Dropped or wet phone: what to do and what to check

A phone that hits the floor or falls in water often still turns on as if nothing happened. But damage from impacts and liquid tends to show up hours or weeks later: a strip of dead touch, a camera that shakes while focusing, a muffled speaker, a phone that shuts off because the charging port has corroded. This guide has two parts: what to do right away if the device got wet, and what to check, part by part, once it's dry or after a drop. The checks take about 10 minutes.

1. It just fell in water: do this now

In this order, as fast as you can:

• Unplug it, take off the case and wipe the outside with a soft cloth.
• Turn it off if it hasn't shut down. Don't keep pressing things to "see if it still works": current flowing through wet circuits is what does the real damage.
• Remove the SIM tray and memory card.
• Hold it charging port down and tap it gently against your palm to let water out.
• Leave it somewhere dry with some airflow.

What not to do:

• Don't charge it until it's completely dry. iPhones and many Samsung phones warn when they detect liquid in the port; when that happens, don't force it.
• No hair dryer, no top of the fridge, no strong sun. Heat damages the battery and the screen adhesive.
• Don't put it in rice. Apple itself advises against it: small grains and dust can get into the ports, and rice doesn't dry a phone faster than open air.
• Don't poke cotton buds or pins into the charging port or speaker grilles.

Sea water, pool water, soft drinks and coffee are worse than clean water: salt, chlorine and sugar corrode circuits quickly. Take it to a reputable repair shop the same day for a board clean rather than waiting for it to fail.

2. Is IP67 or IP68 water resistance enough?

IP67 and IP68 ratings are tested in still, fresh water in a lab, on a new device. Seals age, and a phone that has been opened for repair has mostly lost its water resistance. Most manufacturers don't cover liquid damage under warranty, even on IP68 phones. So even with a water-resistant phone, follow step 1 and check it as below.

3. Screen

After a drop, the inner layer can crack while the glass looks fine: coloured lines, spreading black blotches, green or purple patches. Water under the screen causes hazy or oily-looking patches. Set brightness to maximum and step through the colours:

If the screen runs at 90 or 120 Hz, measure the refresh rate again. Look closely around the point of impact, then tilt the screen under a light to find small cracks along the edges.

4. Touch

A drop often kills a strip of touch near a crack, and water can cause ghost touches (taps and swipes by themselves). Fill the whole grid and pay attention to the corners:

Add the multi-touch test if you play games or pinch to zoom a lot.

5. Cameras

Cameras are the parts most often damaged by a drop, because optical image stabilisation (OIS) and focusing parts are sensitive to impacts:

• Open each camera in the camera test: does the picture shake or jump while the phone is still, or keep clicking as it refocuses?
• Hold the camera close to your ear and shake the phone gently: a rattle suggests a loose OIS unit.
• Check the camera glass: a small crack makes photos hazy or full of glare against the light.
• After water: look for condensation or cloudy spots inside the lens.

6. Speakers and microphones

Water sitting in the speaker grille makes the sound crackly, quiet or muffled. Once the phone has dried for a few hours, run:

• Still muffled: let it dry for another day or two, speaker grille facing down, then try again. If it's still muffled after a few days, the speaker is damaged and needs replacing.
• Record and play back with the mic test. A wet microphone usually sounds quiet and hissy.
• Make a call: can the other person hear you clearly, and is the earpiece clean?

7. Sensors, Face ID, fingerprint

• Face ID, Touch ID, in-display fingerprint: often lost after a drop or water. Try them with the biometric test.
• Gyroscope and accelerometer: rotate the phone and the screen should follow; open a map and check the compass points the right way. The sensor test shows the live readings.
• Proximity sensor: during a call, the screen must turn off when you hold the phone to your ear.

8. Battery, charging, buttons, body

• Charging port: once completely dry, plug in a charger; it should start charging at once and the cable shouldn't feel loose. Corrosion in the port often shows up a few days later.
• Battery: a hard drop can make a battery swell. Look along the edges: if the screen or back is lifting or there's a gap, stop using the phone and get it repaired right away. The battery test helps you spot unusual drain.
• Buttons: power, volume and the silent switch should click and not stick.
• Frame: lay the phone on a flat table and check it isn't bent or rocking.
• Signal, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth: make a call and go online. The antennas sit in the frame and are easily affected by impacts.

9. Laptop with a spill

• Turn it off straight away, unplug the charger, remove the battery if you can, and unplug everything else.
• Open it and stand it upside down in a V shape (keyboard facing down) so liquid drains out of the keyboard.
• Soft drinks, coffee, bubble tea: take it for cleaning as soon as you can; sugar makes keys sticky and corrodes the keyboard and board.
• Only turn it on again once you're sure it's fully dry, then run the keyboard test to find dead or sticky keys, and the touchpad test.

10. Check again after a few days

Corrosion from liquid is slow. A phone that passes every test today can still fail in a week or two. Run the full set again after 3 days and after 2 weeks, and compare with your first report. If you sell it later, be honest that it got wet: a buyer can see a liquid indicator that has changed colour (see how to check a used iPhone).

When you're done

Save the results as a PDF or a link and QR code on the Results page. Keep it to compare with your next check, and send it to the repair shop so they know which parts are failing before they quote.