Many iPhone owners know the pain of dropping their phone in the bath or spilling a glass of water on it.
Unfortunately, the classic advice of dunking it in a bowl of rice to dry it out is an urban myth, Apple has revealed.
Instead, a feature on your iPhone called ‘Water Eject’ may be the best option, as long as your handset is still responsive.
The little-known trick emits a sound that vibrates the phone’s speakers to eject the potentially harmful droplets – and it even works on AirPods.
Here’s how to set it up for free on your device.
Many iPhone owners know the pain of dropping their device in the bath or spilling a glass of water on it, but the little-known trick can help your device recover
Apple equips its iPhones with IP68 water and dust resistance, meaning it can survive in water up to 1.5 meters for 30 minutes.
This makes it water resistant, but not waterproof.
And even if the iPhone has been submerged for less than this amount of time, water can still remain in the device’s small nooks and crannies.
To clear out any remaining moisture, you can head to the Shortcuts app, which should be pre-installed but can be downloaded from the App Store.
You may need to go to the Gallery of shortcuts and tap ‘Get Shortcut’ to make sure the Water Eject feature is in the app.
Once that’s done, tap the Eject Water shortcut, followed by “Start” or “Begin Water Eject.”
A tone will sound to eject the water and after 15 seconds a message will appear indicating that the process is complete.
Water should be visible from both the speaker at the bottom and the earpiece at the top of the screen.
You can also have Apple’s digital assistant, Siri, do this for you by simply telling your iPhone, “Hey Siri, eject water.”
The little-known iPhone trick emits a sound that vibrates the phone’s speakers to eject the harmful droplets
Water Eject also works on your AirPods, but it is wise to shake out as much water as possible first.
As long as your AirPods are connected to your iPhone, the little headphones should drain moisture with vibrations just like your phone.
However, it is important to note that Water Eject is unlikely to solve your problems if a phone is submerged in water for too long.
If water seeps into an iPhone’s hardware, it can cause corrosion, often making normal operation impossible.
Apple recently revealed that the classic advice on what to do if your iPhone gets wet – submerging it in rice – can actually damage it.
The idea behind this theory is that the dry rice acts as a desiccant, just like those silica gel sachets that draw water out of the phone.
In reality, rice doesn’t work that way, and leaving the phone sitting in rice can restrict airflow.
Instead, gently tap your phone on your hand to shake off the excess liquid, try Water Eject, then leave it in a dry place with good ventilation for up to 24 hours.
You may have heard the myth that a bowl of dry rice can fix a drowned phone. However, Apple says this risks doing more harm than good (file photo)
You might be surprised to learn that crystal litter is the best for repairing a water-damaged phone, according to Gazelle (but keep in mind that this isn’t official Apple-endorsed advice).
Experts at Gazelle say it’s best to shake the water off a handset before placing it in a trash bag for as long as possible.
They said three days is the ideal amount of time to leave it there and while you might miss Instagram, it’s a much cheaper alternative to buying a new phone.
It is also suggested that silica gel packets, which often come with new shoes and handbags, can be used.