Please help me out water damage? - Verizon Galaxy S 5 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

So I've had my S5 for over 2 months. I'm always very careful with my stuff. I had the original cover on the phone and once a week I would run it under cold water to wash off any grime or dirt. Everything would be fine.
Now I got the wireless charging cover and I did the same routine. I made 1000% sure it was sealed completely. Now I start to experience slow down and freezing. So much so I have to remove the battery to restart. So I take off the cover and I see water on the battery. Not a lot but this is supposed to be wster resistant. I also notice some water where the cover snaps on to the phone. I dry it all off..I also called Verizon who said I'd have to go to the store to check for water damage which I say to myself Huh? But it's water resistant. Anyways I go to the store and they see nothing wrong with it. They said I can get a like new replacement but I feel that unfair since I spent my money and its not even 3 months old.
I noticed when I got home that by the speaker win the wireless cover it's not flush against he phone. The snaps are all in place but still there's a considerable gap between the cover and phone. Then I took the cover off and put the regular cover back on and there was no gap. It's flush against. Now is it possible hbis is a defect?
And should I accept the replacement device? Right now he phone is Ok but I'm worried no one wants a damaged phone.
Also my boot screen says custom even though I haven't rooted. I even used a root checker to make sure. Only thing I did was turn off some apps and install nova.
Weird? Advice?
Ty

hakoreh said:
So I've had my S5 for over 2 months. I'm always very careful with my stuff. I had the original cover on the phone and once a week I would run it under cold water to wash off any grime or dirt. Everything would be fine.
Now I got the wireless charging cover and I did the same routine. I made 1000% sure it was sealed completely. Now I start to experience slow down and freezing. So much so I have to remove the battery to restart. So I take off the cover and I see water on the battery. Not a lot but this is supposed to be wster resistant. I also notice some water where the cover snaps on to the phone. I dry it all off..I also called Verizon who said I'd have to go to the store to check for water damage which I say to myself Huh? But it's water resistant. Anyways I go to the store and they see nothing wrong with it. They said I can get a like new replacement but I feel that unfair since I spent my money and its not even 3 months old.
I noticed when I got home that by the speaker win the wireless cover it's not flush against he phone. The snaps are all in place but still there's a considerable gap between the cover and phone. Then I took the cover off and put the regular cover back on and there was no gap. It's flush against. Now is it possible hbis is a defect?
And should I accept the replacement device? Right now he phone is Ok but I'm worried no one wants a damaged phone.
Also my boot screen says custom even though I haven't rooted. I even used a root checker to make sure. Only thing I did was turn off some apps and install nova.
Weird? Advice?
Ty
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Click to collapse
Well, first of all. The extended battery and cover for it were said a lonnnng time ago to not be water tight. So that's probably part of your problem.
Secondly, I would recommend using Computer screen cleaning wipes, or a microfiber cloth and a little bit of windex or other non-harmful glass cleaner to clean it instead of running cold water over it..
The more you can control what is cleaning it, the better off you are. A little more than A LOT.

kprice8 said:
Well, first of all. The extended battery and cover for it were said a lonnnng time ago to not be water tight. So that's probably part of your problem.
Secondly, I would recommend using Computer screen cleaning wipes, or a microfiber cloth and a little bit of windex or other non-harmful glass cleaner to clean it instead of running cold water over it..
The more you can control what is cleaning it, the better off you are. A little more than A LOT.
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I'm running the stock battery and the wireless cover. I've read a lot of places it keeps the wireless seal. In fact the Samsung site States the same.

hakoreh said:
I'm running the stock battery and the wireless cover. I've read a lot of places it keeps the wireless seal. In fact the Samsung site States the same.
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My apologies, it is still early.
I have still read on these forums that despite the claim by Samsung that it will hold the seal, users were saying it doesn't. Perhaps do a search for it and see what they say?

hakoreh said:
I'm running the stock battery and the wireless cover. I've read a lot of places it keeps the wireless seal. In fact the Samsung site States the same.
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if you are using an official samsung accessory, you can send it back to samsung for repair. they will replace damaged parts with new ones. or you can go to verizon and get the like new one. either way, i wouldn't hold on to it if it has water damage and is acting flakey. it will never be right and by the time you get fed up with it you are out of warranty. replace it. and really, if verizon gives you a phone that is in as good a shape as the one you have, and works perfectly, who cares if someone else tried it and didn't like it and returned it.

