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The Cell Phone Water Detection Sticker

Originally published by "dbarker" on 2006-10-17 12:35:00Z

The Tell-Tale Part: I had no idea this existed.

Open the case of your mobile (cell) phone. Do you see a round white sticker, similar to that in the first photo below? […] This is a water damage sticker, which changes colour if moisture gets into this bit of the phone, and will be used to void your warranty if your phone stops working for any reason. […] A single droplet of water placed on the sticker turns it bright red (in the case of my phone, anyway):

Someone [ahem] at Blend should check this out. But I’m not going to name any names.

It was Joe.

Comment by "joe" on 2006-10-17 15:32:00Z
yeah, i returned a cell phone a while ago to the verizon store for warranty service (i forgot what was wrong.... something with the screen i think). the first thing they did was pull out the battery and check the water sticker, which was on the battery for this phone. It was pink, probably from carrying it in my jersey pocket during bike rides. Of course the problem with the screen was unrelated, but they refused to replace it under warranty. so.... i just bought a new battery on ebay for $8 or something, replaced it myself and took it back in, and they were none the wiser.
Comment by "danielcole" on 2006-10-17 17:57:00Z
I'm sad to say that my phone a while back got put thru the clothes washer / dryer. The US Cellular rep opened the back cover and showed me the (now bright red) tab and told me that it was a water-detection sticker. I had bought the insurance on the phone so it was a free replacement, no hassle. (note: I have the crippled Motorola V710)
Comment by "Xevious Mann" on 2006-10-20 11:19:00Z
I just looked at my supercheapo Verizon company phone and saw a little white dot. So I licked it and would'nt you know, it turned red. I can already rear the class action mailers being printed. One solution is to replace the sticker with a plain gloss coated paper sticker (I doubt phone store techs are gonna check by wetting em)
Comment by "Lori" on 2006-11-09 09:04:00Z
I just dropped my Samsung (sprint) SPH-A900 in a bucket of water while I was moping. I had a corded head set on and when I bent down my knee yanked on the cord and in it went. I sucked all the water out and it was turning on fine but now it's just showing a screen error of "mode: emergency / port: USB." The water sticker is black..At least that's what I think the sticker is. I feel like such an idiot and there is NO WAY I can afford a new phone. My husband bought it for my birthday. I have no idea what to do. I guess that's what I get for wanting a phone that was well out of our means. :( Any one have ANY suggestions? Does the oven solution really work on this phone? I tried to open it up to look at it and the screws had green guck on them. :( Probably not a good sign at all. I couldn't get the casing off of it either. Right now I have it set in front of a fan and I don't know if that's the right thing to do either. I'll try just about anything at this point. I feel so awful about it. :( ANY suggestions would be very very appreciated. My husband is just ticked and not helping with ideas and I can't blame him. I shouldn't have been on the phone and near a bucket of water!
Comment by "Vlad" on 2006-11-17 16:08:00Z
HI!. Once i went for a swim and forgot my cellphone in my pocket, and it got we and stuff. I stoped working or turning on. So i just put it in the oven to the minimal temperature for 3 hours and left it on the sun for like a day. It dried up and started working. Just the red button doesnt work. That happened about 5 month ago. And right now i started having other problems, my phone is just restarting itself. So what i did is took the water sticker from an old phone and put it on mine. I am going to bring it to Rogers, maybe they'll change it. But there might be another problem. There might be another sticker inside or on the battery. If you know how to find out please answer or mail [email protected]. My phone is motorola v361.
Comment by "Vlad" on 2006-11-17 16:11:00Z
To Lori. Wash your phone because the chemical or chlorine must have gotten into your phone which will destroy your cellphone. Take out battery and sim card and wash it in clean water. Then dry it, and cook in the oven for 3-5 hours at lowest temperature.
Comment by "Chris" on 2006-11-20 13:56:00Z
In scanning the internet to see what to do about my daughter's cell phone that dropped in water, I've seen claims that putting the phone in an oven at 125 degrees for 5 hours will do it. Unfortunately my oven will only go as low as 170. I plan to try the heat register first. One interesting product that I saw listed is CorrosionX. Their website says that it is 100 guaranteed. You can see more about it at [http://www.corrosionx.com/tv.html.](http://www.corrosionx.com/tv.html.) I may look into that as a last resort. It sounds like it will displace the water and take care of corrosion. It must not conduct electricity or their claims wouldn't work... It may be worth checking out. Just thought I'd share...
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2006-12-10 17:15:00Z
Where can we buy new stickers to replace the ones that have turned red.
Comment by "braaad" on 2006-12-11 11:54:00Z
u people are stupid i can sell u a sticker for 20 dollars if u wwant email me at [email protected]
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2006-12-12 10:53:00Z
i bought a hole punch and some white garage sale stickers
Comment by "chris meade" on 2006-12-28 11:50:00Z
MY phone stated car output on screen,we went to the verizon store(i hate these guys).I was told a tech would have to look at it and the man took it to the rear room.He cam out and said it was water damage and it would need to be replaced.The dot was gone,but he stated there was corrosion on the plug in port.I was told i would have to pay full price for the phone.I asked him for a knife to scrape out the terminal.He did not have one , so i got out a bussiness card scraped it ,blew it out and it was just fine. It was such a joy to see his face turn red.
Comment by "Doug" on 2006-12-31 18:37:00Z
There seems to be a problem when taking an unworkable phone to Verizon, Cingular, etc, stores. The same thing happened to me twice. The salesperson took my Nokia (and Motorola) into the back room, came back, showed me the red dot, and said the phone had been in water. It had not! Why didn't he open the phone in front of me??? It even looks like he may have wetted the dot himself and smeared some red around the dot by accident. Then he was more than happy to try and sell me a new phone. Personally, I think this is a scam to get out of warranty repairs.
Comment by "CherieKissesYou" on 2007-01-13 18:11:00Z
I took my mobile into verizon wireless the other day due to the reception on the phone being poor, they told me that they would not be able to replace it due to water damage. I was like what, water damage, my phone has never ever touched water or have ever been in water. I think that is a bunch of bull, we need to get enough people together to start a class action law suit against verizon. Also there was a lady who had walked in before me and she was told the same thing that her phone had water damage because the sticker with the red xxx's had smeared, she also told the verizon agent that her phone had also never been in water, what is going on. I know have poor service on my phone, and they will not replace it, when it has never touched water. We need to do something about this hoax so they do not have to replace the phones.
Comment by "Ellen" on 2007-01-22 08:24:00Z
My daughter has had to replace two phones due to supposed water damage. The last one was only 22 days old and cost her almost 2 hundred dollars. I've had my Nokia for over 2 years and no problems while she has had three motorola's in the same timeframe. The first replacement was under warranty with a service contract while the others weren't. When the last one was returned there was an explaination of water damage... The Original Equipment Manufacturer or their appointed authorized repair facility has determined that the Product has been in contact with liquid. The handset does not necessarily need to be immersed in liquid to be refused. Any moisture that enters the handset that causes corrosion to the internal components of the handset constitutes a void of the warranty due to liquid damage. Quote-The Liquid Damage Indicator does not necessarily have to read positive for the handset to have internal corrosion. Liquid damage can be caused by water, rain, extreme humidity or heavy perspiration or any other corrosive material.-Quote Don't take your cell phones in a steamy bathroom while your bathing waiting for your friends to call. Don't take them outside and talk on them in freezing weather and then bring them indoors to the warm. If you wear glasses they fog up when you do this don't you think the phone is going to do the same thing? And last but not least iF YOU THINK A CELL PHONE IS EXPENSIVE TO KEEP REPLACING why on earth does she take the laptop computer she bought into the bathroom next to the whirlpool when it is steaming hot to play games. Sorry but some problems are self inflicted. We may cheat to get our cell phones replaced or repaired for free but somebody is paying and it is probobly the ethical consumers who don't cheat and take care of their phones and other electrical components.
Comment by "annonymos" on 2007-01-26 17:16:00Z
before u take your phone in remove the sticker....they wont know you did
Comment by "certified tech" on 2007-02-02 10:33:00Z
If you remove the sticker, your warranty is voided. Yes, we are able to tell if you make your own sticker and put it on the phone, yes, there are other ways to check for moisture damage. Stop trying to cheat the system whem you get your phone wet, you are only raising the cellular phone prices foe everyone.
Comment by "Nance" on 2007-02-03 07:34:00Z
you can buy some real liquid indicator stickers on eBay for $14 for 10
Comment by "System Cheater" on 2007-02-06 12:13:00Z
Verizon has so many bull shit charges already.... My phone's water damage indicator turned pink due to it being on the side of my workout shorts.... So I hole punched a piece of paper with clear scotch tape on it and glued the paper side down with the glossy scotch tape face up... They opened it up, saw no indication of water damage, then gave me a new phone. I paid full retail price for the dam thing and it quit working on me for no reason(Motorola Razor V3m) $300.00. Verizon rips us off on everything, Im glad to rip them off any chance I get. *** When you get a new phone take the liquid indicator off, put in a safe place... when you take your phone in, put it back on...***
Comment by "John" on 2007-02-06 12:17:00Z
Yeah, Verizon sucks. They charge me an extra charge just for being black. And another for having long hair...
Comment by "Verizon Tech" on 2007-02-06 12:23:00Z
*** Alot of our charges are not nessary. We milk all the money out of you we can... For instance, Most companys let you put your own mp3 music on your phone, NOT with us you don't, we blocked it so you have to buy our Verizon V-cast music essentials. And the phone does not come with the motorola phone tools software for you computer, we dont include it, you have to buy that from motorola. Please let us know it there is any other way we can take money from your pocket! 800-922-0204 or just dial( star then 611) from your verizon phone. ***
Comment by "Your mom" on 2007-02-07 15:35:00Z
yeah the kids at alltel are bitches. they sell razrs for like 300 dollars. my phone has like a tiny bit of red on the thing, and the insurance deductible is 95 d. just cause its a razr. i went on ebay u can get brand new unlocked razrs and cooler phones for like 100 bucks. alltel sucks. i dont care if they dont make ne money off phones or they do. they dont do anything for their ppl.
Comment by "Henryk" on 2007-02-07 17:47:00Z
my phone fell in water and i dont Kow were to get new water stickers email me at [email protected] tell me if there good priced
Comment by "Joe" on 2007-02-17 13:39:00Z
I just took my MOTOROLA RAZR V3m phone to verizon. I was telling the Tech person how I have had 3 Motorola razrs because they all quit working, Then she says I am sorry we cannot replace your phone because it has been water damaged then I said NO IT HAS NEVER BEEN TOUCHED BY WATER and then she was really rude so I asked to talk to a manager then he said It was motorolas policy then I said I dont give a f*** It has never been touched by water and I am not paying $300 bucks for a new phone then he said ok I will give you a phone for $50 bucks so I decided that was ok. Anyways a friend later on told me that you put your phone in a bag then put selica Gel packets in it and leave it for a day and guess what IT works but anyways these stupid Cell phone companys will rip you off as much as they can
Comment by "Phong" on 2007-02-18 13:53:00Z
I took my Motorola Razr V3m phone to a Verizon store and told the a sale person that I wasn't able to recieve any incoming calls. She opened up battery cover and said that the my cell has been damged by water because the water indicator was red. The only time I think my cell in touch with moisture when I put it on my pocket. I told the sale person that I had never dropped my cell phone on the water or placed it near water. But she told me that she could not do anything unless I had insurance. I took it home and used the dryer to dry it for a minute or so. It works now. The main point is that this cell phone (MOTOROLA RAZR V3M) is not reliable as I thought it would be. I could not beleive the engineers people at Motorola did a POOR job of reventing water from effecting the circuit board of the cell phone. Comparing to the iPod, it's even worst.
Comment by "Verizon Hater" on 2007-02-23 18:23:00Z
Yes I hate Verizon but unfortanetely everybody at my company is on Verizon so i have to stay with them for the free mobile to mobile. Anyways they pulled the same bull on me when my lcd screen stopped working, the tech said i had to call insurance for a $50. replacement. So I switched my service over to an old phone i used and figured i would call the insurance later. Well when i finally got around to calling the insurance, they told me i waited too long to make the claim so the phone wasnt covered at all! I really really hate this insurance bull and all the Cell phone companies. Somebody needs to make up a company to offer better customer service and insurance!
Comment by "servicetech" on 2007-03-02 08:11:00Z
even if the moisture indicator is set off it does not really matter if you put a fake one on. the real source of the problem can easily be found on the circuit board by the corrosion caused if any moisture is actually in the phone. the reaction between the solder and the legs of the components and the chemical reaction from watter causes corrosion. making a fake litmus sticker will not cover up corrosion. if you drive your car in a lake while its under warranty the manufacture is not going to repair it for FREE, why should a cell phone company pay for your mistake when you damage your phone.
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2007-03-06 12:28:00Z
I just bought a Blackberry for $250. This morning I heard something drop in the toilet. Yep it was my phone. I quickly grabbed it out and took out the battery and sim card. Now I'm going to wait for it to dry out. Hopefully this works and I will not have to pay $105 for the deductible for a new phone. Advice: Never put your cell phone in your back pocket and then use the restroom. Question: Should I buy a new battery and does anyone know where I can get one???
Comment by "pissed off" on 2007-04-02 08:14:00Z
yah we should start some kind of petition because VERIZON SUCKS, and they always say there is water damage. its rediculous. I am so tired of it. I have had 4 phones in the last month because they say the water indicator is damaged. Where can I get these stickers so I could rip them off even more. Anyone know a website. I looked at ebay and couldn't find them.
Comment by "pissed off" on 2007-04-02 08:14:00Z
yah we should start some kind of petition because VERIZON SUCKS, and they always say there is water damage. its rediculous. I am so tired of it. I have had 4 phones in the last month because they say the water indicator is damaged. Where can I get these stickers so I could rip them off even more. Anyone know a website. I looked at ebay and couldn't find them.
Comment by "big J" on 2007-04-02 16:27:00Z
I want to purchase a cell phone, only options where I live are Moto, Nokia or Sony Ericsson. Have had a nokia (no bells or whistles) for 3 years, no problems. One requirement is bluetooth, also would like a camera. Suggestions?
