ACCC Questions ‘Water-Resistance’ of Samsung Galaxy Phones

The company is in hot water for their water-resistance ads.

Samsung is being taken to court by an Australian agency, over the company’s apparently misleading claims that the Samsung Galaxy phones are water-resistant.

The Samsung Galaxy S7 was the first IP68 water-resistant phone released by the company. Since then, the company claims that all of its flagship phones are IP68 water-resistant. Hence, the phones have been marketed as water-friendly. According to the ACCC (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, however, these are false claims.

 

Currently, there is quite a lot of hype surrounding the release of Galaxy Fold, which will release this year. However, we are not sure whether the on-going debate about the company’s water-resistance claims will affect its sales in Australia.

ACCC seems to have two major issues. First of all, according to the advertisements, the Samsung Galaxy flagship phones can be submerged 5 feet underwater for a maximum of 30 minutes. This will not have any bad impact on the device. However, tests often say otherwise. Secondly, Samsung claims in advertisements that the phones can be used in pools and beaches. However, IP68 certification is only applicable to freshwater. In this regard, ACCC accuses Samsung to mislead its customers. Let’s just hope that Samsung would do something about it in the upcoming phones including Galaxy Note 10.

 

It is important to note that IP68 certification applies to water-resistance. This does not mean that the phone is water-proof especially below 5 feet underwater for 30+ minutes. According to ACCC, many customers had filed warranty claims for their Samsung Galaxy phones due to damage by water exposure. However, these claims were rejected by Samsung. The watchdog agency also noted that Samsung’s website also says that S10 is not recommended for use in the pool or beach.

In this regard, the upcoming Oppo mobile phone may enjoy a natural advantage over its competitor company. After all, Oppo has been making some solid phones lately.

 

Rod Sims, the ACCC chair said, “The ACCC alleges Samsung Galaxy advertisements to be false and misleading as they represent that Galaxy phones would be suitable for use in, or for exposure to, all types of water, including in ocean water and swimming pools, and would not be affected by such exposure to water for the life of the phone, when this was not the case.”