Hobson318 said:
if you are using an official samsung accessory, you can send it back to samsung for repair. they will replace damaged parts with new ones. or you can go to verizon and get the like new one. either way, i wouldn't hold on to it if it has water damage and is acting flakey. it will never be right and by the time you get fed up with it you are out of warranty. replace it. and really, if verizon gives you a phone that is in as good a shape as the one you have, and works perfectly, who cares if someone else tried it and didn't like it and returned it.
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I spoke to Samsung and they basically said I got a defective cover which honestly is BS. They said they can repair the phone but I wouldn't have access to a replacement and they don't provide replacements. Honestly I've always liked Samsung but now I'm thinking should I just take the replacement, sell it and get the LG G3 or something.

hakoreh said:
I spoke to Samsung and they basically said I got a defective cover which honestly is BS. They said they can repair the phone but I wouldn't have access to a replacement and they don't provide replacements. Honestly I've always liked Samsung but now I'm thinking should I just take the replacement, sell it and get the LG G3 or something.
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At least samsung is willing to repair the phone. They could have just said it was your fault for not installing the cover correctly. I sent them a 16gb S3 a while back that I bricked. They fixed it and sent it back to me as a 32gb model. Did right by me. You aren't going to be any worse for taking the replacement verizon will give you. It will still have the same warranty plus it has the benefit of additional QA testing from factory.

Related

So my S5 got wet..

