This new app can test your smartphone's water resistance

Users of IP-rated water resistant phones, which are often mistakenly called "waterproof", have to be careful. Even if their brand new flagship is perfectly sealed and marketed as being water resistant – its water resistance will likely fail eventually as the device is subjected to daily wear and tear.

And with that in mind, the idea of being able to test your phone's water resistance yourself – see how it's holding up – seems quite attractive. Especially if it's free and easy to do so.

Just a week ago, an app for that exact purpose seems to have popped up in the Google Play store. The app in question – Water Resistance Tester – released on July 1st and spotted by AndroidPolice claims to help you test your smartphone's IP67 and IP68 water resistance seals.

According to the app's developer Ray W, the app does its water resistance test by employing the phone's built-in barometer. As of its most recent update, the app also checks whether the phone actually has a barometer, so at the very least it can be used to get that information.



During testing, the app requests that the user presses their phone firmly and compares the pressure data it gets from the barometer inside with when the user isn't pressing down. This is supposed to give the app, and in turn the user a reasonably accurate result on whether the water resistance seals are holding up.

Reviews of the app are mostly positive, with users claiming to have tested several phones and getting accurate results. In any case, while trying out this app could prove useful, it's best to always keep your phone away from liquids, even if its water resistance is still shown to be holding up.