Comment by "bea" on 2007-04-23 07:44:00Z
My screen is burnt out but otherwise works fine, is this fixable?
Comment by "mr. logic" on 2007-05-12 17:19:00Z
some of you guys are pretty dumb, why would employees take a phone into the back of a store and purposfully turn the water indicators red in order to void out the warranty. what is in it for them to do that. employees do not get paid off of purchased equipment, they do get paid off of contract renewels that are within 60 days or less (and after) of the contract expiration date, they also get paid off of any data ie..txt message, vcast, and last they get paid for new lines of service. I will repeat vzw employees do not get paid off of cell phone purchases..when employees open up the phone to check if there is any water damage, they are really hoping that there is no water damage at all because then they do not have to worry about giving the bad news to the customer that they are screwed and more than likely really piss them off.....retail people like happy customers, not pissed off customers....if you can cheat the system and rig the water indicators, the employees dont give a damn as long as they "see" that there is no liquid damage on the water indicators. lf you don't ever remember getting the phone wet, guess what, you did and it was your own damn fault....
Comment by "Jonathan" on 2007-06-12 12:25:00Z
Yeah i fell in my pool with my phone and the screen wont come on but the keypad lights will, does anybody have and sugesitons? that would be great if i could have some help getting my phone working..:-)
Comment by "Jody" on 2007-07-01 17:24:00Z
ANONYMOUS WROTE: "If you remove the sticker, your warranty is voided. Yes, we are able to tell if you make your own sticker and put it on the phone, yes, there are other ways to check for moisture damage. Stop trying to cheat the system whem you get your phone wet, you are only raising the cellular phone prices foe everyone." **I HAVE THIS TO SAY: The defect is in the stickers, however, this is a huge asset for the phone companies. The stickers do not indicate that the phone has water damage. They turn red due to normal moisture in the air. All of these companies are tricking customers into buying an insurance plan that is automatically voided under normal conditions. No phone sticker will last in your purse in the bathroom sink when you are taking a shower or when you have the humidifier on in the baby's room. Humidity, not just water, turns the sticker red. These companies know this, but it is in your contract so that they don't have to provide any service at all, period. Almost all of the phones that are returned for work have absolutely no water damage to them. This is a cheap way to void the contract on every phone.** **To make a long story short, don't buy this contract and expect to ever have your phone fixed even though it didn't get wet. The contract does not say "if your phone has water damage," it says, "if the sticker is red" otherwise they you would be liable for a lawsuit against them. If anybody knows of a case where the contract is otherwise, PLEASE, SUE THE F@(k out of them and tell us all about it on Fox News. Somebody needs to put these deceivers in their right place!** **On the other side, I assume every company does this, so I would take some precautions. Primarily, I would place a tiny pice of plastic over the sticker that is slightly larger than the sticker and does not contain any adhesive (whick will cause the sticker to turn red. Then I would hold that in place with another layer -- this time electrical tape, which will lock out moisture. Another solution is to just say your phone is lost. Hey, if they are deceiving us and saving millions of dollars doing it, don't you deserve the right to do the same to them for the small cost (on their behalf) of your single phone?**
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2007-07-01 17:34:00Z
by the way it only takes one new phone company employee to touch the sticker and turn it red accidentally. force them to look at it in front of you!!! there is usually more than enough moisture on any persons fingers to turn this sticker red!
Comment by "Brian" on 2007-07-01 12:47:00Z
My advice, buy cheap phones, use them, get rid of them when they break. Why spend such good money just to have an MP3 device? Just get a cheaper phone, use it as a phone, and buy a separate camera and MP3 player, cheap. All phones do text messaging so that isn't a problem. These devices are fragile pieces of electronics, not designed for daily use really. Believe me, I've dropped mine in the toilet (how can you message while standing at a urinal), had my teens dop them in ponds, buckets of water, spilled beer, soda, back pocket breaks, etc. It's not worth it. Just get cheap and go cheap. Buy on eBay if you trust the seller. By the way, the toilet drop one works fine after drying it out properly as most people will tell you to do. My son just bought a enV because he couldn't wait. He used his own cash, so not a problem with me. Guess what, he dropped it in a bucket of water. He still owes the $400 for the phone though. Live and learn.
Comment by "qasim" on 2007-07-01 15:04:00Z
i had a 6280 and sadly the key board does not work
Comment by "g" on 2007-07-04 14:26:00Z
just took apart my samsung to dry it out after a swim. There is an additional water sticker underneath the panel, which is underneath the battery. So you'll have to fix that water sticker too.
Comment by "Denise" on 2007-07-06 13:51:00Z
My Daughter's Razor phone has been shorting out lately. None of the buttons would work, but then the next day they would. This has been going on for a week. We took it to the verizon wireless store to get it replaced as it is in the one year warranty period. They opened the cover and said it had water damage. I explained to them that it was never submerged into any water. Another customer at the store said she was in for the same problem and that they told her the same thing. The Verizon employee at the store asked if my daughter carries it around in her pocket and I said yes she does. He said that sweat or condensation from hot weather can cause moisture to get into the phone and that the aluminum casing doesn't help either. If this is a common problem, shouldn't this be considered a poorly designed phone and be recalled? Why is it the consumers fault? I don't think that 's right. If the phone has been submerged in water you can tell because electronic boards show some type of corrusion when water gets inside. I feel it is wrong that a sticker can determine your warranty. I called verizon after and told them my story. They said they would knock off $25 from my bill to help pay the insurance deductable towards a new phone. I don't think I should have to pay anything. This phone is a few months old, I pay insurance on it every month, I never had this problem before with my other cell phones. Does it take a brain surgeon to figure out that if there are so many complaints on this phone, that it is THE PHONE???? Wake up Verizon and quit screwing your customers with warranty issues. You've come a long way to build cellphones and blackberrys but you can't come up with a better technology to determine water damage, other than using a white sticker that turns colors?
Comment by "Star" on 2007-07-10 06:48:00Z
Dont EVER put your phone in the oven, OMG, thats bad! The manual of any phone will tell you not to expose it to extreme heat,....if you have an LCD screen putting it in the oven at that heat for that high will ruin the LCD screens....further more, to save money the cell phone company use as many plastic componants as possible and you can cause those to melt. Maybe it worked for some people, but they were lucky, dont risk it, you could end up with more problems. And if you do decide to head their advice, take the battery out before you do it because you could cause the battery to explode filling your oven and your oxygen with toxic materials! We've had success with a few different methods. My mother put hers on the middle of the stove, away from the burners, but where it still gets warm when you're cooking, and left it there as she prepaired dinner....much less heat than the oven, and much less time than 3 or 5 hours. That can stll damage your phone, but its less heat exposure, and less time exposed to said heat, thus reducing the risk. I took the blow dryer to one, and held it with one hand, and dried it with the other, that way when it got so hot my hand couldnt stand it, i stopped for a little bit, to prevent heat damage. I know other people who've left it in the car on a hot summer day, and that worked, but again you have to be careful because i also know phones that have been ruined from that.
Comment by "ag" on 2007-07-13 10:07:00Z
HELP! HELP! HELP! i got a samsung t629 (t-mobile) wett not alot of water got into it. i was getting my self wet before i when inside the pool when i noticed that i had my phone in my pocket i turn it off and got the battery of i left it in the sun about an hour and than i blow dried it i took it apart so it drie better all i want is to copy all my phone numbers to my sim card and send all my pictures and videos to my album. any sugestions. please email me [email protected]
Comment by "dj" on 2007-07-14 17:27:00Z
1. The "litmus" paper in the phones will change due to long term high humidity and even very mild condensation. This is by design. (good luck Floridians and summer in the south and east.) 2. Unless your cell phone is mil spec and special terms are stated as "water repellant", "water resistant" or "water proof" you will sill have no idea what you are getting. Hermeically sealed would be the best you could get!!!) The mil-spec involved is ?260 pages? and each product and test is designed for specific types of service. Such as aircraft, wheeled vehicles, human carried, water craft and under water or severe heat/cold/dry/wet and even chemical conditions, there are even tests for humidity, rain and salt humidity resistance.. This means that any company can call out the same mil-spec and have no problem making no changes to its equipment if it is the minimum (dust and dir only). Caveat emptor, you gota know what THEY spec'd out! when They tested it!! 3. THere is NO such thing as a tech at any sprint/verizon store. These are simply "employees" that have NO eleconics knowledge required and follow specific instruction. Ask any true tech and they will tell you that the FIRST thing they do after opening the case is to rerun the test again, then dust and brush and even use water dispacement solutions and test again. If you don't clean the traces, no matter how bad or good they look, you can never find out if it is just dirty or shorted out temporarily! I have even seen gross corosion brushed away and parts work for years! Ask to see thier technical instruction manual and service manual on what they are supposed to do to your phone. YOU are the customer and you should be able to expect "repetable" service that is designed to service and repair your product. If they don't have a manual or instruction then they have no "process". If they have no process then you can sue in small claims and win. Just have the name of the person you talked to and call them to court as a witness. Don' make a big deal at the store. Sue them and make sure that you asked to see thier repair manual and instrucions for THIS MODEL! Failing to produce it then the company MUST prove that the person was a qualified technition that graduaed and elecronics technical school or academy or has an electronics degree in technical troubleshooting , not just in house training without manuals. 4. When you sue, ask for ALL money paid in insurance to be returned by SPRINT/Nextel as well as the FULL RETAIL VALUE of your model or a new model of similar quality, design, and function if your model is no longer available. YOUR arguement is that Sprint sells the insurance. Sprint collects the funds. Sprint technitions look at the product and determine if it is under warrantee or insurance and at wha deductible, there is NO third party. Sprint sends word to the "shill insurance company". Sprint sells the replacements and upgrades. Sprint employees earn commission for sales. Everything about the system is designed to take your money wihout providing you any product. Bring copies of the other two private insurance companie's policy statements from online. They are tthe industry standards. Sprint owns its own insurance company and does not market to the industry standard, except in cost of premium. THis is evidence of corruption as well. 5. When you win, take the money and buy insurance on line. IT covers 100% and no water damage issue or loss issue. IT IS INSURANCE. The difference. You pay one time a year (a little less than sprin charges). 6. Bad mouth sprint and tell EVERYONE to buy insurance elsewhere. Tell them to look online and see there are at least two companies I know of. 7. Whoever said "in your pocke makes them wet" is wrong. You may actually keep them very stable there which is much beter than severe changes or severe wet . 8. Heat is really bad most of the time. Low dry heat blown over it can help someimes. MOISTURE OF ANY KIND KILLS circuits 9. SWEAT kills phones as it is salt, never touch any kind of card on any surface wih traces on it. If you do immediatetly use a circuit cleaner on it. 10. ALWAYS purchase phones because they are tough and bullet proof, not because they look cool or have cool "suff". Drop the sample in the store, feel the hinges, look a how the covers mate and how "ight" and "solid" the phone feels. If it feels like a feather then it probably is. When the manufacurers learn that noone wants cheap junk they will make good junk. For instance, the Sanyo 7000 and 7050 (ruggedized and mil-spec) were canceled by sprint after only 6 months. Everyone wants them now and sprint will not have sanyo make them anymore. So when you go to sprint ask for any blue tooth mil-spec phones. BUY nothing else. if they don' have go buy somehing used or remanufacured. Don't accep less or pay for it wih a new contrac. Tell the salesman you expect at least this much!!!! I am a professional manufacuring engineer, and quality assurance specialist. I have worked in aerospace and electronics manufacturing everything from potato harvestor to nuclear missiles and from wafer fabrication centers to wind mills. I grew up in "silicon valley" and have a "general understanding" of electronics and products. I hope all can follow these instructions and appreciate the informaion. dj
Comment by "Jeff" on 2007-07-16 07:30:00Z
Check your phone when you get it. The sticker on my phone was already red. I thought the "void" meant don't remove the sticker. My phone has always worked fine but what a rip-off that they "void" the warranty before you even get the phone.
Comment by "Tim" on 2007-07-16 09:20:00Z
Are you for real? Who has the TIME or MONEY to sue a large phone company over a $200 phone. get serious
Comment by "madi" on 2007-07-19 07:05:00Z
my motorola razor got left out in the rain and all of the buttons and things work but when i plug it in to charge it says unable to charge...i blow dryed it for 1 hour and let it set out. if you kno wat i can do plzleave more comments!
Comment by "hate_water" on 2007-07-19 12:03:00Z
I dropped my ipod and my phone in water, at different times of course. I then got into a car accident which fuckin sucks! Since i wasn't at fault and recieved no physical injuries it kind of played in my favor because I told the insurance company the phone and ipod were in the car at the time of the accident. I told them that was the reason for the default. I said that an open bottle of water fell onto them in my passenger seat at the time of the accident. The insurance agency payed for the phone, ipod video, and the car! It was pretty awesome! Plus i played out some injuries..... shame on me
Comment by "Kathy" on 2007-07-21 16:04:00Z
I have a verizon phone the cheapest they had at the store which was an LG model and I wished I never picked it. Since the first week I had problems with it. It would drain batteries like a battery vampire and never recharge again after doing so. One day after battery number 3 it stopped working! So I took it into the place where I brought it and they told me it was due to water damage because my sticker was pink?! Heck on my phone it was that color the day I took it out of the package and to my knowledge it has never been near water or sweat! Moral to this story never decide to buy the cheapest phone in the store. I wish I never did.
Comment by "kristenn" on 2007-08-17 08:09:00Z
alright, yesterday i fell into a swimming pool with my phone in my back pocket, and now it wont work, the sticker is bright red but teh keeys still comeo n, everyone is saying take off the cover but on my motorola RAZR i cannot take it off, its impossible for me to doo ! right when it happened i took out the battery and now the baterry is finee but the screen is all messed upp, you can see the moisture in there but idk how to get it alloutt ! somebody help mee !
