You’re standing by the pool. Your phone slips. That slow-motion horror as it hits the water—splash. You fish it out, heart hammering, but then you remember the box said it has an IP68 water resistance rating. You’re fine, right? Well, mostly.
But "mostly" is a dangerous word when it comes to a $1,200 piece of glass and silicon.
People treat these ratings like a magic shield. They aren't. Honestly, the way manufacturers market these numbers is a bit of a shell game. You see ads of people diving into pristine lakes with their flagship phones, but if you actually read the fine print in a Samsung or Apple warranty, you’ll find they usually won't cover liquid damage. It's a massive contradiction. If it’s "waterproof," why isn't it covered?
Because it isn't waterproof. It’s water-resistant. There’s a world of difference between those two terms that most consumers miss entirely.
Breaking down the IP68 code
Let's get technical for a second, but keep it simple. IP stands for Ingress Protection. It’s a standard defined by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), specifically under standard 60529. The numbers that follow actually mean something specific. They aren't just a "higher is better" score picked out of a hat.
The first digit (6) refers to solids—dust, sand, dirt. A '6' is the highest possible score here. It means the device is "dust-tight." No grit is getting into the motherboard. The second digit (8) is the one everyone cares about: water.
An IP68 water resistance rating theoretically means the device can handle being submerged in more than one meter of water for a specific amount of time. Usually, this is 30 minutes in 1.5 meters of water, but here’s the kicker: the manufacturer actually defines the exact depth for an '8' rating. While an IP67 rating is strictly 1 meter for 30 minutes, IP68 is "better than IP67," which is a bit vague.
The lab vs. the real world
Here is what the brands don't tell you in the commercials. Those tests are done in labs. In fresh water. They aren't testing your phone in a chlorinated swimming pool or the salty Atlantic Ocean.
Salt water is a nightmare for electronics. It’s corrosive. Even if the seals hold, the salt can eat away at the charging port or the speaker grilles once the water evaporates. I’ve seen countless phones survived a dip in the ocean only to die three days later because of internal corrosion.
Then there's the "moving water" problem.
Standard IP tests involve "static" pressure. The phone sits still in a tank. If you drop your phone into a rushing river, or if you hit the water at high speed while jet-skiing, the dynamic pressure is much higher than what the seals were designed to handle. It's like the difference between someone gently leaning on a door versus someone trying to kick it down. The pressure spikes, the gasket fails, and your screen goes green.
Why your rating fades over time
Your phone isn't a stagnant object. You drop it. You leave it in a hot car. You use it in the shower (stop doing that, by the way).
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All of these things degrade the adhesives and rubber O-rings that provide that IP68 water resistance rating. Every time you drop your phone, even if the screen doesn't crack, you might be creating a microscopic gap in the frame. Heat is even worse. Steam from a hot shower is comprised of much smaller molecules than liquid water droplets, and high temperatures can soften the glue holding your phone together.
Basically, a two-year-old phone with an IP68 rating is nowhere near as water-resistant as it was the day you unboxed it. It's a moving target.
What should you actually do if it gets wet?
If you have a modern iPhone or Galaxy device, it likely has this rating. If it takes a splash, don't panic, but don't just toss it back in your pocket.
First, rinse it with fresh water if it was in salt water or soda. You need to get those chemicals off the seals. Second, do not plug it in. This is the biggest mistake people make. Water in the charging port + electricity = short circuit. Most phones will give you a "liquid detected" warning, but don't test your luck.
And please, for the love of all things tech, forget the rice.
The "rice trick" is a myth that won't die. Rice doesn't pull moisture out of the deep internals of a phone; it just gets gummy dust stuck in your ports. The best thing you can do is use a fan to blow cool air directly into the ports and let it sit for at least five to six hours.
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The fine print of warranties
Apple, Samsung, Google—they all play the same game. They advertise the IP68 water resistance rating as a feature, but if you look at their terms of service, "liquid damage" is almost universally excluded from the standard one-year warranty.
Inside your phone, there are tiny stickers called Liquid Contact Indicators (LCIs). They are usually white. When they touch water, they turn red or pink. If a technician opens your phone and sees a red sticker, your warranty is effectively void, regardless of whether you stayed within the 1.5-meter depth limit.
This feels dishonest to a lot of people. It kind of is. But from the manufacturer's perspective, they have no way of knowing if you dropped it in a bucket for ten minutes or took it scuba diving at 30 feet.
Moving forward: How to protect your tech
If you are someone who spends a lot of time on boats or at the beach, don't rely on the factory seals. Get a dedicated dry bag or a heavy-duty waterproof case from a brand like LifeProof or Catalyst. These provide an extra layer of physical protection that doesn't "wear out" as easily as internal adhesives.
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Think of your IP68 water resistance rating as an insurance policy, not a feature you should use on purpose. It’s there to save you from an accident, not to encourage you to take underwater photos of your vacation mojito.
Next Steps for Your Device:
Check your phone's specific depth rating, as "IP68" can vary between 1.5 meters and 6 meters depending on the model (iPhone 15, for example, is rated for much deeper than older models). If your phone is more than two years old, assume the water resistance is significantly compromised and keep it away from even light rain. If you do submerge it, ensure the device is completely dry for at least half a day before attempting to use a wired charger—use wireless charging in the meantime if you absolutely must.