Ahead of the iPhone XS unveiling I compiled a wishlist of what the iPhone needed to stay ahead of the flagship Android smartphones. Let's take a look at what we got, and what we didn't.
What we wanted
The iPhone 8 and iPhone X are rated as splash, water, and dust resistant to IP67 standards while Samsung's Galaxy Note 9 and S9 -- like the S8 that came before it -- are IP68 certified. That might seem like a small difference, but it's actually quite big.
It's time Apple upgraded the iPhone's "water resistance" to proper waterproof status.
IP stands for Ingress Protection, a standard drawn up by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), and the first digit following the IP relates to how resistant the device is to particles -- such as dirt and dust -- the device is. The "6" is the highest rating, indicating that the device passed the following test:
"No ingress of dust; complete protection against contact (dust tight). A vacuum must be applied. Test duration of up to 8 hours based on air flow."
But it's that second number that's the important one. The difference between scoring a 7, which is what the iPhone is certified for, and an 8 is huge:
Scoring a seven means:
"Ingress of water in harmful quantity shall not be possible when the enclosure is immersed in water under defined conditions of pressure and time (up to 1 meters of submersion)."
While scoring an eight means:
"The equipment is suitable for continuous immersion in water under conditions which shall be specified by the manufacturer. However, with certain types of equipment, it can mean that water can enter but only in such a manner that it produces no harmful effects. The test depth and duration is expected to be greater than the requirements for IPx7, and other environmental effects may be added, such as temperature cycling before immersion."
Did we get this?
Yes and no. The iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max are rated to IP68. The iPhone XR continues to be rated to IP67.
Caption by: Adrian Kingsley-Hughes
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