Bummer too because I just set it up how I like it.
I was fishing today and I had my S5 in my pocket.
Anyway to my embarrassment I actually fell in the water when I was trying to untangle my lure from some fishing line some asshole had just cut off his rod and left in the water.
The thing is, whilst the S5 is supposed to be IP64 certified or whatever, mine has lost the flimsy bottom cover...
I was in the water with the phone in my front jeans pocket for about 15 seconds. The phone barely had any water on it (it was also in a full case) though it did seem that some had gotten into the charging port.
I took the battery out, and left things to dry. Got home about an hour later after wiping the phone down and I used a hairdryer on it for about 15 minutes (not letting it get too hot though). After that I threw it with its back off in a bowl filled with rice and put it next to a slightly warm heater.
My girlfriend said when she was trying to turn it off (I told her to take the battery out but she was panicking) that the hardware buttons (back and recents) weren't working any more. She also said that she noticed the date and time was wrong. It said April 24 2006 and the SIM card icon had a circle with a line through it (No reception). The home button she said worked fine though.
What chance do you think I have that the phone will work after it's been in the bowl of rice next to the heater?
EDIT: Found 3 packets of silica gel, I ripped those open and threw that stuff in there with the rice too.
leijonasisu said:
Bummer too because I just set it up how I like it.
I was fishing today and I had my S5 in my pocket.
Anyway to my embarrassment I actually fell in the water when I was trying to untangle my lure from some fishing line some asshole had just cut off his rod and left in the water.
The thing is, whilst the S5 is supposed to be IP64 certified or whatever, mine has lost the flimsy bottom cover...
I was in the water with the phone in my front jeans pocket for about 15 seconds. The phone barely had any water on it (it was also in a full case) though it did seem that some had gotten into the charging port.
I took the battery out, and left things to dry. Got home about an hour later after wiping the phone down and I used a hairdryer on it for about 15 minutes (not letting it get too hot though). After that I threw it with its back off in a bowl filled with rice and put it next to a slightly warm heater.
My girlfriend said when she was trying to turn it off (I told her to take the battery out but she was panicking) that the hardware buttons (back and recents) weren't working any more. She also said that she noticed the date and time was wrong. It said April 24 2006 and the SIM card icon had a circle with a line through it (No reception). The home button she said worked fine though.
What chance do you think I have that the phone will work after it's been in the bowl of rice next to the heater?
EDIT: Found 3 packets of silica gel, I ripped those open and threw that stuff in there with the rice too.
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i have had better results with letting it dry in open air, under the sun....take the back off (ofcourse the battery aswell) and place it under the sun with screen facing downwards.....let it dry for an hour or so...check
You need to leave it in a moisture absorbing product (dry rice/silica granules) for a LOT longer than an hour or so.....24 hours OR LONGER is more realistic. Preferably in an airing cupboard too......
It's going to take a lot longer to dry out than leaving it in the sun for an hour, as I assume you weren't able to start the drying process immediately and the water would have had time to get further into the phone.......
In cases like these, it's always best to let it dry for 'too' long than not long enough....
Sent from my rooted, debloated stocKK kn0x0 SM-G900F
Thanks. I let it dry for 15 hours, I guess it wasn't enough. Also yeah it took at least an hour for me to get the phone back to my apartment. The antenna seems to work fine but the hardware buttons are indeed screwed. I know I can use those on-screen hardware buttons if I toggle them somewhere from Xposed or an App or something. So not all is lost, but I'd really like my normal ones back. At this time I just guess that some water got into the bottom of the phone and shorted out the touch sensors or something. I wonder how much it would cost to get this repaired or if I could get away with having it replaced on warranty or something... Everything else on the phone seems to be fine. Screen, antenna, etc. it doesn't seem like any water got very far in.
Either way I am going to put it back in the rice/silica gel combo and see how that goes. I'll leave it in for 24 hours this time.
Okay so the capacitive buttons at the bottom (menu and back) are definitely broken from getting wet.
What chance do I have at returning the phone and just claiming that they just stopped working? Left the phone in rice and silica gel for what seems like forever and there doesn't seem to be any traces of moisture or water at all.
Worst case scenario Sammy sends the phone back and states that it was water damage and they won't fix it? Best case they fix it under warranty??
Highly unlikely it'll get fixed under warranty......
These phones have stickers placed 'strategically' inside them which change colour if they get wet.....Samsung will take one look at your phone and say.....yeah right......NO chance....
Sent from my rooted, debloated stocKK kn0x0 SM-G900F
Well I'm going to have a try at it, the white square that marks if it got wet down the bottom corner where the battery goes is completely white, and not red. Worst case they won't fix it for free. If it costs anything less than €100 to fix then I will get it fixed, otherwise I'll shop around and see if I can get a third party to fix it or sort out what my options are. I'm flashing it back to stock now and I'm going to clean the phone and then take it into the store and ask them to fix it.
Normally if they won't fix it under warranty they will send me a text message telling me how much it is going to cost to fix, and then if I want to pay. At the very least I should probably pay, as long as it isn't upwards of around €100 because it restores the resale value on my phone and I can make more than the amount back when I eventually sell it.
I really think Samdung should have put more thought into the bottom USB cover though. Mine and my friend's broke within about 2 months.
Anyway I'll post back on what happens later on.
If you can prove it drowned due to a faulty charger cover, you might have a case
I told the guy in the shop I bought it from what happened and he looked at it and said there is no sign of water damage. He said it should be repaired under warranty but not to 'quote' him on it happening. I'll report back in 2-3 weeks and say what happened.