Comment by "James" on 2007-08-27 06:16:00Z
I love the excuse that the Techs use that the customer is ripping off the company. A friend of mine was president of one of the largest U.S. cellular companies. They can give you phones all day long because the profit comes from cellular usage. After you buy your phone, your account is 80% profit to the company. For a free phone, it's a 2-3 months of service and then you become profit. Don't let them fool you. The phones are cheap commodity to them.
Comment by "urkiddingme" on 2007-08-27 10:55:00Z
some of these posts are just ridiculous; ok, you want me to NOT TAKE MY PHONE OUTSIDE IN THE WINTER b/c bringing it back in is bad for it?? hello, that is the WHOLE point of a cell phone!! that you can bring it with you!! agghhhh!!!! and no, the warranty is not voided if you remove the sticker. at least i got 2 new phones with the sticker removed. and yeah, so sorry for not feeling bad for verizon. everyone knows that it costs about $2 to make a phone; and they make them so crappily now, how can they really expect them to last 2 years?? especially the razor, that thing has a life span of about 2 months at best.
Comment by "sarah" on 2007-08-28 06:22:00Z
i just ook my phone in today that i got like a couple weeks ago cuz it was sending texts more then once....the same one the dude opend it and saw the red dot...well its not red its light pink and said i have to replace it in a year or so
Comment by "#19" on 2007-09-09 14:49:00Z
ihave had the same problem with verizon! my neice droped my LG VX8300 in the toilet, and i did every thing i took the batteri out and let it dry for 2 days or so. I took the phone in to verizion and they siad that they would not replace or repair the phone.
Comment by "#19" on 2007-09-09 14:49:00Z
ihave had the same problem with verizon! my neice droped my LG VX8300 in the toilet, and i did every thing i took the batteri out and let it dry for 2 days or so. I took the phone in to verizion and they siad that they would not replace or repair the phone.
Comment by "Wireless Store Owner" on 2007-09-09 11:42:00Z
Some of you people really are screwed up. Half of you claim that the cell companies are thieves and the other half are giving advice on how to defraud the cell companies by replacing the moisture stickers. I own a wireless store so I will explain how it works. High humidity can cause the sticker to turn red and cause the phone to stop working. The same can be said for a computer, printer, calculator or any electronic device. Most electronics do not respond to high humidity well. I read several posts that claim that their phone was never wet but the sticker turned red. You wonder why the customer service person doesnt run to get you a new phone is because EVERYONE SAYS THAT!!! Its human nature to lie, cheat and steal. Those of you that think that the phone companies are corrupt should read some of the other posts and maybe you will see why they dont believe you when you say your phone stopped working all by itself. And the so called engineer that thinks he is going to sue me if I cant show him a manual to fix his phone or produce verified technician needs to learn a thing or two about retail. We are under no obligation to fix a phone or prove water damage if the moisture indicator show is was wet. Look in your contact.
Comment by "joe g" on 2007-09-12 14:33:00Z
The moisture indicator in my Blackberry was red when I took it into Verizon for warrenty service. The device has never been exposed to water or spills, and I'm sure that it turned red on the first hot humid day we had this Summer. It's a CONSUMER SCAM... The device is defective, and the retailer says it's my fault for exposing it to normal environmental conditions. I guess I should have wrapped it up and sent it up on the space shuttle for safe keeping after buying it to insure the warrenty wouldn't be voided.
Comment by "Erin" on 2007-09-13 16:33:00Z
Just a thought on the Motorola Razor, I visited a cell phone store earlier this morning because my phone would not charge when plugged into the charger. The first thing the "tech" did was rip off the back cover and show me that the dot was red and insisted I had dropped the phone in water. Well, next to a warm baby bottle in my purse theres plenty of heat and condensation, plus going from extreme heat in the summer into an air conditioned store. He did not bother to plug it into one of their chargers to see if the charger I had at home was bad, just simply threw the phone back at me along with the insurance broucher and told me I should call them, and make up an excuse or "story" of how my phone got wet. UMMM HELLO? IS THIS NOT SCAMMING AND LYING? So, using my common sense and womanly wit, I went to another cell phone store on the other side of town and explained what had had happened at the previous store, which the owner took off the back and saw the sticker, and explained that he had even dropped his in a snow bank and the sticker went red, but the phone had worked perfectly fine until his contract was up. He proceeded to plug my phone into one of his chargers, worked like a charm. So now instead of paying 85 bucks to US cellular and waiting for my claim to go through, I paid 15 for a new charger and it works just fine. Point in all of this, trust your better instincts and have a second opinion.
Comment by "Sprint Tech" on 2007-09-15 13:43:00Z
No Sprint Tech will deem your phone BER (beyond economical repair) for a bleed external LD (liquid damage) sticker. They will open the device and check for corrosion on the port and/or motherboard. An internal sticker bleed or missing on the other hand my be enough to call it for Nextel phones or phones with soldered shields on the mainboard. So tempering with your sticker, bleed or not is just going to make the tech suspicious and look harder for that LD you're trying to hide. Insurace is a good investment everyone of the examples in this forum would have been cover by Sprints TEP program.
Comment by "Sprint Tech" on 2007-09-15 14:24:00Z
I hadn't even read the "engineers" post when I wrote the last one. I'm a certified technician certified but Samsung and Sanyo. Sprint is NOT the manufacturer of your device and doesn't "warrenty" anything. We will repair your device if you have Ins or for a small fee. If your device is determined to be BER it obviously cannot be repaired in store. Which is why you are directed to the insurace company. In most states you must be a bonded licences insurance company to provide insurance. Sprint is not an insurance company and works with Asurion who is. Sprint does not sell replacements for broken phones. If you perfer not to carry insurance on your phone you can pay a fee to have it repaired. If you feel as though your device has a manufacturers defect and you shouldn't have to pay a repair fee you can always send your device to to manufacturer and if it is defective they will warrenty it for free. You have to mail in your device and the turn around time is 4 to 6 weeks. It's the exact same as the extended warrenty you get from best buy on your TV. If you don't have it Best Buy doesn't honor Samsungs warrenty. If you pay it they do and even extend it. You wouldn't however, smash the screen out of your 50 inch DLP and haul it into best buy for a warrenty replacement. Americans think that a cell phone is a cheap piece of asian technology that is marked way up and wireless providers are making a killing on these devices. The exact opposite is true. More often than not even if you pay the "FULL PRICE" for a phone that device has been subsidized so you can afford it. These devices generally cost $50-$100 more than the asking price even before activation discounts, sales, etc. that is why they want you in that contract to ensure that they get that money back. Take a nice hard look at that contract you signed good luck with a lawsuit. PS- corrosion causes your device to be BER because of the nature of corrosion. Unlike you 1/2 inch thick car battery terminal you can't just clean of the corrosion off a printed circuit board. Once the material begins to be chemically removed it takes very little time to completly eat away the micoscopic layer of metal on your board. It also spreads like wild fire and is unpredictable so your phone my work for days, weeks, or months but there is no telling. That motherboard is also worthless to be used as a reconditioned phone. You can replaced all housings and etc. but you can never guarentee that the mobo will work correctly. Your cell phone is not a bridge that you can wash corrosion off of. It's a tiny computer that also has a radio, a camera, a TV, etc. How long do you think your dell would work if you used it outside? This is a miricle of modern technology and people think you can drop it in the tiolet and fix it with a hair dryer?!?!? DUH!!!
Comment by "Tracy" on 2007-09-16 15:09:00Z
I just slipped my phone(which was slightly waterlogged from talking on the phone in the bath ^_-) in the oven on 150 for half an hour- does the trick. Fuck the phone companies.
Comment by "TJ" on 2007-09-17 16:08:00Z
You people are freakin' INSANE. You bitch and complain about this charge and that, and in the same post how to RIP OFF the cellular companies. If it's that big a deal, cancel your damn service! We didn't have cell phones in High School (late 80's) we all had pagers. 10 bucks a month, and we would call you when we got around to it. If it's THAT damn expensive to you, and that much of a hassle, hang the damn thing up, and cancel the service. STOP making it more expensive for the people that have some morals, and don't think that "gettin minez.." (isn't the the hip ghetto way of saying it) is the answer to every problem in the world. SOMEONE will notice you cheated before the phone gets refurbed and put back on the market, and guess what....THAT'S where the damn insurance deductibles and extra charges come from. You want the world for free? STOP RIPPING THEM OFF and see what happens.... BY THE WAY...the jackass that ebayed the battery to "fool" the agent at the store..... Warranty covers MANUFACTURE DEFECTS you jackass...that's why they didn't cover your self admitted water damage INSURANCE covers when YOU tear it up....like the lady who's kid took the phone in the steamy bathroom. If your steering wheel falls off the car, that's warranty. If someone cuts it off w/ a hacksaw, that's insurance. Grow up and pay your damn bills -
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2007-09-18 13:27:00Z
Funny thing... My cell phone once fell in a toilet. Totally soaking wet.... MY STICKER NEVER CHANGED. I suppose they were none the wiser or just didnt care and I got a new phone. Then my new phone was in a bag and a water bottle leaked all over it. It also never changed color. I must be lucky... either that or I keep getting broken stickers.
Comment by "Anon" on 2007-09-22 17:57:00Z
Wow. I get sick of listening to people like you every day of my life. And I'm actually and honest tech. Liquid damaged phones are totaled. It would cost more to repair than to buy a new one. The reason liquid damage voids a warranty is because it is not a manufactur's defect that you are too stupid to keep your phone safe, and to realize that working out with it in you pocket causes moisture to condense inside and corrode the delicate metal plating that conducts the electrical charge. Or better yet, who give their phones to their babies to play with, and chew on. OMFG. And I don't know how many customers I have had that swear up and down that water never touched their phone and when I open it, it's still wet inside. I've even had customers come back to me and say that they were sorry for yelling because they found out their son/daughter/dog got the phone and damaged it. And guess what: I open the phone in front of the customer, always and by my own request. My service center LOSES money if we were to turn the tabs red, since I cannot make repairs on a liquid damaged phone. And I am not stupid. I know exactly what to look for in a phone that would determine liquid damage, other than the tabs. So I'm laughing my a** of at you guys spending money on tabs. Ah yes, and to the guy that said cell phone should be designed to be waterproof -- if you had any knowledge at all of electrical devices, you would know that a sealed phone would overheat and not function anyway. QUIT WHINING. And have a little respect for the people that you deal with...we don't make the rules; we just have to follow them because we have to have food and shelter just like you.
Comment by "Julie" on 2007-09-23 09:57:00Z
My phone and I got thrown into the lake at my house and I was so upset that I didn't let my phone dry. I don't know what to do now bacause my phone won't turn on help!!!!!!!! I blew dry it for an hour and It still won't turn on. It's a really nice phone and It's the one that flips up and has a computer on it. What should I do?
Comment by "Ed" on 2007-09-27 06:05:00Z
I would like to add my frustration with cell phone companies. I've been with Telus and am currently with FIDO, I quit Telus due to their customer service and unwillingness to deal with a phone problem. I bought a RAZR from FIDO about 15 months ago. It comes with a 1yr. warranty, After 11 months the phone went kaput! I took it to the FIDO kiosk in Richmond, B.C. to find out if they could help me. To my surprise the clerk couldn't care less about the problem. The only thing she was concerned with is the balance of the warranty, so she could either give me a replacement phone or reject my claim because the warranty ran out. She made it clear the replacement phone would NOT have a warranty (that surprised me, why would a replacement phone not have a manufacturers warranty?) The phone functioned for 4 months and it went kaput! Took it back to FIDO......the smiling clerk said no problem you have 3 options. (oh boy, here it comes.......) Option 1 was I could use my FIDO dollars to reduce the cost of a new phone $400!!! Option 2. extend my contract and PAY a reduced cost of a new phone.....why would I extend my contract to replace a defective phone, why not deal with the defective phone!!! Why not have a warranty on the replacement phone? send it back to Motorola and tell them their phones are 'inferior' do something about it as our clients are complaining!! Option 3. Take it to the Burnaby repair depot (and take a number, wait 1 hour for some arrogant little shit to tell me there is water damage therefore you are out of luck buddy! I've checked the infamous "dot" to see if there is any moisture......none. I realize there are other ways to detect water damage but this is what the 'tech' says therefore it must be true......I use the word 'techie' loosely. All the options given are 'negative' options......no matter whats wrong I pay. The FIDO call centre back east is painfully difficult to deal with over the phone. They all have a 'script' and don't deviate' in other words no matter how logical your complaint if it is going to cost FIDO money or the 'inconvenience' of actually dealing with a problem you are going to find your complaint is blowing in the wind with the thousands of other frustrated customers! Interesting I got a call from FIDO 1 day later asking me to complete a over the phone 'survey' about FIDO customer service. I reiterated my problem........again another script and "Thank you" for dealing with FIDO.....how else can I help you?......words.......nothing concrete, no solution....I've decided once my contract is up (3 separate accounts within the family).....FIDO can go bark up a tree....I'm finished feeding him!!
Comment by "sony" on 2007-09-29 14:42:00Z
guys, can sb help me plz....I thought I lost phone , but then I found it in the washroom...my maid figured that out after cleaning the bathroom...and now the phone is not functioning, cuz water got into it...It is Sony Ericson W850i...is there any ways to get this repaired?
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2007-09-29 16:59:00Z
As a cell phone technician, the absolute lunacy of some of you people astound me.. And the story of the person that said their electronics were damaged in a car accident, admitting to INSURANCE FRAUD, takes the cake. Let me break it down for you people: Electronics good. Water bad. Water > Electronics. If you get your phone wet, you have to replace it. On your own dime. Because you damaged it. Jesus, cell phone service should require an IQ test.
Comment by "Lelmily" on 2007-10-01 11:09:00Z
I have a Razor from US cellular and the little dot on the back of mine is bright red..i have never dropped it in water but it might have been because i took it into the bathroom with me while i was taking a shower, but i put it in a drawer..but maybe the moisture from the air still got in there
Comment by "sxcwog69" on 2007-10-06 16:56:00Z
i found a phone the other night and i just dried it with a hair dryer but its still not turning on or doing anything it had obviously been left out in the rain for a couple of days is their anything i can do to fix it email me on [email protected].....
