Avoid damage to your device
Most smartphones are very resilient but occasionally we may damage them without even realising it. Here are top 4 tips not to ruin your smartphone.
1. Liquid or moisture damage
You don’t have to drop your phone down the toilet or spill a drink all over it to cause liquid damage! One of the most common ways liquid damage occurs on a phone is through exposure to moisture in the bathroom or kitchen.
It can be tempting to use your phone in the bathroom to play music while you’re in the shower, but remember that the steam that you see fogging up your bathroom mirror will do the same thing but to the insides of your phone. It might not hurt your phone straight away, but that moisture will corrode the sensitive components inside your phone and it won’t be too long before it starts to fail.
The same goes for using it in the kitchen when you’ve got pots boiling or when you’re caught out in the rain.
2. But what if my phone is water resistant?
Many phones are rated as being water resistant to depths of up to 1.5 meters for no longer than 30 minutes in fresh water. This means that your phone has protection against accidental splashes or being dropped into the sink. It gives you an added layer of protection and reassurance against accidental mishaps.
This does not mean that the phone is designed to withstand a dip in the pool or the sea, as salt water or chlorinated water will damage the seals that hold the water out and will void the water resistance rating. Similarly, if your phone has any cracks or dents, this will also make the phone susceptible to liquid contamination.
3. SIM card Reader
Most phones now require the SIM card to be inserted into a tray/holder which is then inserted into the device.
When you’re settings your new phone up, make sure you keep close attention to the instructions when inserting the SIM card. If you put the wrong size SIM card in or insert it without the holder, you risk causing damage to the device and voiding the warranty.
IMEI tag
Some phones come with a slide in/out tab inside the SIM/SD card slot which has the IMEI and serial number information on it. Make sure that you do not remove this from the device – It is a part of the phone which if removed, the manufacturer will view the warranty as being void.
4. Leaving it on (always)
At least once a week shut it down for 30 minutes or so. Doing this ensures that caches are cleared and subsystems are properly restarted. Shutting down the device once a week will help with the durability of the RAM on the device and allow certain diagnostics to be run at boot. Our phones work really hard and a small weekly break will go a long way to keeping it tip top.