I couldn't really complain about a 'faulty usb cover' when the whole damn thing fell off about 6 months ago.
I looked at a bunch of disassembly videos of the S5. Seems there are 3 main water damage stickers. 2 which are visible from the back. One behind the battery, one behind a little 'square' on the left-hand side of the phone. Both of mine were pure white. There's also another on the battery, except that mine didn't have a spot for it which was weird. The battery was a stock one I got from the same store.
That leaves 1 more which is in the middle of the phone behind the circuitry which I cannot see and I doubt very much that it is anything but pure white. So I think I have a good chance to have it replaced under warranty.
Also the bottom part of the phone's PCB is actually remove-and-replaceable. So if something there shorted out behind the capacitive buttons perhaps they will just throw that piece away and click in a new one.
Who knows.
Yeah, although this phone has ip67 protection, it doesnt do much with samsungs "engineering capabilities" - i have this phone too, and i can say, that this phone has at least 3 weak points, that makes ip67 to ip20 (first number is resistance to dust, second is resistance to water, higher is better) - so, the weak points are : 1) usb connection cover does not fully close, it is stuck out by like a 1-2mm, which i believe leaves some kind of space for water to flow in; 2) back cover does not fully stick to the back of the phone near the camera, you can press in that place to feel that there is empty space, which makes protection gum on back cover kind of useless, because it does not fully stick to the phone and will let water flow; 3) that corner of back cover, which was made to start removing back cover, does not fully stick to the phone, which leaves an empty space of about 1mm for the water to flow in. So to add everything up, even if s5 has ip67, i do not recommend testing it, because it only might work only with a new phone, but when you use your phone, some parts of phone gets out of the shape really fast, like usb connection cover, so it will decrease resistence to water a lot. Anyway, if you are above the water with your phone, i recommend doing good old trick, whick works with all phones - put your phone in a baloon or a condom - this protection will be 100 times better than anything that samsung will offer us in 1000 years.
I don't care if they tell me it is 100% waterproof, under 100 miles of water, for 100 years - I`ll still keep that theory for the day I accidentally drop it in a puddle - Im not going to purposely put any phone in water, no matter how 'safe' Im told it is
About a month ago, I knocked a pint of beer over my phone.......I had a moment when I started panicking about the phone......then I remembered IP67 and rinsed the phone off under the tap......then I started cursing myself for wasting a pint of beer........
Sent from my rooted, debloated stocKK kn0x0 SM-G900F
The outer area under the back cover is not sealed. May still contain some beer for emergency situations.
Lol.....that'd look really good wouldn't it?
Me walking down the street sucking my phone....
Sent from my rooted, debloated stocKK kn0x0 SM-G900F
I used the S5 plenty in the rain and I didn't worry putting it next to the sink or something. I don't think I ever actually fully wet it, but the screen did get covered in water at times in the rain. To me the IP67 rating was always something that meant the phone wasn't made of 'paper', in that it wouldn't be ruined in the rain, but I shouldn't exactly take a bath with it. I've read blogs etc. however that state that it is prone to some pretty nasty moisture damage if you take it into the shower or sauna with you. Though I suppose that is stating the obvious.
Point is, I think the water protection on the S5 is pretty garbage. On paper (no pun intended) it might look good that it is IP67, but let 1 drop into the bottom USB port with the cover off and you've lost both capacitive buttons as well as gained an issue that the phone constantly thinks that it is overheating after the screen turns off (funnily enough doesn't happen unless the screen goes black) and will try and reboot itself continuously. You can't even charge the phone because in a hilarious work of irony, it states that the battery is too cold!
Everything is only as strong as its weakest component and I found that usb cover to be about as weak as it gets. It only took 4 weeks for it to stop closing properly, and another 4 weeks for it to actually fall off... all just with regular use. Anyone is free to look around the web and see similar complaints of how cheap and flimsy the cover is. It would have made much more sense if it closed magnetically, or even if they had made the bottom cover replaceable so when they wore out, they could be replaced. To me it just feels like a typical scenario of Samdung trying to cover as many 'bases' as they can with regards to 'listed perks' without actually thinking about things from a long-term constructive or realistic point of view.
You can see from the S6 and the Note variants that they have abandoned further development towards water resistance and have saved it purely for their 'active' variants. I would have gotten one of those despite how ugly they are if they didn't come with a dumbed down CPU and Camera.
This will be my last Samsung phone anyway. I'll go the HTC or LG route after this.
The S5 is useless in the rain for me, a few drops on the screen and it thinks I'm pressing buttons, phone becomes self-aware and does what it wants until I turn the screen off and dry it, then it works until the next raindrop hits it
Lol.....as long as it doesn't turn into one of those nasty little decepticons out of Transformers you're fine.....
And the S5 will be my last Samsung device too.....not happy with certain aspects of the S6 that look certain to appear on further generations of Samsung devices in the future....
Sent from my rooted, debloated stocKK kn0x0 SM-G900F
Wouldn't surprise me if it did
Been a few times I've pulled it out of my pocket and it's been all set to call someone, just needed to hit the call button and I'd have the borrowers talking to me from my coat
I treat the ip67 rating like I treat the air bags in my car. It's nice to know is there in case of an accident but I'm not going out of my way to test it.
Tybalt said:
I treat the ip67 rating like I treat the air bags in my car. It's nice to know is there in case of an accident but I'm not going out of my way to test it.
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This ^^
Safety net, not a feature