Comment by "Ann" on 2007-10-09 13:20:00Z
Hey, I want to thank all of you for your iinput, my mobile is only 3 months old, after going through the Motorola 7xx and the LGxx both with battery compartment issues, so I purchased the Samsung July 1st,, 2007 and then the inevitabley happened, I was washing a few dishes in the kitchen while talking, and drop my mobile. I panic, shook as much water out, since this was a late frriday night I did not know what else to do. To make a long story short early Sat. I went to Verizon, and they immediately told me that my telephone was "fried" with a glimmer in their eye. I said, I would check further, I immediately did the infamous google search and saw you alls comments I took the battery out and dried it with an egytian towel, the water that I did see was in near the body where there was no contact. I left the battery out, and the telephone opened and turned upside down for three days. Well Monday evening was the 3rd day, and I commenced to charge it, and Tuesday Morning I saw "Charge Completed", and commence to call my land line and it worked. Once again thanks for all of your incredible input!
Comment by "Ann" on 2007-10-09 13:20:00Z
Hey, I want to thank all of you for your iinput, my mobile is only 3 months old, after going through the Motorola 7xx and the LGxx both with battery compartment issues, so I purchased the Samsung July 1st,, 2007 and then the inevitabley happened, I was washing a few dishes in the kitchen while talking, and drop my mobile. I panic, shook as much water out, since this was a late frriday night I did not know what else to do. To make a long story short early Sat. I went to Verizon, and they immediately told me that my telephone was "fried" with a glimmer in their eye. I said, I would check further, I immediately did the infamous google search and saw you alls comments I took the battery out and dried it with an egytian towel, the water that I did see was in near the body where there was no contact. I left the battery out, and the telephone opened and turned upside down for three days. Well Monday evening was the 3rd day, and I commenced to charge it, and Tuesday Morning I saw "Charge Completed", and commence to call my land line and it worked. Once again thanks for all of your incredible input!
Comment by "Ann" on 2007-10-09 13:22:00Z
Hey, I want to thank all of you for your iinput, my mobile is only 3 months old, after going through the Motorola 7xx and the LGxx both with battery compartment issues, so I purchased the Samsung July 1st,, 2007 and then the inevitabley happened, I was washing a few dishes in the kitchen while talking, and drop my mobile. I panic, shook as much water out, since this was a late frriday night I did not know what else to do. To make a long story short early Sat. I went to Verizon, and they immediately told me that my telephone was "fried" with a glimmer in their eye. I said, I would check further, I immediately did the infamous google search and saw you alls comments I took the battery out and dried it with an egytian towel, the water that I did see was in near the body where there was no contact. I left the battery out, and the telephone opened and turned upside down for three days. Well Monday evening was the 3rd day, and I commenced to charge it, and Tuesday Morning I saw "Charge Completed", and commence to call my land line and it worked. Once again thanks for all of your incredible input!
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2007-10-10 09:27:00Z
You people are freakin' INSANE. You bitch and complain about this charge and that, and in the same post how to RIP OFF the cellular companies. If it's that big a deal, cancel your damn service! We didn't have cell phones in High School (late 80's) we all had pagers. 10 bucks a month, and we would call you when we got around to it. If it's THAT damn expensive to you, and that much of a hassle, hang the damn thing up, and cancel the service. STOP making it more expensive for the people that have some morals, and don't think that "gettin minez.." (isn't the the hip ghetto way of saying it) is the answer to every problem in the world. SOMEONE will notice you cheated before the phone gets refurbed and put back on the market, and guess what....THAT'S where the damn insurance deductibles and extra charges come from. You want the world for free? STOP RIPPING THEM OFF and see what happens.... BY THE WAY...the jackass that ebayed the battery to "fool" the agent at the store..... Warranty covers MANUFACTURE DEFECTS you jackass...that's why they didn't cover your self admitted water damage INSURANCE covers when YOU tear it up....like the lady who's kid took the phone in the steamy bathroom. If your steering wheel falls off the car, that's warranty. If someone cuts it off w/ a hacksaw, that's insurance. Grow up and pay your damn bills hi there tracy. here's a dolla twenty five and go f yahself
Comment by "Mr. T" on 2007-10-17 13:04:00Z
Phone techs and reps that post warnings and complain about phones getting the LDI are hypocrites as they get phones for almost free with massive discounts in there profession. Go get a college degree you degenerates.
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2007-10-24 14:41:00Z
I purchased a razr v3xx and ever since I bought it it hasnt been working properly and as far as i can remember I haven't dropped it in water or anything and The sticker has dots on it does that mean water damage???
Comment by "Moojii" on 2007-10-28 12:22:00Z
Razr got washed the other day (I didn't do it). After some time on a window sill (3 days) and some time in front of a space heater (2 days) it seems to be working ok. I will continue to use it, and if it stops working I will take it to Best Buy and get it replaced. If I have to bleach the stickers for them to take it, so be it. (I don't think I will, the sales rep said that if I dropped it in water to dry it out, bring it in, and say it stopped working) To you guys preaching about morality and good behavior, Kudos. I am sure that the CEO of every major American corporation is personally writing you a letter, thanking you for your honest behavior and upright attitude.
Comment by "Critical Thinking" on 2007-11-03 15:05:00Z
Ok this doesent halp anyone who has allready droped their phone in water BUT if you have had half as many close calls with the toilet or a taco bell cup as i have all you need to do is take a lil piece of tape and cover up that white dot on the inside of the phone. Take a pen and draw a circle around the dot on the tape to create a watertight seal. Hope this helps you guyz BEAT THE SYSTEM.
Comment by "emeraldeil" on 2007-11-05 12:22:00Z
Wow, I have had the same problem with my razor V3 the keypad stopped working for no reason at all and I went to motorola -- guess what. Water damage. Never mind that it never got wet, but it voided the warranty. I called customer service and they told me to send it back. I said no- the phone is only 2 months old why should I pay $15 AGAIN to send it back Fed Ex and have them tell me the same crap all over again. The customer service agent said he'd email me a postage paid packing slip. Guess what. No packing slip. I think they try to wear you down so you just give up. Well- Im not going to. I will call Motorola customer service every damn day until they give me satisfaction and you should too. The Razor V3 is a PIECE OF CRAP ( Motorola Customer Service 1-800-331-6456)
Comment by "Chris in Santa Cruz" on 2007-11-05 17:47:00Z
I removed the sticker not knowing what it was. My phone got bricked for entirely non-H20 related reasons (power surge) and the Verizon store in Capitola, CA very flatly refused to replace my phone because the indicator was not there. I am so mad. NO where can I find anything that says that that sticker needs to be there or the Warranty is void. Not on the phone, not in the Samsung warranty booklet that came with it. They said it would be there. "Worry Free Guarantee" my ass. I guess I'll have to create myself a new one, or buy it off e-bay.
Comment by "Irene" on 2007-11-07 07:34:00Z
My phone sticker is red and working perfectly fine at the moment. I have never dropped it in water either.
Comment by "Delecnac" on 2007-11-10 08:34:00Z
Wow you guys sure are sneaky. Not like there aren't any internal moisture indicators, or that the tech will see the actual damage on the board of the phone. I catch people like you all the time, good luck trying to be dishonest!
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2007-11-15 13:39:00Z
i have a blackjack and it came with a 2nd battery....just by the normal process of removing the back of the phone to switch batteries, the sticker was pulled off.......hmmmmm less than a month old, and my warenty if voided.......you guys suck samsung
Comment by "tj" on 2007-11-20 11:55:00Z
Ive had my motorola phone for about 6months.It stopped working. I didnt have the insurance on it so I was told to send it to motorola because it was under a year old.They had my phone for about a month I called several times they couldnt find it then when they finally returned it there was a note in the box that said that due to liquid damage the would not repair the phone. My phone was never in any liquid . This is a complete scam. I would like to start a class action..If any attorneys are reading this please let me know.
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2007-11-21 15:38:00Z
I fucking hate cell phones... and the water damage bullshit... super pissed off. My phone is done for and I am extremely irrate about this. Just had to vent for a sec..
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2007-12-03 08:39:00Z
I've had my motorola z3 rizer for only 5 months. I've never got water on it before. One day I went to reply to a text message and it just said please wait for 30 or 40 seconds then it said please try again. Everything else on the phone worked. i took it to T-Mobile and they said it had water damage which ithink is BS. They showed me the sticker in my phone that turned red. But why would only my text messages not work. They couldn't answer me. I'm pissed!
Comment by "hatecelphonecompanies" on 2007-12-13 18:02:00Z
God there are alot of full of sh@t so called cel phone technicians on here. Who the hell would fix any of this sh@t? Everything gets replaced anyways.... A monkey could do that.
Comment by "Amanda" on 2007-12-14 14:46:00Z
I dropped my phone in the toilet about two weeks ago but i took everything out and blew them dry with the dryer. it had some problems working at first and then it has worked fine since. but today it started to restart itself. and now the SGH-T629 screen is stuck on for 10 seconds at a time before going black, then it comes on again. it went completely black when i plugged it in to charge and and i dont know what to do. i looked at the water indicator and its still white, so im just going to send it in.
Comment by "Amy" on 2007-12-16 18:20:00Z
This has been a good read, some funny, some informative, there are alot of irate people out there about phones, either you are cheating the system or mad that someone else is. Whatever. My indicator is black noone said anything about that. Any ideas? The whole thing is black it is a little square and is on the battery case not the phone itself but same location and the shape of it fits into the indicator sticker slot. Let me know,
Comment by "ull never kno hoo i am" on 2007-12-23 11:48:00Z
i think they must take it to the back of the store to check the other indicators inside. this way u dont c them and dont kno ware the indicators r. i tried a tip sum1 gave me 2 make the sticker not work AND IT ACTIVATED THE STICKER (dont try the nail polish thing) but duz any1 kno how 2 make the sticker back 2 normal? id appreciate it. or how 2 buy a new sticker or make a fake (or even real 1)?
Comment by "Liz" on 2008-01-05 17:48:00Z
I have gotten verizon replacements for the LG vs 5300 so many times. This time I went in, and they said the little dot was red so i couldn't get a replacement. So I went home, and switched the dot to a new sticker from this other crap phone, and i removed the red on the battery and put the same little red/white star sticker where the red one was on the battery. Now it looks like no water touched it (actually, water was not the damage, my phone broke in half. Stupid verizon told me water damage killed the phone, course I couldn't tell them it was broke in half cuz then they'd NEVER give me a replacement. Do you think this will work? Any other suggestions/ideas? Thanks. I really need a replacement. I've gone to them like 4 times in tears trying to get a replacement, nothing doing. I hopethis works. Thanks. Liz
Comment by "Mike" on 2008-01-06 16:47:00Z
My razor went out over a period of about a month. The dot was red even though I always keep the phone with me and i know it never got wet. Alltel wouldn't honor the warranty. I had to pay $160 for a replacement phone. Three monts later this new phone has a problem with the ringer and the dot is white. They said that the warranty was up now on my previous phone and this replacment phone feel under the old warranty. I have been with them for a few years with 4 accounts without any other problems. This doesn't matter to Alltel.
Comment by "Kevin" on 2008-01-11 15:15:00Z
Go to circuit city.......they have a "recycle bin" for used phones near the verzion stores in them. Just go in there and pull one of the water stickers off the phone......they really dont care...... they guy working there is the one who suggested it to me. Worked like a charm!
Comment by "Dee" on 2008-01-29 16:10:00Z
To Delecnac: You're calling us dishonest? That whole sticker thing is a dishonest way to void a warranty. How can you determine water damage without looking at something? My phone was never submerged in water. But the red sticker on the inside voided my warranty. As you indicated, if there are internal moisture indicators or if you can actually see a damaged board on the phone then why not use that to determine water damage instead of a sticker that can turn red from simple sweat from you hands? I hate smug techs like you. And thanks for the good luck it actually worked for me. I simply took out the red sticker and replaced it with the sticker from an old phone I had. A few weeks later I went into the store and got a new phone. It looks like the honest consumer won this time.!!!!!!
Comment by "jane" on 2008-01-29 16:01:00Z
so i have to say, i agree w/ some of the things on both sides. i agree it's bs that people are dropping their phones in freaking toilets and trying to figure out how to get away with it, i'm sure if that were my job i'd be pissed dealing w/ those idiots all day. on the other hand, there is such a thing in law as implied warrant of merchantability which means you can't sell a product that will not last a reasonable amount of time with reasonable use. one of you used a comparison of a phone to computer with the take home message that electronics need special care. i can't find a single forum for people with laptops who live in alabama whose computers break down because they took them to the coffee shop when there was 99% humidity outside. it's because computers manage to tolerate these temporary trials and the cheaply made phones which are supposed to last us 2 yrs do not. yes phones are electronics, and yes they SHOULD break when submerged in water, but they should not have a dot which changes color and therefore voids a contract with reasonable usage which would include living in a high humidity part of the US. if you can't already tell, i'm one of the many w/ no hx of water exposure and yet my dot changed and now the things that sporadically go wrong every 3-4 months are blamed on the dot that mysteriously changed several months ago. moisture dots are fine in principle, but they need to be a marker of true water exposure, not daily living, if the phones can't function with a 1 time history of humidity exposure, then phone companies need to build better phones,
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2008-02-04 12:51:00Z
some motorola phones come with a back up battery.. these batteries (or at least the ones that came with my phone) have the indicator sticker on them. extra batteries = extra stickers. you only need one battery in your phone; so you can use the extra batteries to replace the stickers, rather than paying gopedsdude $20 bucks to scam you and call you stupid, simultaneously. and yes, it does not take simply water to mess with your phone -- if you read your info book thoroughly, it says humidity/moisture can damage the phone, as can high or low temperatures. don't leave your phone in the car when it's -30 outside. anything below -10 can damage the phone.
