Waterproof Mobile Devices Making a Splash

Several mobile phone manufacturers are finally making the push to create waterproof phones. I remember back in the day when my uncle worked for Nokia, he had a case for his brick of a phone to keep it dry. Now, waterproof cases are on the verge of becoming a thing of the past. Recently, in Barcelona, Spain at the Mobile World Conference, companies such as Liquipel encouraged owners of mobile phones to send them to the company  to protect them with a “revolutionary water shield.” Other, I suppose not as ambitious, cell competitors are focusing on protecting phones with rubber seals that prevent damage from accidental spills and water mishaps. But they’re not necessarily protecting them from users who prefer to surf mobile Facebook while free diving. The manufacturers that are making the extra push for protection are implementing nano-coating technology to seal the devices. “Talking in the rain, texting in the shower, and playing Angry Birds in the shower is all possible,” said Danny McPhail, President of Liquipel. But who in the right mind would play Angry Birds in the shower? That’s what the toilet is for. Nevertheless, the sealing process at Liquipel involves placing the mobile phones into a machine that takes in the proprietary liquid formulation as a dry vapor, coating every part of the mobile device. According to CNN, this type of water protection technology has typically been used “by Britain’s Ministry of Defence to help protect soldiers from both rain and chemical attack.” The chief technology officer of another company in the field named P2i said that this techonology is quickly becoming a must-have. I don’t know if that just means people are becoming more careless with their phones and are more frequently dropping them in the toilet, or if the technology is really that invaluable. Either way, I wouldn’t mind having a completely waterproof phone that would allow me to text while swimming.