Water Damage - My story

It's pretty late here so i'm going to keep this simple.
I preordered a black s7 the day it was announced, got it on March 7. Had an s6 before.
It's amazing and all, but what was not so amazing for me was the water resistance.
It got pretty dirty after 1 day of use, so I thought it was a good idea to gently wash it with water and soap - Samsung claims it's water resistant, right?
As soon as i finished washing it, the phone started acting like I was pressing the volume down button. Shortly after that, it started showing the wireless charging animation, again and again.
I decided to power it off, I got my hair dryer and I ejected the sim tray ; was very surprised to find water all over my sim card and the sim tray itself. The water damage indicator/sticker was also touched by the water, making it turn from white to red/pink.
After heating it up with the hair dryer moderately, I powered it on. Surprise, it won't get past the "Galaxy S7" boot screen, like most Samsung Galaxy phones do in case water enters the phone.
It was rebooting after 10 seconds and doing the same thing. This lasted for 10 minutes. My biggest concern here was amoled burn in (google it if you don't know what it means). I managed to boot to recovery and power it off.
I waited for this phone a lot, 3 months to be exact, and turning it into a brick after 1 day of having it is not a good feeling at all.
I put my phone in a bag of rice and left it on the desk. 3 hours later (i had to go somewhere), I got it out of the bag of rice, and powered it on. It went to recovery, I chose to reboot to system, and it did boot. All the features and sensors were working.
Last night I tried rebooting it and it would do the same thing like it did after I washed it. Left it in rice overnight and today morning it booted up. So yeah, something is still broken, but at least I have it working now.
I think the soap caused the water to enter the phone.
I suggest you don't try to wash your phone like I did.
wow. so much for water resistance.
*edit*whoops didn't read the part about soap. yeah, only like lukewarm water they suggest.
Water Resistant, Not waterproof. Tell Samsung about this and they'll tell you all about it.
Water resistant means just that it doesn't mean that it is solvent or cleaner resistant, no cleaners ever just water I feel your pain sir I had to learn this the hard way as well.
Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk
Why on earth did you use soap? :silly:
Soap lower water surface tension and make water more intrusive though small opening I guess.
So don't use soap lol.
Sent from my SM-A9000 using Tapatalk
OP, you'll have fanbois jumping all over you wanting to educate you on water resistance and water proof like its rocket science. Point is that they are all wrong. IP 68 means you should be able to do exactly what you did - wash your phone off in water for a few minutes. These S7s just don't seem to be holding up to their IP 68 ratings (I returned an Edge because an underwater photo caused water resistance to fail and fast charging to not work anymore).
Feel your pain. Send it back under buyer's remorse and get another one.
xxaarraa said:
OP, you'll have fanbois jumping all over you wanting to educate you on water resistance and water proof like its rocket science. Point is that they are all wrong. IP 68 means you should be able to do exactly what you did - wash your phone off in water for a few minutes. These S7s just don't seem to be holding up to their IP 68 ratings (I returned an Edge because an underwater photo caused water resistance to fail and fast charging to not work anymore).
Feel your pain. Send it back under buyer's remorse and get another one.
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Click to collapse
OP used soap. It wasn't the water, it was the soap. Soap is a base and messes up all kinds of things. Possibly reacted with the nano coating or the seals.
I've washed my S5 several times with soap - and that is only IP67-rated. Should be fine.
ironbesterer said:
OP used soap. It wasn't the water, it was the soap.
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+1
This is a fact:
NonXtreme said:
Soap lower water surface tension and make water more intrusive though small opening I guess.
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A few weeks ago I watched a video on how Samsung obtained it's IP68 rating for the S7/E. The video explicitly mentions relying on the surface tension of water to keep it out of microscreens for components like the speaker. Lower the surface tension of water, and it will flow places it didn't before.
Lesson learned for all of us.
mstrandbo said:
I've washed my S5 several times with soap - and that is only IP67-rated. Should be fine.
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Apples to oranges. The two devices have totally different construction. Anyone who takes your advice with an S7/E is headed for the same trouble as the OP.
After checking out a teardown of an S5, I do see the difference speakerwise - the S5 have a selfcontained speaker, which can handle water - while the S7 doesn't and as you said, relies on surface tension. That's not good..
mstrandbo said:
After checking out a teardown of an S5, I do see the difference speakerwise - the S5 have a selfcontained speaker, which can handle water - while the S7 doesn't and as you said, relies on surface tension. That's not good..
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And the S5 doesn't have internal gaskets on an SIM/SD slot or it's USB port.
wpbogdan said:
It's pretty late here so i'm going to keep this simple.
I preordered a black s7 the day it was announced, got it on March 7. Had an s6 before.
It's amazing and all, but what was not so amazing for me was the water resistance.
It got pretty dirty after 1 day of use
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should have learned at the physics classes in school that water does not conduct electricity, but as soon as you add soap it becomes a conductor. So you have shorted all the exposed connections, like the USB pins, headphone jack pins and what not. The water resistance of the phone is not based on protecting the SIM tray, the seals are between the SIM tray and the rest of the phone, so you also shorted the SIM contacts.
At least now you know
Cst79 said:
You should have learned at the physics classes in school that water does not conduct electricity, but as soon as you add soap it becomes a conductor. So you have shorted all the exposed connections, like the USB pins, headphone jack pins and what not. The water resistance of the phone is not based on protecting the SIM tray, the seals are between the SIM tray and the rest of the phone, so you also shorted the SIM contacts.
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Click to collapse
And that's why all my phone's features still work and nothing is damaged?
Thanks to everyone who replied to my thread, I went today to the carrier I bought the phone from (Orange)'s store and they told me to send it to warranty, and that's what i'm going to do. Hopefully i get my phone replaced, lol
It sucks that if i want it to boot i have to wait a day with my phone in rice, that also means bye bye installing new firmware which is the reason why i'm sending it to warranty since I always loved flashing custom roms, besides that I wouldn't really mind waiting a day for it to boot but I'm afraid that one day it will not boot anymore.
wpbogdan said:
And that's why all my phone's features still work and nothing is damaged?
Thanks to everyone who replied to my thread, I went today to the carrier I bought the phone from (Orange)'s store and they told me to send it to warranty, and that's what i'm going to do. Hopefully i get my phone replaced, lol
It sucks that if i want it to boot i have to wait a day with my phone in rice, that also means bye bye installing new firmware which is the reason why i'm sending it to warranty since I always loved flashing custom roms, besides that I wouldn't really mind waiting a day for it to boot but I'm afraid that one day it will not boot anymore.
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Click to collapse
You don't have "buyer's remorse" where you live? Here in the US, we get 14 days (20 in some cases) to return the phone no questions asked for a full refund.
wpbogdan said:
And that's why all my phone's features still work and nothing is damaged?
Thanks to everyone who replied to my thread, I went today to the carrier I bought the phone from (Orange)'s store and they told me to send it to warranty, and that's what i'm going to do. Hopefully i get my phone replaced, lol
It sucks that if i want it to boot i have to wait a day with my phone in rice, that also means bye bye installing new firmware which is the reason why i'm sending it to warranty since I always loved flashing custom roms, besides that I wouldn't really mind waiting a day for it to boot but I'm afraid that one day it will not boot anymore.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmm, I could swear I saw somewhere that Samsung will look for the white tags that turn pink when wet. If they see that the tag got wet then they won't honor a warranty. Not sure if this is true but somewhere today I read that. I think it was that tear down of the S7 ifixit did. or it was a link from there.
Corwinder said:
Hmmm, I could swear I saw somewhere that Samsung will look for the white tags that turn pink when wet. If they see that the tag got wet then they won't honor a warranty. Not sure if this is true but somewhere today I read that. I think it was that tear down of the S7 ifixit did. or it was a link from there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can see them clearly in this video:
I have an update, and I want to describe here exactly what happens every time I power it on:
Galaxy S7 screen -> boots straight into recovery.
Every time I reboot from recovery it does the following:
Galaxy S7 screen -> completely black screen -> Galaxy S7 screen -> recovery.
Every single time it enters recovery, it displays an android figure with two refresh arrows spinning, then displaying a yellow exclamation mark warning and shows the recovery options. Does it do this only for me or for you guys too?
I have tried to:
reflash the rom both via odin and kies
factory reset a bunch of times
wipe cache a bunch of times
I have done everything possible to get rid of ALL the water, and I'm sure there is no more water in it. I vacuum'ed the motherboard and left it in rice for 3 nights. does the same thing.
Warranty is also gone because the water damage indicator turned red/pink from white.
I think it's either permanent physical damage to the motherboard, or the water damaged the emmc chip and somehow corrupted the memory (???)
I also made a video of me powering it on, then rebooting it, but I'm unable to post it because new members can't post links until they've reached 10 posts.
also sorry for any grammar mistakes it's 6am lol
Corwinder said:
Water Resistant, Not waterproof. Tell Samsung about this and they'll tell you all about it.
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Click to collapse
Actually by stating that it's IP68, it should mean that the device is indeed water PROOF. IDK why would samsung conflict the two things. If it's water resistant only, samsung should've stated that it's only IP67. False advertisement don't you think?
True story:
When he was 8, my little brother snuck our pet snapping turtles out into the woods behind our house and played with them in a muddy puddle. Thinking he would get in trouble for taking them out of their bowl and getting them dirty, he washed them with soap and hot water, which killed them. I was traumatized by their deaths, and have never used soap since.
So at least my S7E is safe.

