What Makes the iPhone 6S Waterproof | Hacker News Reader

What Makes the iPhone 6S Waterproof

popularmechanics.com

16 pointsSQL22199 comments

I think waterproof is a bit of an overstatement. I think it would be to reduce the chances of sweat and humidity affecting the phone.

Water-resistant probably is the better term, but "a video from YouTuber Zach Straley shows the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus functioning underwater for an hour and emerging pretty much unscathed." seems fairly waterproof to me, given what the competition write about their waterproof phones http://support.sonymobile.com/global-en/dm/waterproof/

Water pressure goes up pretty quickly with depth which means items that are completely water resistant at very shallow depths can quickly lose their water resistance.

Plus, any seals may not be statistically perfect and could degrade over time.

The reason why Apple hasn't marketed the claim is likely the one most people assume: They don't want to be responsible for warranty repairs for any water damage until they're confident about their process.

Since you can't replace the battery, or at least you're not supposed to, I'm surprised the whole unit isn't welded shut at the factory. Ultrasonic welding will work, even for dissimilar materials, and there are techniques for doing it close to electronic components without damage.[1]

[1] http://www.azom.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=10045

Can ultrasonic welds come apart? I think it's Apple's intention that consumers aren't supposed to replace the batteries but instead Apple technicians

Why bother? Apple's manufacturing cost isn't that high. When the battery dies, Apple can just sell you a new one with a trade-in.

I know this was probably some washed up hack of an editor and not the author of the actual story but the title reads:

> Here's What's Making the iPhone 6S Secretly Waterproof > You only have to tear it open to find out

And the article then concludes.

>OK so there's definitely some waterproofing at work here. Then why didn't Apple mention it? Probably because it isn't complete. The headphone jack and speaker grill are still vulnerable to water damage, so the phone isn't really waterproof. At least not yet. It's understandable that Apple wouldn't want to advertise a feature while it's still half-baked.

What in the actual fuck? Not only is this an attempt to garner readers with a click-baity article title, the SAME ARTICLE explicitly contradicts the click-bait headline. Honestly can't get much shittier than this.

I also enjoyed this gem:

iFixit even found what appear to be silicone seals around the logic gates of the iPhone's logic board.

That really helps build my trust for Popular Mechanics.

The operating system of course! (It also lets you charge the battery by placing the phone in a microwave.)

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