resistance against all of the different type of liquids and environments that a user may encounter with there phone. The second digit within the IP rating measure the water resistance of the phone. The second digit is often the most important within the rating of the phone.
What IP Ratings Mean for Your Phone
This measurement determines how deep the phone can go into water and for how long the phone can remain within that water. For example, the phone can survive depths of one meter for thirty minute. In this case, the phone can survive being drop into a bathtub.
The higher the resistance of the phone to water, the deeper that the phone can be submerged; however, the depth to which the phone can be submersed into water may differ between brands of phone. The first digit within the IP rating measures the amount of resistance of the phone against dust. The resistance of the phone against dust is important in that dust can damage the internal component of the phone.
Dust can damage the components of the phone if the dust is able to enter the phone through the seals of the device. The dust can scratch at the internal components of the device or become stuck in the buttons or ports of the phone. To provide the highest level of protection against dust, laboratories vacuum test the phones to ensure that no dust enter the device.
Phones with lower ratings allow for some entering of that dust, but the resistance of these phones against dust is still enough to prevent harmful amount of that dust from entering the device. While the phone may appear to have a high IP rating, the conditions outside of the laboratory can lead to the phone failing its protection against water and dust. For example, while a rating of the phone against water may indicate that the device can survive brief period of rainfall, the same phone may fail against water protection if it is exposed to heavy downpours or a splash from a kitchen sink.
Additionally, the effects of salt water or chlorinated water from swimming pool may affect the phone in ways different than the fresh water that is used in the laboratories. The protection that the phone has against water and dust may decrease after the purchase of the device. The protection may decrease due to the changing physical condition of the phone.
For example, if the user drops the device, those impacts may create hairline crack in the screen of the device. Additionally, if the device is often charged, the seals within the charging port may wear away with time. The same physical effect can occur with exposure to heat from the sun or from fast charging the device.
Additionally, if the user chooses to have third-party services repair the phone, the adhesives that the third-party service employ may be less effective than the original adhesive used by the device manufacturer. While the manufacturers rate the phones within the laboratory setting, the manufacturer does not provide any warranty against damage from liquid. The standard warranty on the device does not cover damage to the phone caused by liquids, even if the phone has a high IP rating.
The IP rating for the phone indicates the damage that the phone can survive during testing in the manufacturers laboratory, but does not indicate that the manufacturer will repair the phone if it is damage by water. Instead, potential buyer of the phones should of purchase a phone according to the habits with which they use there phones. If the individuals whose phones are to be purchased have a habit of exposure to both rain and water splashes, a mid-level IP rating may be sufficient.
However, if those individuals have a habit of exposure to water such as swimming or living in area with high amounts of dust, a higher IP rating will provide the user with an extra margin of protection.