Water damaged - suggestions?

What are the best options for a water damaged device? It was taken into the pool for ~30-60 seconds.
It currently doesn't turn on, except there's a temporary blinking red LED at the top by the notification LED when plugged in.
Is it worth dismantling and drying it out completely and using alcohol to clean? I know it's got a repairability score of 2, so it's going to be a task.
I'm not trying to fully revive it as I've already bought a new one, but it'd be nice to revive this one to resell or have as backup, or, miraculously return to 100%
Thanks
The device now currently turns on but will randomly reboot.
All of the devices seem to work as well.
It sounds like a battery issue? I think I may just sell it on ebay
incarceration said:
The device now currently turns on but will randomly reboot.
All of the devices seem to work as well.
It sounds like a battery issue? I think I may just sell it on ebay
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You submerged it in water and you think it's a battery issue!?!? Just because it turns on now doesn't mean it was not damaged by the water (including battery). It would be extremely immoral to sell it now IMO without disclosing it has water damage.
Salt water/chlorine are the worst.
They are conductive and lead to a massive short inside the device.
The also speed corrosion.
Phone is dead. You can try to sell it, but it's not just water damaged. It's pool water damaged.
First of all, you need to chill. I'm well aware the condition of the ENTIRE device is unknown, but to not sell because of that is ridiculous. It would be sold in the condition of "for parts or repair" considering the device isn't reliable (otherwise I wouldn't have replaced it)
incarceration said:
First of all, you need to chill. I'm well aware the condition of the ENTIRE device is unknown, but to not sell because of that is ridiculous. It would be sold in the condition of "for parts or repair" considering the device isn't reliable (otherwise I wouldn't have replaced it)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Selling the phone on eBay is probably the easiest route. Disclose what happened and sell for parts or repair still a great parts phone you will probably get decent money for it too. Put it in the right hands and they will be able to fix it up good as new or at least have some good parts! Or open it up and clean her up I tore my phone down(smashed my screen) it's not that bad once you get the glass piece off.
incarceration said:
First of all, you need to chill. I'm well aware the condition of the ENTIRE device is unknown, but to not sell because of that is ridiculous. It would be sold in the condition of "for parts or repair" considering the device isn't reliable (otherwise I wouldn't have replaced it)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have to admit your post is rather vague. One could assume your whole conclusion was just a bad battery and not the fact that you dropped it in water. Thought maybe you were dense [emoji12] lol.
lol yeah i had considered trying to repair it myself, i replaced the battery in my old HTC One M7 which was a PITA to open up, so i didn't think this could be much worse. the problem was when i was looking around online for replacement parts i couldn't find any place that had all of the parts, so in case i got into it, and found i needed to get an additional part, that i could go there; it looked as though it was too new of a device and so i'd have to buy another device as a donor.
I'd put it in a sealed box full of silica gel/rice and leave it for at least a week before trying anything.