Comment by "SubiGirl" on 2008-02-10 13:36:00Z
I'm with Dee. We just found about this dot yesterday. A member of my family, on my family plan, started having problems with her phone about a month ago. She has only had the phone for 2 months! Just out of no where, she will stop getting calls or texts. At first, this would happen once every few days, but lately it has been happening several times a day. She has been super careful with her phone...it hasn't been dropped or anything like that. Cingular is refusing warranty replacement because the dot on her phone is red, and they are insisting the phone has gotten wet. In December (when she got the phone), we had a very rainy month. The phone was always in her purse, which is water-proof. When she is working, she will put the phone in her back pocket. This is normal use for a cell phone, and if the phone cannot stand up to normal use, it IS a defect! This is a Siemens phone she has. The closest it got to water was normal humidity due to a rainy season (and the phone was never directly exposed to the rain). In the same token, my teenaged daughter has done about everything you could think of to her Sony Ericsson...including being dropped into water. When she dropped her phone in water, she simply took the cover and battery off, and left it out all night. The phone still works perfectly, and I ended up giving it to my other family member to use since she cannot get her 2-month old phone replaced (it ended up being our spare, when my daughter was given a new phone with a full keyboard for Christmas). I can think of all kinds of normal use cases where this dot can be affected, cases that should not cause the phone to malfunction! 1. Humid climates. 2. SLIGHT sweating (I know my hand has started sweating on long calls because the phone gets so hot). 3. Condensation caused by a drastic change in outdoor and indoor tempuratures. Here's one for ya...someone calls you on your cell phone to give you bad news.....it is possible a few tears may get on the phone! Manufacturers should keep these things in mind when manufacturing cell phones! Yes, they are electronics, but I know alot of electronics that can take more of a beating than cell phones! I am also under the opinion that certain manufacturers are taking shortcuts as to make phones "disposable" so they can continue to make money! I mean, I love my current Sony Ericsson...I do not like the newer phones Sony has put out, because they have taken away some functionality on the newer models, or I have to change out my hardware. I will probably use my current phone until it breaks, and I doubt that will be any time soon. I will probably have my phone a good 4 years before even considering a replacement. Now, if everyone did that...found a phone they loved and stuck with it for years...the manufacturers would lose a ton of money! So, certain ones will continue to make cool looking phones that sell for $150 or more but will not stand up to normal every day use....so that within a year, the consumer is forced to get a new phone...and because none of their old accessories work on the new new phone...... I don't know what my family member will end up doing...if she will buy a new phone, or just stick with the one we give her until it breaks. All I do know is that she spent about $150 on her phone, did NOT abuse it, and is now being denied warranty because of some over-sensitive "dot".
Comment by "SubiGirl" on 2008-02-10 14:10:00Z
I'm sorry...my family member had a Samsung phone. Still...how is it that phones from certain manufacturers can take a beating and phones from others cannot even take normal use?
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2008-02-11 10:51:00Z
my sticker is pink what do i do??? or what does it mean??
Comment by "VH" on 2008-02-13 16:31:00Z
Yeah the samething happen to me VZ took the battery out of the phone and said it was water damage due to the indicator being pink inside the phone, but the indocaro on the battery was white. I have never dropped my phone in water. I have dropped it on the floor but never in water. I am only on month away from the "new every two" but i am just going to go to ebay and get a cheep phone and not renew my contract so i can just walk a way at any time. They Trick you in to getting that new shinny phone under a new two year contract before you orriginal two years are up -- - they think they are slick. I am not falling for that trick. Oh yeah the insurance is a rip off too. You pay $6 per month and when you need a phone you still have to pay $50 to preplace it unless it is under warranty. So lets see $72/year for insureance + $50 to replace the phone = verizon ripping you off especally if your phone retails for less than $150. Thank GOD for ebay. Thanks Vrizon Tech for that bit of infomation!!!
Comment by "David D." on 2008-02-14 16:42:00Z
I recently left my Samsung Blackjack in my pant pocket and put them in the washer. About 3 minutes into the wash cycle I realized my phone was no where to be found and then realized my dumb a$$ left it in my pants. I reached in the washer and it was laying on the bottom full of water. I took it out of the washer, took the battery off and started to take my phone apart. I then used a blow dryer and got it as dry as I could. I then took a heating pad and wrapped around it and then let it sit for a few hours. I put the battery back in and though everything was actually going to be ok since the buttons were lighting up. But wait.....I was getting a black screen so I tryed by best drying behind the LCD screen with the blow dryer the best I could. My phone's screen still wont come on but Im hoping to leave everything off for a few days and let it get good and dried out then turning it back on and hoping it works for a few more months til I can save up some cash and get a new PDA.
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2008-02-20 17:49:00Z
Verizon is the biggest jew of a monopoly. Don't even bother buying their warranty. My phone was lost or stolen on a road trip in another state and they said they couldn't do anything because I didn't get a police report from the town I was in. Total waste of money. Just buy the cheapest phone you can cause it will break in a few months.
Comment by "jack" on 2008-02-27 14:00:00Z
alltel tried to tell me my phone was water damaged even though i had no water sticker in the phone i had no idea about these things she told me that this white square on the battery was it but the spot was purple i think one problem with the stickers is humidity can set it off and all my alltel phones have had battery problem i went through one in one day it wouldnt charge (kyocera strobe) and this one lasted about a month (samsung slider) and both battery and chaging issues
Comment by "ang" on 2008-02-29 17:45:00Z
Just a couple comments...READ This If YoU'vE GoT YoUR CeLL PhoNe WET...BEFORE DoiNg ANYTHING! WARNING: DO NOT ATTEMPT To POWER ON Until You REaD ThiS!!!! I WASHED my son's cell phone in the washing machine! I had previously read that if the phone was dried out COMPLETELY before even attempting to turn it on or plug it in it would probably work just fine...I decided things couldn't get worse so I put the phone into the pocket of an already dry pair of pants and threw it into the dryer with some already dry towels and blanket. I ran the dryer ALL DAY on Low Heat...I watched the screen and as long as it was fogged up...even slightly...I kept putting it into the dryer. Well long story short...IT WORKED!!! (One Note: after drying for about 2 hours I did take the battery and SIM out.). His phone still works absolutely perfectly with one exception...the battery does die faster now but we're getting a new one! Another thing...my sister dropped her cell into sink full of water...I'd told her my story...she did the same thing...drying it for literally HOURS...then still waited days before trying to turn on...hers works as well. The reasoning for this: its not the water that breaks the phone but what the water does to the circuits when you attempt to turn the phone on while its still wet...even a little tiny bit wet! One Question) My friend dropped her New Sidekick in the toilet and I had not told her my experience...she immediately tried to turn her phone on and now its fried. I know there used to be multiple sites on ebay that sold the stickers...I can now only find 2...anyone know why? Newer Sidekicks by the way have Square moisture dots...so even harder to find maybe!!! Good luck to all of you and hope some of you who HAVE got your cell phones wet will ReaD ThiS FiRsT....It WiLL SaVe YouR PhoNe!
Comment by "ang" on 2008-02-29 17:52:00Z
P.S. This is an addition to my previous post about Wet Cell Phones....Make Sure Make Sure Make Sure the phone is completely dry...the heat of the dryer will not ruin the phone...the water will IF you turn it on, ATTEMPT to turn it on or PLUG It In to Charge before its COMPLETELY DRIED OUT! I failed to say in my scenario that even after drying in the dryer we left it UNTOUCHED...BACK OPEN...BATTERY & SIM OUT...For At Least (3) Days After Drying...Put It Back Together then Plugged It Into Wall Charger....DON"T BE AFRAID OF THE DRYING! Think of it this way...its already wet...HOW could it be worse? It can't! Some people also say to put in the Oven on low setting...I tried this with previously wet phone over a year ago...Didn't Work! GOOD LUCK
Comment by "Annie" on 2008-03-07 10:10:00Z
I got a super old phone, like I got the first one like it in 2005, and then insurance replaced it in 06 cuz my aunt decided to come over and wash my jacket and I KNEW my cell was in there but I didn't EXPECT HER TO COME OVER. So shes like ummm ur gonna be pissed at me I washed ur phone! I was irrate cuz I spent $75 in ringtones (and I had like 4 freaking ringtones- US CELLUAR has a nice way of not telling you ringtone browsing costs money.) And I had irreplaceable pics of my cat that had just passed away on it and me and my ex bf... But the nice thing my phone was really beat up and I got a brand new one in the box! lol but I had to go without a phone for 3 days... Last night I totally had to sleep in water, I spilled water on me and it splashed on my phone too, and the little that got in it set my phone in car kit mode, and I was like just gonna wake up my dad and tell him to take it to US Celluar, and it started working, damn I was hoping I could get him to upgrade me to a new plan/phone for my birthday, I've been looking at a txting phone and unlimited txting cuz I charge like $50 or more in txts a month sometimes so even if me and my dad BOTH have to get unlimited txting plans its still cheaper than me going way over on my txts.
Comment by "KrAsH" on 2008-03-12 16:58:00Z
well i dropped my nokia 5300 XpressMusic into the toilet, wasnt very happy, cant find ANY stickers on it(im in the uk), BUT i took it apart and dried it, and guess what, the phone has worked fine, its been a week...
Comment by "mark" on 2008-03-18 06:06:00Z
The only advice I can give, after the exact same experience with 3 lg chocolates. after years of no problems with any other type of phone, is to call the 611 customer service AFTER you get screwed in the Verizon store, and you will get satisfaction. It helps that I am a good, honest customer, with no record of other problems, but I still had to threaten cancelling my service. I think that the 10 percent that drop there phones in water and the lien about it are the same type of people that steal cable and try to get over on life in general. That being said it is no excuse for Verizon or any other company to not do DUE DILIGENCE in checking the phone to determine the actual problem. They should not have a policy that screws honest people. If I had the money, I would sue all of them, ie. cell manufacturers. service providers, etc..1 possible solution is for EVERYONE to refuse to renew until the contarcts are changed to read that the damage must be determined on technical examination, not some low bid idiot looking at a dot.
Comment by "Anom." on 2008-04-03 10:10:00Z
I was sitting on the computer and im a figity person, so i was chewing on my cell phone intena (lg vx83000) and i had a bowl of cereal in front of me. and i dont even know what happened, but my phone fell right into the bowl, the bowl wasnt even under the phone, texting works, recieving and outgoing calls work, but talking does not work, the person ont he line cannot hear me. and my phone constantly turns off whenever it pleases now. i want to try putting in the oven, but if there is anything else i can do please tell me. i can not afford another phone from verizon.
Comment by "kristina" on 2008-04-12 08:07:00Z
i just went to the verizon store to get a brand new craooy chocolate for the 5th time because they said that my phone had water damage. my stickers were white with purpleish pink x's and the other one is white with red spots...so im guessing if these get wet the whole circle turns red from ink leakin? well i got my new phone from the store...opened up the battery same thing. sooooo i didnt have water damage and the chick on the phone told me i did over the phone. so is it supposed to be plan white? cause if so im returning this phone now! im starting to hate verizon more and more. they have good service but crappy everything else. thankfully the guy at the store got me out of buying a brand new phone adn wasting $300
Comment by "kristina" on 2008-04-12 08:17:00Z
so i just did a test on one of my extra phone batteries. i wet the little dot with some water to see how it changed. if you have a verizon chocolate phone this holds truth: the sticker on your battery itself: a. if its white with pink x's your good to go b. if its solid pink/red you got water damage. the sticker on the phone: a. if its white with pink dots your safe b. its its sold pink/red you got water damage sooo yea white is what your looking for. dont talk to people over the phone they are stupid. and go to a sales rep when you talk about your phone. not a tech support. the tech support guy was helpful but the sales rep really helped me out.
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2008-04-20 07:12:00Z
I am an honest customer! My daughter's Motorola Rizr had a bent key in front with a sharp point sticking out. I sent it back to Motorola, and they sent it back with a box checked on a form that said there was water damage inside so they wouldn't fix it. ?? I sent it back again on the advice of the Moto agent, and this time they lost it for 2 months, then sent it back again with the same note. BUT THE STICKERS ON THE CASE WERE STILL WHITE, AND IT OBVIOUSLY HAS NEVER BEEN WET. Any so-called evidence of corrosion or wetness is from 9 months of normal use. Any wetness inside would have turned the stickers red outside. And, I just wanted the key fixed. Now, I just got a new Rizr for myself, and after 22 days of using it for a total of 10 minutes airtime, I looked at the back, and 1 of the 2 stickers is developing red streaks through it. I live in Seattle, where it's humid, and I have gone from cold outdoor weather to warm indoor weather, but I keep the phone enlclosed until the temperatures equalize to prevent excessive moisture buildup. My phone is ALWAYS enclosed in my dry purse or dry pocket. I never use it in wet weather, after my daughter's experiences. And since it's only 22 days old, I know exactly where my phone has been and what it's been exposed to. My phone happens to work just fine, but if I do need service, I'd be out of luck because of the sticker. I have little sympathy for people who try to cheat, but I have less sympathy for crooked companies which do the same. And I WILL replace the reddening sticker with a new one from another phone if I need work done on it.
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2008-04-30 07:22:00Z
Yeah, Just like the Get it Now! every time you get on there they charge you like an extra dollar. And they never tell you anything new that they are doing to rip you off...my dad came back with an extra $30 because of the get it now...so if you get on and preview songs, you are now paying for it because verizon are a bunch of idiots. My phone got dropped in the toilet when i first got it, i let it dry out in the sun for about a day, and then it worked fine. It's been a year now,,and its starting to act up with not taking pictures, turning green, and fading...i took it in there and they said my software needed updated, so they did that for free...nothing changed, then they ordered me a new phone because it hadn't been exactly a year....i took off the sticker so it just looks all black they didnt even notice...but with the new phone they never gave me a new battery..so i have to use my old water damaged battery?!
