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Comment by buro9 | Hacker News Reader

My android pixel 7 reported water ingress in the usb port during a hike to kinder scout in the peak district (UK). It was raining lightly, but mostly there was a very thick fog / mist / drizzle that didn't really fall from the sky or land on you, rather it enveloped and coated you such that you were soaked.

I'd only removed my phone from my waterproof jacket pocket on two occasions to verify GPS location as I was still using a laminated map and compass.

This weather descended on me in about 10 minutes, I did not choose to be soaked.

Sounds like taking an iPhone camping in parts of the UK where the weather can do this is now an absolute no.

The pixel was fine btw, didn't stop working, and as soon as the air was less like soup it told me the water had cleared. Wouldn't want that to have been a warranty voiding event on a newer device though (I'm probably already out of warranty).

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I don't think it's to void the warranty, it's just that the phone will refuse to charge (and blare an alarm if you try) in order to prevent corrosion when using the USB-C port wet.

Conversely my iPhone 13 Pro was taken all round the world and been soaked through, frozen and dropped tens of times in snow and a river. The clear TPU case looked like a water puzzle on a regular basis.

Apple replaced the battery in it last week without a whimper and I expect they would do the same in the future.

If I did this to my MacBook they probably would not. Which is the point.

You don't necessarily need rain exposure. When I'm actively hiking, and especially during colder conditions, heavy condensation forms on the surface of the phone directly in the pocket. This is more frequent on sport jackets, which are designed to release internal humidity/sweat faster.

My Iphone 12 recently spent a full night in a gutter during a rainstorm, water rushing over it. It was completely fine, didn't even seem to bother the hotspot.

Wonder how my warranty's doing.

I keep trying to conjure stories for how this happened.

My favorite is that you were lying passed out in a gutter all night with water rushing over you. And the phone. But you only mentioned the phone. lol.

How is your warranty doing? ;-)

Ha. Not the parent but most likely it fell out of their pocket while on the roof - perhaps cleaning said gutters - and wasn’t noticed until later.

I did something similar many years ago with a Motorola razr phone. I was digging trenches for an irrigation system. I checked for my phone a day later and had no idea where it went. My best guess is that it fell out of my pocket and into the trench, which was subsequently covered up.

I joke that one day a more advanced civilization will dig up this ancient artifact, wonder what its purpose could have been, and make up some fantastical story after the fact as to why it ended up in that shallow trench.

In some places they call the the concrete curb that water flows down to a river or a stream a gutter, that sounds more like the usage in this case.

I've used various generations of iPhones over the years for many long damp days in the Scottish hills and I've never had any problems - mind you I do use cases and carry a small plastic bag to put my phone in when it gets really wet - which does occasionally happen in Scotland...

How could you possibly conclude that taking an iPhone camping is an "absolute no" from article that's just about how they have a safety feature to prevent you from charging in situations where charging might cause corrosion

A sibling comment mentioned that the wording covers iPhone, and that usb port water ingress is warranty voiding... This is how I possibly conclude that taking the phone to an environment like that would be a no, if one cared about the warranty and cover from Apple (pay of the advantage of purchasing from Apple)

Where does Apple say that USB port water ingress is warranty voiding? The only thing the article says is that the warranty doesn't cover water damage... there's nothing to suggest that water in the USB port means an automatically void warranty from what I can see?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38923190

That doesn't say "Apple considers the warranty void if water ends up in the USB port", that says "Apple's warranty doesn't cover water damage".

EDIT: to be clear, the warranty can absolutely be a factor! Depending on your situation, having a phone with a warranty (or maybe insurance) which covers water damage could be a good idea! It's just not as simple "water detected in USB port -> warranty void", and this "prevent charging when there's water in the port" thing seems to be there not to insta-void your warranty but to prevent water damage

They claim it's water damage no matter the issue as soon as the indicators are triggered, though.

Yes but the triggers are inside the phone, not inside the port. This detection is only for liquid in the port so as to prevent corrosion and damage to the port itself.

Source?

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