Small Plastic Piece Wedged Under Screen

I just received a new Sprint Galaxy S7 Edge in the mail a few days ago. As I was applying a new screen cover, I noticed a very small green piece (what I assumed was plastic) sticking out from the edge of the phone (though not by much, it didn't even make it passed the silver metallic looking frame). It bothered me quite a bit (maybe more than it should), but I was also concerned that maybe this piece went in deeper than I could see, and compromised the water resistance (glue seal). So, I grabbed a small razor blade and, without actually sticking it into the edge of the phone, just tried to move the plastic piece. After a little bit of moving, I got it to actually come out. It was a green triangular plastic piece pictured in the attached image.
So what could this piece be from? Should I be concerned? Should I return the phone and wait however many days for another and be out the $10 spent on a screen protector?
Any input would be appreciated.
Edit:
I've attached an image showing where exactly the piece was lodged.
Was it under the actual screen or the screen protector?
RileyIssKing said:
Was it under the actual screen or the screen protector?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've updated the original post with an image showing where exactly the piece was lodged. It was between the screen itself and the metal/plastic piece outlining the phone.
hotelmariofan said:
I've updated the original post with an image showing where exactly the piece was lodged. It was between the screen itself and the metal/plastic piece outlining the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you have had the phone long Idk if there is much you can do because I don't think it would have come from Samsung like that. It may have been in your pocket and it just ended up happening. Sorry if I was no help.
RileyIssKing said:
If you have had the phone long Idk if there is much you can do because I don't think it would have come from Samsung like that. It may have been in your pocket and it just ended up happening. Sorry if I was no help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've had it for 3 days and only just opened it yesterday, so it has received one day of use, and I noticed this soon after opening the box and applying the screen cover.
hotelmariofan said:
I've had it for 3 days and only just opened it yesterday, so it has received one day of use, and I noticed this soon after opening the box and applying the screen cover.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Take it to a Samsung center (usually inside of a best buy) and talk to them. If it was a Samsung made problem then you should be able to get your phone replaced or repaired under your warranty if your water seal is broken.
Put it in water and see if the seal is broken, do it now before the return period ends. If it takes in water, return it, If not I would not be to concerned.
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk
grneyez said:
Put it in water and see if the seal is broken, do it now before the return period ends. If it takes in water, return it, If not I would not be to concerned.
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
While it has IP68 rating, they don't guarantee that it's waterproof, so IIRC, they don't actually cover the phone for water damage. So if the seal is in fact compromised, I'd be screwed.
Then return the phone and get it exchanged.
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