Comment by "Sprint Employee" on 2008-05-02 17:41:00Z
All of you people know that the techs take the phone apart regardless of what the sticker shows.. even if it is red our techs still take it apart.. so dont even try and hide it because the board on the phone will have corrosion
Comment by "Stephanie" on 2008-05-06 13:26:00Z
To the Sprint Employee: Bahahahaha, you're such a liar!!!!!!!!! No not ALL the techs take the phones apart. They look at the sticker and if the sticker is red they tell you it has water damage and won't replace it. It happened to me so don't even go there. I don't think that it is right when a phone has fallen into a toilet or really was submerged in water and then the consumer tries to rip off the phone company. But don't you think it's also wrong when the phone company rips off thier customers by voiding thier warranty when the sticker is red without looking inside of it for water damage? That is so pathetic. I know your little post is for you to try and scare us to think that you actually take the phones apart and look at them because your afraid your customers might scam you. And maybe you do, if the sticker isn't red. Anything to save you guys from replacing it. But god forbid if you take it apart when the sticker is red and the comsumer has told you that it was never submerged in water. Why not take it apart then? Because it would mean that you might have to give them another phone! Oh no! But then again Sprint is known for having the worst customer service in all of America, go figure. Kiss my ass Sprint!!!!!!!!!
Comment by "Ronald Hartflow" on 2008-05-06 15:51:00Z
We, everyone one of us, have an obligation to stick it to the cell phone companies every chance we get. Through their insidious use of hyper terminalistics, they have caused or at least aided in the downfall of the Shah of Iran (those early phones put out some serious IR!), the failure of Lindsay Lohan to get pregnant, Hillary Clinton's hysterectomy, and Osama Obama's refusal to say the Pledge of Allegiance (he lip syncs the Koran). The cell phone dealers through their contacts in the Asiatic Kabal have led to the abuse of IndoEuropean children be leasing them to Arab slave traders and the proliferation of Brown Skin Brothers as the primary source of poorly made yogurt containers. Pay Asurian the $6 a month fee for exactly 2 months, then claim the phone was stolen (I will provide you with a police report number.) Put the replacement phone in your microwave for 8 seconds on high. Then get a new phone from the dealer under warranty. Cancel the insurance. Go to the K-Mart across the street from the dealer and "borrow" one of their display microwaves for an in-store demo. For 8 seconds (with you-know-what inside.) Return to the dealer, Be firm but polite. Explain you want a new phone, one that works outside of the store where the dealer obviously is using invisible rays to make the phone appear to work. Return to K-mart. The small appliance department. (hint hint) Return to phone dealer. Inform him you are about to call the Secret 800 number to the Special Ops Squad at ICE in Lower Manhatten. And that they will come and deport him. And all his cousins living in the back store-room. Fuck the cell phone companies!
Comment by "Kena" on 2008-05-06 15:59:00Z
I have a Samsung Alias with a Verizon contract, and dropped it in a toilet. I immediately removed the battery and put it in a dry place, and my phone still works perfectly. The water damage indicator is still white, and I'm confused because I was under the impression it was supposed to turn pink or purple. Did my battery cover keep the interior dry enough, or does the U740 change from a different color to white upon suffering water damage? I'm not exchanging my phone in any case, it works well, I'm just curious.
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2008-05-07 09:35:00Z
i hate verizonnnnnnnn lets all switch to tmobile?
Comment by "Mary" on 2008-05-07 09:53:00Z
i dropped my blue lg chocolate in the trash where it got submerged in iced coffee. now the 'up' key on the spinny wheel doesnt work right, & , many of the number keys on the keypad are like... possessed. ( ex: i press the number 3, & the screen displays 3434, or i hit , & the screen displays 41142 , etc) im going to try to take it to my phone company to get it fixed, but dont have good feelings about this. any ideas on how i can fix this after they turn me down? anyone good with electronics?
Comment by "Melissa" on 2008-05-07 14:28:00Z
My phone has been turning off by itself. The sticker on the battery changes colors. Now I know that my phone is water damaged. Thank you.
Comment by "Melissa" on 2008-05-07 14:28:00Z
My phone has been turning off by itself. The sticker on the battery changes colors. Now I know that my phone is water damaged. Thank you.
Comment by "John Thomas Hess" on 2008-05-08 15:20:00Z
My friend's LG VX8300 had recently gotten just a little bit wet from a small amount of moisture (I believe it was lake water). It was enough to set off the phone's "protection" system; and the phone came up with a strange message. David took the phone to Verizon; they told him the warranty was void because the external moisture sensor was "tripped". "Use genuine battery" was the message that came up; phone is now shutting down is the message that came up on his phone. I was able to carefully take apart the phone and fix it and reassemble it without breaking it. I can fix your phone if you are having a similar problem; just send it to me for a thorough cleaning, drying, and reconditioning. I am an IATSE Union electrician with years of electrics and electronics experience; not to mention experience with chemistry and physics. I was able to sucessfully fix my friends phone and restore a year's worth of his contacts and saved him about $80 (over purchasing a new phone). Not to mention I was able to keep some "hazardous" waste out of our landfills by fixing the phone rather than having him be forced to purchase a new one. You will simply have to assume all shipping costs and pay $40 for the cleaning and restoration process. I accept Payapal. Contact me via email at [email protected] if you're interested. Thanks and have a great day!
Comment by "Kyle Pearson" on 2008-05-21 11:31:00Z
I just called in had cingular ship me a new phone and took the white sticker off the new phone and added it to my old phone. Still wating to see if they notice...
Comment by "Cory" on 2008-05-27 14:05:00Z
Yea I have a Motorokr V6M.. I can't tell if it's water damaged though. It hasn't turned red or anything. I looked at a RAZR to compare it but it was just a white sticker. Mine was shiny foil-like and had the Motorola M on it. They need to have something in the manual to tell you how to check for water damage.. Motorola is (generally) a pretty good company.. They just need a little bit more complete instruction guides. I'm hoping mine turns red.. That means no water damage.. My screen blanks out sometimes, same thing happened to my mom's RAZR when the chords to the screen wore out.. Hope I can get a new one. To: annonymos | January 26, 2007 11:16 PM You are an idiot! come on! You spelled things wrong in your post and had poor grammar. I mean, judging by your intelligence, you probably do work for Verizon or some other crappy cell phone company. I'm 15 and I have better grammar and spelling than you do. I'm not even trying! Don't try to impress people! By the way, most of "you" obviously can't tell very well if it's water damaged. Most of "you" can't even tell me what type of phone I have! Intelligidible..
Comment by "alexa" on 2008-06-03 11:18:00Z
well i was swimming in a pool with my friend. i had my phone under a towel so it wouldnt get wet or fried. well i weent to get out of the pool to fix this radio. i went over to my phone and saw it was turned off, but didnt know why. well i went in the house and shook the phone watter came out. i dried it off put the battery back in and now it's saying use genuine battery -power off- and i dont know what to do. the water indicater wasnt pink it was purple and i dont know. i hope it'll work soon and if not then i hope the verizon wireless people let me have a new phone because i have a warranty on it. so i've been tryin everything and it still says that damn message use genuine battery -power off- 10 9 8 7 6 etc. what can i do? any suggestions please?
Comment by "steek" on 2008-06-13 11:22:00Z
I have a Nokia phone no water damage but I suspect body moisture tured the dot pink. Phone worked well but the refused to load, tec tells me it is a known software problem but Nokia will say water damage regardless (suit)
Comment by "bry" on 2008-06-15 09:38:00Z
If your phone goes in the water TAKE IT APART ASAP. TAKE BATTERY OUT DRY EVERYTHING OFF TAKE LITTLE SCREWS OUT. DISASEMBLE THE WHOLE PHONE TAKE RUBBING ALCHOL AND A QTIP AND WIPE OFF EVERY PEICE LEAVE IT OFF FOR 2 DAYS SO IT CAN DRY TOTALLY!!!! put it back together and vuala works perfect. Its happend to me tons of times. the phone doesnt work right untill u dry it totally before it shorts out. so take ur batt out asap!!
Comment by "chelsea" on 2008-06-17 15:40:00Z
my phone quit working cuz it dropped in the sink but i have had my phone in pouring rain and i have txted with it in the shower and nothing ever happened to it then, but in this case there was soap in the sink to. my dad took all the parts off with a lil screwdriver and he told me to leave it dry. i didnt even know about a lil white water indicator sticker. but ill check it out. and to boot its on contract. what should i do ? plz email [email protected]
Comment by "DKM" on 2008-06-20 08:32:00Z
S***T Happens. I don't agree with policy that voids the warranty when the sticker turns color. People are active. Sweat, high humidity are also causes for the patch to turn color. So if trying to get a replacement ... try using a Q-Tip with a diluted Clorox solution, dab the patch ... and watch it magically turn white again
Comment by "DAVID" on 2008-06-23 14:57:00Z
I have a samsung alias and i dropped it in a lake. The dot turned like a purplish color and i used my friends alias battery for the day. I ripped off the purple sticker and brought it into verizon and they said "what happened to the sticker?" and i said i was cleaning the dust out with a toothpick when the sticker got snagged and ripped off... i showed them that the battery was good with no red dots and they replaced the phone for free. I gave the battery back to my friend and put my purplish battery back in my alias SCREW VERIZON!
Comment by "aaron" on 2008-06-27 06:53:00Z
hey pplz. just 3 days ago i went swimming at my friends house and forgot to take my envy out of my swimming trunks. i was itn the pool for like 3-4 hours. then we all got out and noticed it was in my pocket. we tryed to get all of the water out but we only got most of the clorine water out. we did take the batery out the second i know it was in there. now after the three days the screen is all gross looking, it is restarting itself, and the up down side-to-side buttons dont work fully. if u have no suggestions on how i can fix it, can u give me some tips on how i can fool the verizon dudes. and i am not the owner of the phone and i am not even a customer of verizon.
Comment by "lacey" on 2008-06-28 15:53:00Z
ok so I just got a blackberry and it was the demo phone. I left it in my car for 45 min I forgot all about it. I came went to use it and the screen started getting all fuzzy and then went completely white. Every now and then the screen will come back up but only for a couple minutes or so. I looked the phone over and it only has one detection sticker and thats still completely but the other sticker which is suppose to be on the battery isn't there and I have no clue where it would be. When i got the phone they told me if anything went wrong with it then I could bring it back and get a different one. However I'm afraid that since the other sticker is missing they're going to want to charge me for a new one. So does anyone have any suggestions for me?
Comment by "Justin" on 2008-07-02 13:32:00Z
So I had a sidekick 3 which started sucking after a year, and finally after complaining a ton, they replaced it free of charge with a dash, which I then sold to buy a wing from ebay. Without calling or sending any notification, the next month there was a $300 "out of warranty fee" on the bill, which the woman at tmobile kindly explained to me was because the sidekick I returned was not covered under warranty. In the end I had to pay the 300 EVEN THOUGH I ALSO HAD INSURANCE WHICH WOULD HAVE COSTED SIGNIFIGANTLY LESS TO REPLACE THE PHONE. Now one day when looking at the inside of my wing I noticed that the sticker turned to 'void' even though I didnt get it wet at all. The truth is, IT IS A MOBILE PHONE!!! IT IS SUPPOSED TO TRAVEL WITH YOU, WHICH MEANS IT NATURALLY GETS EXPOSED TO VARIOUS CONDITIONS!! THIS IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A MOBILE PHONE AND A PIECE OF STATIONARY HOUSEHOLD ELECTRONICS!!! WHY THE F**K WOULD A SUDDEN CHANGE IN TEMPERATURE THAT CREATES A LITTLE CONDENSATION VOID THE WARRANTY???? DOES THIS MEAN THAT BEFORE I LEAVE THE HOUSE IN THE MORNING I NEED TO CHECK IF I WILL BE EXPERIENCING A SUDDEN CHANGE IN TEMPERATURE TO DECIDE IF I NEED TO LEAVE MY PHONE HOME? WHY DOESNT THE BOX JUST HAVE A WARNING STICKER THAT SAYS "DO NOT TAKE OUT OF THE HOUSE ON VERY HUMID DAYS"??? My phone is peeling in the front and doesnt work well at all at this point. I put a white piece of paper where the void sticker was (I scratched the sticker off) but I dont know if I should take my chances and send it under warranty because I certainly cannot afford to pay 300 again, nor do I want to because if I know it isnt covered I can just pay 150 with insurance. WHAT SHOULD I DO???
Comment by "isabelle" on 2008-07-04 17:56:00Z
what are you guy's talking abotu a white sticker i have an lg shine i dont know if i have a white sticker on
Comment by "ringer" on 2008-07-06 14:31:00Z
So... what the smart@ss techs are saying is that customers who buy phones in, say, Houston- should know that their phone won't be covered under warranty for anything because of significant humidity in their area............... So who's the dishonest thief -- the companies selling the phones, knowing that they in actuality come without a warranty (while telling their customers that the phones are fully warrantied), or a customer who's sick of being ripped off, and retaliates through similar dishonesty while presenting a defective phone>??
Comment by "Melanie" on 2008-07-18 15:32:00Z
Ok -- I am so confused. I have verizon and I dropped my phone in the water. The website directed me to the insurance company (asurion) -- it asked me if the phone came in contact with water. I clicked yes. Then it asked to decsribe the incident which I did (was walking, tripped, phone flew out of hand into water) -- in 20 seconds it was approved! I paid the $50 deductible and my new phone came 24 hours later! My insurance costs me $5.99/month -- I am so pleased that I was able to get my new phone hassle free! Why has it been so difficult for other??
Comment by "Luno" on 2008-07-21 12:24:00Z
I went swimming with my BRAND NEW nokia in the pocket of my shorts. I mean, the dang thing was like, two days old. It was my stupid mistake, but it still makes me mad. I removed the battery and let it dry for two days...didn't work. So I stuck it in the oven on 125 for a couple of hours like some say to do and that didn't work either. So this is what I've done. When I got home, I took a cheap motorolla phone I had before my new one. I used a razor blade to remove the still white water detection sticker from inside of it. I peeled off my red one and replaced it with the other. If you don't have an older phone, I recommend asking a friend. I really doubt they will refuse to let you have their sticker lol. So I'm going to take it back to cingular tomorrow and see if I can get a new one for free. Hopefully it works. I've searched the phone for hours and haven't been able to find any other signs of water damage, although I have heard that some cell phones have multiple stickers hidden inside where you can't get to them without voiding the warranty by tampering. I'll come back on and let you guys know if this works after I've been.
