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from the what-about-if-it-falls-in-the-toilet dept.
A Japanese firm says it has the solution with what it describes the world's first smartphone that can be washed with soap and water.
Waterproof smartphones have been on the market for a while. But telecom company KDDI says its new "Digno rafre" phone—to be launched in Japan next week—is the only one that can withstand a soapy bath.
"Our development team washed the smartphone more than 700 times to test its durability," a company spokesman told AFP.
An online commercial aimed at proving its credentials features a child dropping the phone onto a plate of food topped with ketchup.
His mother assures her shocked family that those red globs are nothing to worry about as she soaps up the phone under a running tap.
The 21,600 yen ($175) gadget is mainly aimed at parents who want to keep their smartphones clean for their small children, a KDDI spokesman said.
Enjoy chatting while happy fresh phone.
(Score: 2) by wonkey_monkey on Saturday December 05 2015, @04:22PM
Who are these people who are so incapable of keeping a small metal-and-glass box clean? What kind of everyday dirt can't you mostly shift with a wet wipe, anyway? Are so many people accidentally drawing on their phones with permanent marker or dropping in buckets of engine oil that this needs to be a thing?
systemd is Roko's Basilisk
(Score: 2) by fishybell on Saturday December 05 2015, @05:25PM
From the summary:
I believe that should read "aimed at parents who want to keep their smartphones clean after handing them to their small children.
Children are gross, especially small ones.
(Score: 3, Informative) by mhajicek on Saturday December 05 2015, @06:30PM
Telephone sanitation is important.
https://collateraldamage.wordpress.com/2006/05/02/douglas-adams-right-again-lack-of-phone-sanitizers-will-doom-planet/ [wordpress.com]
The spacelike surfaces of time foliations can have a cusp at the surface of discontinuity. - P. Hajicek
(Score: 2) by wonkey_monkey on Sunday December 06 2015, @12:30AM
Well, maybe if parents could stop gazing boggle-eyed at the shiny black box, small grubby children wouldn't be so fascinated with them...
My nephews certainly went through that phase. Meanwhile their own toys gathered dust because they obviously weren't supposed to be interesting.
systemd is Roko's Basilisk
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday December 05 2015, @06:17PM
I guess it's probably not necessary in most cases. But I have absolutely no problem with anyone wanting to produce durable weather-proof electronics.
You know in scifi movies where someone digs up a ship that's been buried for 500 years, then various systems start lighting up and calibrating when someone walks into the bridge? We need more tech which tries to shoot for that. Not stuff you throw away and replace every year.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by takyon on Saturday December 05 2015, @06:37PM
So you've seen Stargate Atlantis too, huh?
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2, Touché) by nitehawk214 on Saturday December 05 2015, @07:09PM
Yeah, I also want a ZPM.
"Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday December 05 2015, @07:57PM
This is actually quite common in SF. My first thought was Planet of the Vampires from 1965 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059792/ [imdb.com] which many believe influenced Alien.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday December 05 2015, @08:51PM
Theme is common enough that (unsurprisingly), it even has an extensive tvtropes article. WARNING: TV TROPES LINK. do not click. I accidentally have 9 tabs open already.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RagnarokProofing [tvtropes.org]
-parent AC
(Score: 2) by Gravis on Saturday December 05 2015, @10:55PM
Stargate Atlantis? what about just plain ol' Stargate? the gate is thousands of years old and buried in the desert! in the TV series, it's shown to be practically indestructible.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Sunday December 06 2015, @01:32AM
Everything in Atlantis was under the sea for 10,000 years, the Egypt gate was only buried for 5,000.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by Gravis on Sunday December 06 2015, @11:21AM
Sure but the Stargates are practically indestructible [wikipedia.org] and the Antarctic Gate was "50 million years old yet still perfectly functioning."
(Score: 3, Informative) by Anne Nonymous on Saturday December 05 2015, @07:22PM
> drawing on their phones with permanent marker or dropping in buckets of engine oil?
Phone sex. Nobody wants to talk in the wet spot.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 06 2015, @12:29AM
Dropping a phone into a toilet bowl isn't all that rare. Something that can withstand "certain types of foamy soap" brings us closer to the day of phones that can survive a toilet-dunking.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by frojack on Sunday December 06 2015, @02:16AM
features a child dropping the phone onto a plate of food topped with ketchup.
You would be surprised at how many people hand a $500 phone to a child to calm them down.
Also I call bullshit on the normal waterproof phone's inability to withstand soap.
My son had one, and it went in the wash more than once.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 06 2015, @08:09PM
I guess we can't all be as perfect as you!