Popped out my SIM card tray to find it broken

I see this is a very common problem with these phones. Except mine had snapped in half, and I was barely able to get the microSD card out. Now my SIM is stuck inside, along with the lower half of the tray. Issue is it's no longer under warranty. I've tried a few things, like holding it upside down and lightly thumping the top of the back/front with my palm. but that ****er just won't pop out. I'm leery of sticking anything inside there for fear of damaging anything, let alone attempting to pull it out with a cut credit card and a sliver of glue. I'm thinking I'll take it to a repair shop, but I heard that once it's taken apart, it loses its waterproof seal. Can anyone confirm this? Or offer some other advice?
GuyInDogSuit said:
I see this is a very common problem with these phones. Except mine had snapped in half, and I was barely able to get the microSD card out. Now my SIM is stuck inside, along with the lower half of the tray. Issue is it's no longer under warranty. I've tried a few things, like holding it upside down and lightly thumping the top of the back/front with my palm. but that ****er just won't pop out. I'm leery of sticking anything inside there for fear of damaging anything, let alone attempting to pull it out with a cut credit card and a sliver of glue. I'm thinking I'll take it to a repair shop, but I heard that once it's taken apart, it loses its waterproof seal. Can anyone confirm this? Or offer some other advice?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With fricking care I put a drop of super glue on a toothpick and fished mine out is how I did mine 3 times. I've broke 4 trays. I got a feeling it's something to do with sd cards ever since I quit using a SD card I haven't broke not 1. It's a punk ***** and I don't know why Samsung wouldn't use the metal ttys like in the past. I have several posts on this issue myself.
Yes once disassembled you lose the water proofing. I had to send mine in for warranty and needed my sim out of it obviously. And those tards of coarse said of the tray is broke the warranty was voided so I did everything in my power to remove it. But I did 3 times over
TheMadScientist said:
With fricking care I put a drop of super glue on a toothpick and fished mine out is how I did mine 3 times. I've broke 4 trays. I got a feeling it's something to do with sd cards ever since I quit using a SD card I haven't broke not 1. It's a punk ***** and I don't know why Samsung wouldn't use the metal ttys like in the past. I have several posts on this issue myself.
Yes once disassembled you lose the water proofing. I had to send mine in for warranty and needed my sim out of it obviously. And those tards of coarse said of the tray is broke the warranty was voided so I did everything in my power to remove it. But I did 3 times over
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm very leery of using anything to do with glue, to be honest. Though that looks like I will have to do exactly that, unfortunately.
GuyInDogSuit said:
I'm very leery of using anything to do with glue, to be honest. Though that looks like I will have to do exactly that, unfortunately.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I mean I literally used like a quarter drop on the very top tip. The credit card idea seams even better a bit more surface area. The second time my tray got stuck totally and I bit the bullet and forced it out and it split in the middle between the SD and sim. Left the second half in it. The eject button doesn't work any more when I put my tool in now I have to angle it and pull. I haven't broke it now in like 6 months since I put my SD card in my Ps vita
I have never rough housed mine in the end I have probably removed my trays about 15 times since owning this device.
This is one of the biggest flaws with this device imo and I can't find a compatible aluminum tray anywhere
Could try pinching it out with two sewing needles?
Have done this with an iPhone for someone before. :crying:
Just make sure phone's off to avoid shorting anything...
CoreyOS said:
Could try pinching it out with two sewing needles?
Have done this with an iPhone for someone before. :crying:
Just make sure phone's off to avoid shorting anything...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm gonna get a pair of eyebrow pluckers, or whatever you call those really thin tweezers, and try to pluck it out that way. There is a small part of one side that is close to the top of the slot (as it broke off... diagonally, sort of), so hopefully I can grab ahold of that.
GuyInDogSuit said:
I'm gonna get a pair of eyebrow pluckers, or whatever you call those really thin tweezers, and try to pluck it out that way. There is a small part of one side that is close to the top of the slot (as it broke off... diagonally, sort of), so hopefully I can grab ahold of that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fingers crossed!!!
No such luck. It's really hard to see in there and even with a bright light and magnifying glass, I can't seem to find it. Looks like I'll have to take it to a repair shop and lose the waterproof seal, since they'll have to take it apart.
GuyInDogSuit said:
No such luck. It's really hard to see in there and even with a bright light and magnifying glass, I can't seem to find it. Looks like I'll have to take it to a repair shop and lose the waterproof seal, since they'll have to take it apart.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I guess I got lucky. Food for thought after the fact. Get a LifeProof case. Their water proof at least give back some of the resistancy. That's what I got on mine... I swapped frames and screens on Mine
get a new glass back with the ip68 tape. cost around $10 and waterproofing stays intact. pull the old one off and just make sure you clean the bonding area well.
I've done this 2x with mine and have no issues with water intrusion.
triumvirant said:
get a new glass back with the ip68 tape. cost around $10 and waterproofing stays intact. pull the old one off and just make sure you clean the bonding area well.
I've done this 2x with mine and have no issues with water intrusion.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you point me in the direction of a tutorial? For future reference and for anyone else who may have to do this as well? I've already had mine repaired and all's well, but I think this info would come in handy for others (including me if it happens again). The fact that people are having to do stuff like this multiple times with their phones is rather frightening.
GuyInDogSuit said:
Can you point me in the direction of a tutorial? For future reference and for anyone else who may have to do this as well? I've already had mine repaired and all's well, but I think this info would come in handy for others (including me if it happens again). The fact that people are having to do stuff like this multiple times with their phones is rather frightening.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure on the rules for posting links, but if you search youtube for "S8 back glass replacement" you can find plenty of videos. I personally used the ifixit teardown guide just to familiarize myself with any cables or things to watch out for.
For the back glass itself, just make sure you get one with the camera lens pre-installed and with ip68 tape. Price for the one i bought is currently $10.02 on ebay.
TheMadScientist said:
I guess I got lucky. Food for thought after the fact. Get a LifeProof case. Their water proof at least give back some of the resistancy. That's what I got on mine... I swapped frames and screens on Mine
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah. I will second this. I do all my own repairs. But in this case I just don't care. I'm not interested in reselling. Or anything. This will be a backup in a few months. Time to move on. ???
It stays in the lifeproof so it's water resistant and I don't have to see it.
Solved!
1) Heat a needle, or a tiny flathead screwdriver, and stick it in.
2) Wait 1 minute.
3) Pull out needle or screwdriver to find sim attached and out!

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