Comment by "mike" on 2008-07-25 14:19:00Z
would the sticker get turned totally to the red / pink color? i dont know what mine looked like before i spilled on it, but now it is white with pinkish/purpleish X's for the phone sticker, and the battery sticker has more pinkish X's that are smaller, but still has a white background... if verizon were to see that would they disregard the white and just bitch about the pink, or is that design supposed to be there all the time? [email protected] if u have the answer thank you
Comment by "ghost_cat" on 2008-07-25 09:09:00Z
you can dry out a wet phone by taking the battery out and putting both the phone and the battery in a bowl of uncooked rice. the rice will absorb all of the moisture and you phone should be as good as new
Comment by "Bill" on 2008-07-26 13:40:00Z
"even if the moisture indicator is set off it does not really matter if you put a fake one on. the real source of the problem can easily be found on the circuit board by the corrosion caused if any moisture is actually in the phone. the reaction between the solder and the legs of the components and the chemical reaction from watter causes corrosion. making a fake litmus sticker will not cover up corrosion. if you drive your car in a lake while its under warranty the manufacture is not going to repair it for FREE, why should a cell phone company pay for your mistake when you damage your phone." - servicetech | March 2, 2007 2:11 PM Because I've been paying the insurance premium for 2 years you stupid fuck!
Comment by "Olivia" on 2008-08-01 16:06:00Z
im verry sad because i think i burnt out the screen while using a hair dryer to fix my cellular device so now i can make calls and recieve just no screen witch really sucks .. if anyone has a cellphone they would understand
Comment by "patricia" on 2008-08-03 09:59:00Z
I dont know if we have water damage ,there is a sticker on the phone but i'm not sure which one it is !!!I don't know where it's located!!! the phone is a razor2 v9
Comment by "candy" on 2008-08-04 16:44:00Z
i don't think it is unethical to "cheat" this system. the executives of cell phone companies -- and all large corporations, really -- make billions of dollars, and they make a large portion of it by ripping people off. if we could all see a report of how much it actually costs for them to manufacture and distribute these goods and services as well as the amount of markup and resulting profit, we would be sickened. they are going to continue to raise prices systematically as much as they can without losing business, whether or not they are unknowingly replacing phones that have been water damaged. the concept that the more "ethical" consumers are paying the price for your actions is a myth that is promoted to keep people from doing what they need to do to get what they deserve. besides, it is not like stealing, where there is a visible loss of inventory. there is no way for the companies to know that they are replacing phones with voided warranties, and therefore they cannot react by raising prices. also, i'm sure they overestimate the amount of anticipated warranty and insurance replacements, just to be on the safe side (that would be smart business, after all), so it may not even appear that there is an unusually large number of claims. and aside from all this, even the most ethical people around are not immune to the follies of being human, or the failings of technology. water detection stickers are not 100% accurate all the time, and even if you don't take your phone into the jacuzzi who's to say someone won't spill their drink on it while you're walking through a restaurant? we all deserve the benefit of the doubt, don't you think? although big companies would never treat us this way, consumers ultimately have the power and control, since we are the ones they rely on for their profit. we all work hard for our money, and some of us do not have it to squander and contribute to extremely exorbitant ceo salaries. replace those stickers! get the new phone you deserve!
Comment by "Lee" on 2008-08-05 09:01:00Z
I have the second generation envy. I've had the phone for like a month and I've been super careful not to put it anywhere near water, I won't even take it into the bathroom or near a pool or into the kitchen, I won't get it out of my purse if it's even drizzling or if I think it might begin to rain or if it's really humid. I messed up my first phone a few times due to water damage and it eventually stopped working after about 2 years. Now my phone has a black strip on the far right side of the front screen and as far as I know the phone has not been dropped but once which was a week after I got it. The circle indicators have red x's on them but the phone has never been in contact with water. Any suggestions?
Comment by "asdfasdfasdfasdfasdf" on 2008-08-05 09:01:00Z
I have the second generation envy. I've had the phone for like a month and I've been super careful not to put it anywhere near water, I won't even take it into the bathroom or near a pool or into the kitchen, I won't get it out of my purse if it's even drizzling or if I think it might begin to rain or if it's really humid. I messed up my first phone a few times due to water damage and it eventually stopped working after about 2 years. Now my phone has a black strip on the far right side of the front screen and as far as I know the phone has not been dropped but once which was a week after I got it. The circle indicators have red x's on them but the phone has never been in contact with water. Any suggestions?
Comment by "Derrick" on 2008-08-06 13:00:00Z
Alot of you people are idiots and I'm glad your getting what you deserve. For the people who truly get ripped off yeah it sucks, but thats the double edged sword we call capitalism. But just remember rules and rescrictions are only made because too many greedy idiots before have took advantage of a situation. That red sticker is a defense againt the morons that says "That phone has never been wet" when they know damn well they dropped it in the toilet. Never put your phone in an oven, thats just crazy. Just put it in a bag of rice for a few days. It will draw the moisture out without risking further damage.
Comment by "pi**sed off tmobile customer" on 2008-08-07 15:37:00Z
My old phone had never touched water, never been in humidity, never been in my gym shorts and i know for a fact when i brought it in it was still white because i checked!!! The phone kept restarting itself so i took it in They brought it out and said there was recent water damage i took the phone from him pressed down on the sticker and it was still wet. I told him i knew what he did started yelling and he willing/quickly handed me not just a new phone, i went from a motorola bt50 to a sidekick lx! Now i really do have water damage, dropped it right in the toilet, so i took the water sticker off my boyfriends old phone (still white) and put it on mine. Taking it in tommorow so... wish me luck!! They've sucked hundreds of hundreds of dollars out of me! I dont feel an ounce of remorse!
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2008-08-14 07:23:00Z
i just got a phone through alltel after dropping/breaking my old one. now i broke this one after having it for 1 week. i dropped it in a bucket of water. ugh. it was really expensive and i got insurance for it, so hopefully it covers water damange. does anyonhe know?
Comment by "T-face" on 2008-08-14 08:40:00Z
one time i bought a really cheap phone and the water damage sticker was like brown! crazy stuff huh!
Comment by "Sarah" on 2008-08-16 13:53:00Z
My friend's phone stopped working. When she took it for service they refused to fix it & showed her a red sticker, but the phone had never been anywhere near water. Her brother found a new sticker on ebay and she had a new phone three days later.
Comment by "Bite me." on 2008-08-26 09:17:00Z
aaaaaahhhhhhhhhh ha ha ha ha ha That was COLD ha ha ha ha ha
Comment by "bunch of bs" on 2008-09-05 16:01:00Z
my phone ear piece does not work -- but ATT says it has water damages..it doesnt. wheres the FTC when you need them?
Comment by "mobile repair" on 2008-09-13 07:15:00Z
check this blog...this will help you at least...
Comment by "Critter" on 2008-09-13 14:18:00Z
I'm not here to argue or call anyone liars. I just found this place as i was doing a search because my dumb ass let her phone fall into a port-o-potty today. Luckilly i just found that i have insurance so i'm getting a new one. Anyhow. My last phone, which is identical to the phone that commited toilet suicide today was having mechanical problems. (the enV) it kept turning off on me. one time 7 times in one day. one time while i was in the middle of texting. When i brought it to a kiosk the man opened up my phone right in front of me and said "okay..no water damage" but he couldnt do anything anyway, i had to go to the bigger store, since the kiosks are mostly meant for signing people up and not so much dealing with broken phones. When i went to the bigger store, he man opened the battery as well and didn't say anything to me. I do not believe that it is in Verizon's best interest to cheat people. They have nothing to gain by going out back and licking your phone. I do think that all reps should do it the way it was done with me, which is right in front of me so there is no dispute. There may be issues with certain individuals and circumstances elsewhere, but I know from my own experience that the paper on my phone was not defective at all. As a matter of fact i live in MA. and every summer we get humidity so bad that it can feel a full 15 degrees hotter than it really is. I also opened up my friends phone to see his stickers. The rep never told me how he could tell there wasnt any water damage, but i figured it was the stickers. when i opened up my friends phone, and he's had the phone for about 2 years now, his stickers were in perfect condition as well. I'm not trying to tell anyone off here. I am just telling my own experiances, and so far from what i've seen, they seem to work just the way they are supposed to.
Comment by "Steve in Florida" on 2008-09-26 17:27:00Z
The only way to stop this practice is to take WORKING phones to repair or warranty service when the sticker changes color from normal humidity. Demand they change the sticker. Or you will get stuck! I have a Garmin GPS that is similar in size to a cell. I can drop it in SALT water with no ill effects. It is completely possible to make cell phone submersible with no ill effects. But they make more money by blaming 90% of the failures on heat and humidity.
Comment by "UGGHH" on 2008-10-25 08:49:00Z
To Doug: Grow up! We don't purposely destroy your phone! We don't make any money outta selling you a phone anyways! Only if you sign a new contract,a nd if you sing a contract without buying accessories or features we really don't want to sell you a phone. We would rather have you deal with a warranty than yell at us. You got your phone wet they don't just turn colors on their own. Rain Snow Moisture Hot weather Leaving it in the car and other stupid things you could do! To everyone scamming the sticker issues, good luck because usually they put about 7 other stickers into the phone that are not visible. So if you get your bill with charges for a phone thats why. And don't freak on me i said usually not all the time.
Comment by "matt" on 2008-11-06 13:21:00Z
lol
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2008-11-07 18:39:00Z
How do I get out of a phone contract? I hate At&t. Have been with them for 1 year, and my contract is supose to be 2. They are to over priced. Not to mention my phone had ins. and then we took it off a month ago to get text messaging. Needless to say my phone keeps dropping calls, and I can't hear people on the other line that I am talking with. It happened before at the beginning of the contract and they said they had problems with the phone I have doing that. They replaced it. Well now its doing it again and they won't replace it, because the water sticker indicater is pink. ( Never been in water though) It is the same problem I had before and they replaced it. Not to mention they told me that when it happened before that it was a problem with the phone. That alot of people were complaining. So I no it has nothing to do with water.. Greedy bastards!
Comment by "peggy" on 2008-11-08 11:05:00Z
You guys totally saved my day... I dropped my phone in the dish sink last night and was heading out to get a new one and tried the oven thing and Wha La! working phone !! whoo whoo..... I had taken it apart last night and used a hair dryer (WAY FAR BACK AWAY FROM IT) and it 'worked' (partially) it rang, received voice messages but the keyboard would not type or call out. NOW... it does it ALL again . THANKS for writing in here. OH and my oven didnt go down far enough, but I just kept the door open and set the phone on a upside down wire strainer on a hand towel and kept a CLOSE eye on it!
Comment by "Tati" on 2008-11-10 13:26:00Z
I dropped my phone in the sink and it still works and everything, but they keypad doesn't...I'm wondering if this is water damage, or shock? I'm doing the rice treatment right now just in case, but my phone doesn't have a sticker thingy... The service I have is sprint and idk how they are about water damage...my mom was able to get a new phone when she dropped hers but that was when it was still new. I've had mine for almost 6 months. Is that still covered?
Comment by "Tati" on 2008-11-10 13:26:00Z
I dropped my phone in the sink and it still works and everything, but they keypad doesn't...I'm wondering if this is water damage, or shock? I'm doing the rice treatment right now just in case, but my phone doesn't have a sticker thingy... The service I have is sprint and idk how they are about water damage...my mom was able to get a new phone when she dropped hers but that was when it was still new. I've had mine for almost 6 months. Is that still covered?
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2008-11-11 09:46:00Z
yeah so i couldn't tell if my indicator was supposed to be black or white -- there was one of both. so i put coffee on both. one turned red. damn.
Comment by "Ed" on 2008-11-17 14:54:00Z
The whole thing with this water thing is out of hand and yes we the buyers have to paid like always. BUT is there a way to really fix this s**t got to be away to fix it without buying a new phone. Cell campanies are now hurting themselfs in time they are well have to pay for this you'll see and my phone has never been in water but has a pink cot now oh well right if i ask the AT&T IT'LL BE MY THING RIGHT Let me know if there is a real fix to this and not buying a new phone I well not buy a new phone over this s**T
Comment by "wendy" on 2008-12-08 13:03:00Z
i just dropped my phone on the wet ground, it wasn't a puddle or anything and the damn sticker turned pink!!
Comment by "Lee" on 2008-12-16 13:09:00Z
I talked to Verizon about my phone problems, and told them that I had checked the water sticker, and that it was indeed red, and they told me not to worry about it as they don't use that system as an excuse to void a warranty. They sent me a new phone no charge, and I have no exteneded contract. Maybe it's just Karma......cause I told the truth.
Comment by "gabe" on 2008-12-24 11:42:00Z
Quote -- "by certified tech, February 2, 2007 4:33 AM If you remove the sticker, your warranty is voided. Yes, we are able to tell if you make your own sticker and put it on the phone, yes, there are other ways to check for moisture damage. Stop trying to cheat the system whem you get your phone wet, you are only raising the cellular phone prices foe everyone." This person must also believe that corporate downsizing is the fault of the employees that lose their jobs in that process. A true supply-side/trickle-down economics person! Give the leverage to the (already) financially strong so they can have their brand of order with those less fortunate, right? Give me a break! I agree that a percentage of the public is just trying to screw the system. Having said that, those at the top are actually succeeding in screwing the system, not just trying. They have a level of access to politicians that the rest of us don't. Case in point: Moisture damage is actually quite obvious to a knowledgeable tech when it is the cause of serious malfunction. So, those little stickers are really unnecessary. Of course, the stickers give leverage to the companies so that instead of being used to protect themselves, they become a tool for screwing us. They are also cheaper than paying for more qualified employees. Unfortunately, that's business today. Profits trump quality, service, and everything else. Until we all stop being apathetic and wasting our democracy, we'll continue to get screwed by corporate giants!
