IPHONE owners have been warned not to try cooling “tricks” that could do more harm than good as the hot weather kicks in.
With temperatures topping 30C, may see an alert pop up on your iPhone saying it “needs to cool down before you can use it”.
If your device is laying around in temperatures over 35º C (95º F), you’ll likely be met with the message above.
This is when you will need to make an effort to cool it down to avoid damaging the battery.
But James Brown, director at insurance company Protect Your Bubble, has warned against two quick cooling techniques that could do far worse.
“Our phones are very rarely away from our hands, but during a heatwave, it’s all too easy for these devices to get dangerously hot, which affects battery life and may cause the device to temporarily shut down,” he explained.
“Even if your phone comes with the highest rating of water resistance, it’s a bad idea to submerge your phone in cold water to forcibly cool down.”
Storing your device where the temperature gets below freezing is also not good for your iPhone, so the same applies to leaving your phone inside a fridge, freezer or water cooler.
“Doing so will cause condensation to form inside your phone, which will damage the device in the long run,” Brown explained.
Too hot to handle
Extreme high temperature conditions can permanently shorten battery life, according to Apple.
iOS and iPadOS devices perform best between 0º and 35º C (32º to 95º F).
“Low- or high-temperature conditions might cause your device to change its behaviour to regulate its temperature,” the company says in a help page on its website.
“If your device doesn’t display a temperature warning, you can keep using your device.”
The temperature warning is how the iPhone attempts to regulate its temperature, which will protect its internal components.
KEEP COOL & CARRY ON
Time is your friend when it comes to cooling.
So, it is smarter and easier to keep your phone in the shade and try to reduce the amount of time spent on it.
“Avoid excessive use of your phone when outside in direct sunlight or operating at maximum screen brightness,” Brown added.
“Playing high-performance video games or streaming videos for a long time can make even the latest smartphones heat up.”
The brighter the screen is, the more power your phone battery is using, and the hotter your phone can become.
“If you’re outside and you need to check your phone, seek shade nearby and lower the brightness of your screen,” he continued.
“If, even after turning off power-hungry apps, you find your phone is still heating up, turn on your phone’s built-in power-saving mode.
“This mode will close background apps, reduce brightness and enable faster screen locking.”
iPhone owners should also consider removing chunky cases that may restrict airflow around the device – so long as you’re not overly clumsy or travelling over hard floors any time soon.
Finally, don’t leave your device in your car, because temperatures in parked cars can exceed the 35C limit.