Comment by "verizon has made thousands of me" on 2008-12-31 11:12:00Z
i just took my friends phone sticker off and placed it on mine there was pink x marks that turned purple yeah fuck um with all there bs charges when i get my bill. its never the same every month a few cents more n more for what idk.and good i dea i will be taking the sticker off as soon as i pick up the new phone
Comment by "Guy" on 2009-01-21 18:01:00Z
I dropped my phone in a bucket of water and didn't tell my parents. i tried fixing it but the battery was left in too long. anyway the sticker didnt turn red so i decided to say it stopped by itself. my parents took it in and said they didnt even check it, just gave me a new one. you can try taking this risk... it all depends on who at the store you give your phone to
Comment by "karlie" on 2009-01-31 10:55:00Z
You guys that try and screw around with this are almost all idoits, although some of you seem kinda clever. The reason most of your "solutions" are flawed is because most phones have multiple liquid damage indicators inside the phones where you would have to open the phone itself, not just the battery compartment to tell. As well as that "green junk" the one girl is talking about, is actually corrosion. Do you guys realize that some dealership workers actually get a penalty deducted from their hard-earned commission if we replace your device, and then the repair technicians notice that the device's warranty was void. This means that the rep then has to find some way to pay the rent because you guys are sneaky a**holes, i hope you all feel good about yourselves that actually got away with it, thinking haha because YOU THINK that some big money making company is losing out. Good Job guys, i hope you feel good that someone else that probably makes less money for you is paying for YOUR STUPID mistake.
Comment by "annonymos" on 2009-02-09 14:22:00Z
well, ive had my LG chocolate for about 1 year, and it has had no problems. i dropped it in a small puddle and grabbed it out within about 2 seconds...sure enough, theres a pink sticker on the phone now. the basics of the phone work, like the screen and everything, but not the vibrating touchpad. i don't know what to do if my phone actually breaks, (not because of water damage) what happens when they look at the phone then?
Comment by "Jenny" on 2009-02-12 16:46:00Z
To Vlad, Ahh, sorry to heart that! But i dropped my cellphone into the toilet once.. it was awful . But i took a bowl, filled it with raw rice, and put my cellphone in it. Just make sure you take the battery out seperately and place it into the bowl too . Apparently, the rice is suppose to suck the moisture out . My phone worked perfectly well after :) Just that i wanted a new phone, so i threw that one away!
Comment by "Dave" on 2009-03-06 14:15:00Z
My daughter has had a Sony Ericson Walkman phone (W580-I) that the keys cracked from lots of textng -- tech at ATT would not replace the phone as the sticker turned red (phone works fine but needs new keys or replacement) but he did not ask for my name when I went in -- just pulled the battery and aid NOPE (what the water stcker has to do with keyboard breaking is beyond me -- but a pair of tweezers, a slamm piece of Bleach Soaked Cotton (from the end of a q-tip) and Voila -- a white sticker :-) - looks great!!! Just got the phoen replaced -- Thanks Clorox.
Comment by "shdkha" on 2009-03-12 13:13:00Z
ok so i have a voyager and i have verizon and licked the water damage indicator and now it is pink and i no it doesnt have water damage so and it just shuts off randomly all the time and im screwed i have no money for a new one any ideas anything helps
Comment by "random dude" on 2009-03-22 06:12:00Z
thats not true i can put mp3s on my phone free of charge. nobody should pay for anything on their phone. wallpapers can be downloaded off computer and sent to phones, ringtones can be custom made off of already owned songs off of myxertones and mp3s can be downloaded straight to your phone. when it comes to water damage. I managed to puke on my brand new storm. I had a little too good of a time but the phone was gone for good. luckily I had insurance and they sent me a brand new phone along with an 8 gb memory card. my old one already worked so I managed to get a free memory card, home charger, sim card and my old battery worked. all I had to do is pay 50 dollars and they replaced everything along with a new phone. maybe I should projectile vomit more often!
Comment by "a phone damager" on 2009-03-22 15:55:00Z
if your phone falls in water immediately (as fast as you possibly can) take it out and take the battery and sim card out and dry them. Then let it sit for an hour ( all unassembled) and try to turn it on and make a call. If it doesn't work wait longer. A hair dryer on the cold setting is also works very well.
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2009-03-24 08:02:00Z
If you have insurance just say it got stolen or lost. If you have a SIM card once you received your new one take your old one out and get them to scan it so you won't lose any of the phone number.
Comment by "joel" on 2009-03-27 07:15:00Z
YOU CAN GET IT REPLACED UNDER WARRENTY with a little cunning a week or two and a steady hand. find phone broken or "for parts" on ebay or craigslist, ensure that is is not water damaged (ask the seller) and win it. then replace your stickers with those. it is the only way they can check and they will not know if you do a decent job. dont use glue to hold the stickers as that is liquid and will cause them to turn. when you finihsh this resell the phone on ebay and you will come out at least close to even. gluck bitches.
Comment by "Lainie" on 2009-03-31 11:40:00Z
I had a sony phone and I dropped it in the toilet.. I took out the battery and let it dry overnight but it didn't work the next day so I just went and got a new iPhone. Then after a few day I put the battery back in and it started up and worked just fine. Then of course a few weeks later I was in the bath tub and got a text and I leaned over to check the screen and it slipped out of my hands and bounced in to the tub... it instantly went black and I thought it was trash. I was so sad. But I put it in a bucket of rice in the oven with the door open so the light was the only heat produced and the next afternoon it worked just like new. that was 4 months ago and still have had no problems whatsoever with it. *knock on wood*
Comment by "Bill Prast" on 2009-04-03 07:30:00Z
I've had two phones (of the 4 that I own) rejected for "water damage" when they failed. Neither phone has been wet and as for the climate it's always humid here in Florida where I bought them. Alltel says there can be no warranty if the internal indicator, that I can't see, is claimed to have changed color. I believe that they are all a bunch of lying thieves and I agree that the Federal Trade Commission should look into this apparent fraud. Cell carriers are regulated by the FCC and not by the local (in state) Public Service Commission which would demand that they respond to complaints within 30 days. The FCC on the other hand turns a blind eye and lets them do what ever they want. We need some change over here Obama....
Comment by "Becky" on 2009-04-09 06:24:00Z
I went into the Telus store in Market Mall in Calgary with my phone cause for some reason it went blank and nothing was on the phone. I told the rep there and he opened my phone and then placed it down. I told him that i needed a temp. phone that had internet. He then picked up my phone and went into the back. A few minutes later he came back and said he didnt have one. I got upset and said that i needed one for work purposes. He then said that i was goioing to get a refirbished phone when i was told that I would get a new phone on my warrently. I then took my broken phone and left and called the telus mobility rep. I ended up getting my old contract deleted and a new one started at a different location due to the warrently crap they pulled. Then a couple days later they called and said my new phone was ready to be picked up. I hadnt used the other phone at all obviously since it wasnt working and I had a new phone that same day. When i went in to switch it they gave me my new phone and took the old one. Then told me that it had water damage?? I was like wtf??? I didnt use the phone or have it near water ever. So, the only thing i could think is when that guy toook it to the back to see if they had a internet replacement for me he did something to my phone. I know it was white when i came into the store. Then they took my bfs phone and took it apart without his permission, just grabbed it right out of his hands. Then they wouldnt give it back to him. The security was called and we called the cops on them for this. So then they decided to call the police on me and say that i stole my phone. The phone was mine abnd are mad that my bf called the cops on them and now wanted to get my phone.
Comment by "truck driver" on 2009-04-10 06:15:00Z
i have to say i am sorry to hear about all this phone trouble i dropped a moto v9 in the toilet bowl after flushing and the battery sticker changed colors just not the phone so i believe these tell tale labels are not totally accurate lets not forget verizon gets these phones dirt cheap and makes huge profit .....no one forces us to go in and buy though as far as the label fraud go in the the store and have someone standing there take photo to i.d you with the store in background showing the phone area where label is then if they tamper it they are screwed ,you show them the photo and they will be kissing your ass!!! it seems like a lot of trouble but Corporate America is not our friend and always demand they do all visual inspect in front of you!!!!
Comment by "Ben Screwed" on 2009-04-16 14:20:00Z
I bought my son a phone from US Cellular in February, 2009 and 20 days later it had a blue screen. 3 US Cellular workers looked at it and said there was no water damage and that it was just a software issue. I also found out at that point that only corperate offices give you 30 days to exchange phones if something is wrong with it, the agent offices only give you 15! So we sent off the phone for repair in which they sent it back saying there was internal water damage and there was nothing they could do but maybe my insurance would take care of it. It sounds like a bunch of B S to me. I felt they should have replaced my fricken phone for free! They like to screw us all! The little man is always getting screwed!
Comment by "Ben Screwed" on 2009-04-16 14:25:00Z
And no I didn't get it wet and replace the damn sticker! Mine was legit.
Comment by "Melissa" on 2009-04-18 15:49:00Z
I have an honest question, and would like and honest answer. Preferably from someone who has a tech/wireless background. I have an LG Model No:VX8350R. I wash rinsing off dishes in the sink, and my phone slipped off my shoulder and fell into the sink. I grabbed it immidiately. The phone itself did not feel wet, expect for the the back cover which was a bit damp. Just to be on the safe side I took the battery out and let it sit for a while. Everything works, except my outgoing calls. I can hear the person on the other line, but they can't hear me. I just got this phone a week ago @ my local verizon store. It was "certified like new," does this mean it is used? Anyway, the little circle in the bottom right corner is white with red Xs. So does this mean that some water did get in there? I dropped my phone(the exact same brand and model number) in the snow last winter, and it stll worked. I believe it came in contact with more water that time, than it did tonite. Anyway, if someone could answer my question, I would really appreciate it. Thank You, Melissa
Comment by "Gina" on 2009-04-25 17:09:00Z
I have Sprint and my phone fell in the sink once and the sticker turned red. This had happened before and they told us if it turned red that they were not reliable for it and they even showed us it in the contract. So this time we left my phone off for about 3 or 4 days and then we went in and told them it got lost at a theme park. They told us okay call the insurance company and you should get a used, refurbished phone by Monday (it was a friday) I was really mad because my friend got a "refurbished" phone and it was crap. We got the phone on Sunday and when it came in and it looked BRAND NEW. I was very impressed with Sprint. Just make sure you say you lost you phone and not that it fell in water or it wont work.
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2009-05-04 14:28:00Z
to braaad... you are an idiot. twenty bucks is absurd.
Comment by "Anonymous" on 2009-05-05 17:52:00Z
You people are terrible! Just pay the price for the stupid mistake...
Comment by "me" on 2009-05-07 15:17:00Z
read up on cellphonereddot.info fools
Comment by "unknown" on 2009-05-13 09:13:00Z
one day I put my phone in my bag but there was something leaking so when i opened the cover the sticker was red but my phone was still working I think it will dry and turn white again
Comment by "Jesse" on 2009-05-16 07:45:00Z
Once again, Verizon strikes! I will definitely NOT renew with them. Are you listening Verizon? Can you hear me now? There is NO WAY that I had any water damage to my phone. The battery indicates a pinkish color but you would think that common sense would dictate that there would be other obvious indicators. I will NEVER step foot in their store ever again! No one would even listen! I do not have my phone around water! Period! For all I know, her fingers were damp when she opened the case. My word against hers. Idiots! Every one of those @$%@# blood suckers!
Comment by "devindaw" on 2009-05-19 10:55:00Z
i recently have been having a problem with my LG KEYBO (env2) from telus (verizon) the "ok" button on the front of my phone isnt working it also has a keypad lock so the only way to get it off is to press the "ok" button but since it now doesnt work i cant use the front of my phone. The water damage sticker is dark red cuz i \ dropped it in the toilet what do i do? P.S. my sticker is square and it did have blue lines accross it so i cant due the whit sticker thibg please help!
Comment by "Yohoho" on 2009-05-21 15:48:00Z
The "moisture sticker" is clearly not conclusive of any true damage due to moisture. If you were to take Verizon to small claims court, they would lose. The sticker can change colors from the slightest bit of moisture that would not even affect the phone's performance. And if these phones aren't capable of working in high humidity...they aren't made properly and should not be sold to consumers. Humidity is inevitable and uncontrollable. I can't wait until my contract is up with Verizon. For how large their profit margines are, they really don't treat their customers very well.
Comment by "beauk1" on 2009-05-24 14:26:00Z
my wife has an envy 2. she squated to pee sent her brand new phone into toilet. the sticker on the phone is white w pink lines but is not solid. it is the same as the one on my phone. can anyone tell me if this will pass water detection at the store.
Comment by "haley" on 2012-07-08 17:26:21Z
I jammed my I phone up my hairy pussy and now the sticker says water damage. I also get pubic hair stuck in my teeth when I use it.. any help thx
Comment by "onnecte" on 2012-07-13 14:51:33Z
And the 4G Venture Forum for Connected Cars is just another arm of an ongoing project, the company highlighted. Read more: Autoremarketing | Verizon Partners with OEMs to Launch 4G Forum for Connected Cars [192.168.1.1](http://www.net19216811.com)
Comment by "?" on 2012-11-27 18:31:09Z
Just because you didnt drop it in the water doesnt mean u dont have water damage. You can get it from sweating and even having it in the bathroom when you take a shower.
Comment by "CELL PHONE REP" on 2013-01-01 16:01:43Z
I hope that people aren't reading this thread and beliving that they can put a sticker on their phone to replace old ones. All phones have internal stickers that are hidden for this exact purpose. If you rip a sticker off, you're going to cause them to futher investigate the phone and look for a hidden sticker. Either way they have to open the phone to avoid getting charged themselves for taking in a bad phone. When you bring in a water damaged device, if you conn the tech into thinking it's not water damaged, he will get a charge of 3-600$ from the company and most likely get in trouble personally. These rules are instated to help protect these peoples jobs, so the consumer needs to stop being so selfish. You pay insurance for phones the same way you pay insurance for cars. If you dropped it in water that's your fault. You're going to pay the deductible the same way you would if you hit something and smashed your car. Without your insurance you have no options at all. At least insurance gives you the option to get another phone at a price that's not full retail.
Comment by "Cindy" on 2014-05-23 12:35:44Z
FYI....there are water stickers elsewhere inside the phones so once the phone is taken apart the tech will know it's been water damaged.