Post by thread:[EE]:Flash drives processed in laundry

{Quote hidden}> > > With flash drives being so cheap and available, unless you need to > transfer > very large amounts of data there is little reason for external USB > hard > drives. I carry my little 8Gb flash drive in my pocket everywhere > I go. > It's my backup and I also use it to keep the three machines I'm > routinely on > in sync, which then become further backups. > > Flash drives are slow and small in comparison to hard drives, but are > certainly small and low power. > > By the way, I found out the hard way they don't go thru the laundry > well. > At least that gave me a excuse to upgrade from 4Gb to 8Gb. > > > ******************************************************************** > Embed Inc, Littleton Massachusetts, http://www.embedinc.com/products > (978) 742-9014. Gold level PIC consultants since 2000. > -- I ran my cell phone through the laundry** and immediately pulled the battery and sloshed the phone around in distilled water. I am still using the cell phone months later albeit with a different battery. The first battery was DUI. ( Dead Upon Immersion ) cc ** not on purpose

On Fri, Jul 4, 2008 at 8:57 PM, Cedric Chang <spam_OUTccTakeThisOuTnope9.com> wrote: > I ran my cell phone through the laundry** and immediately pulled the > battery and sloshed the phone around in distilled water. I am still > using the cell phone months later albeit with a different battery. > The first battery was DUI. ( Dead Upon Immersion ) > cc > ** not on purpose Last time my younger brother has a Samsung cell phone going through a Samsung washing machine. Just like your experience, the first battery was dead. The phone could not be used either but I helped him to keep the phone for 6 months along with the spare battery. His new phone (another Samsung) was grabbed by my youngest brother 6 month later. So he was thinking of buying a new phone. Then I took out the old phone and it actually worked fine after 6 months of nature drying process. So he saved the money and continued to use the phone for quite some years. Xiaofan

Many years ago I dropped a Nokia 2010 into the River Danube. Well, the phone was clipped into my belt and I was trying to put my son into a boat, so as I leaned over the clip just released the mobile. When I saw the phone falling I was thinking that I cannot catch the it without dropping my son to the river, so I just witnessed as the phone bounced like tree times on the edge of the boat which finally ended up in the water instead of the boat. Anyway, the water is shallow there, so jumped into to find the phone, but only after half an hour intensive search could get it out. Well, I took the battery off immediately, and at home I disassembled it to see any damages. Most of the fine wires on the foldable pcb just disappeared, so it was impossible to save it. Phone is like a cat: does not like water... Tamas On Mon, Jul 7, 2008 at 9:42 AM, Xiaofan Chen <.....xiaofancKILLspam@spam@gmail.com> wrote: {Quote hidden}> On Fri, Jul 4, 2008 at 8:57 PM, Cedric Chang <ccKILLspamnope9.com> wrote: > > I ran my cell phone through the laundry** and immediately pulled the > > battery and sloshed the phone around in distilled water. I am still > > using the cell phone months later albeit with a different battery. > > The first battery was DUI. ( Dead Upon Immersion ) > > cc > > ** not on purpose > > Last time my younger brother has a Samsung cell phone going > through a Samsung washing machine. Just like your experience, > the first battery was dead. The phone could not be used either but > I helped him to keep the phone for 6 months along with the spare > battery. His new phone (another Samsung) was grabbed by my > youngest brother 6 month later. So he was thinking of buying a > new phone. Then I took out the old phone and it actually worked > fine after 6 months of nature drying process. So he saved the > money and continued to use the phone for quite some years. > > Xiaofan > -

Xiaofan Chen wrote: {Quote hidden}> On Fri, Jul 4, 2008 at 8:57 PM, Cedric Chang <.....ccKILLspam.....nope9.com> wrote: > >> I ran my cell phone through the laundry** and immediately pulled the >> battery and sloshed the phone around in distilled water. I am still >> using the cell phone months later albeit with a different battery. >> The first battery was DUI. ( Dead Upon Immersion ) >> cc >> ** not on purpose >> > > Last time my younger brother has a Samsung cell phone going > through a Samsung washing machine. Just like your experience, > the first battery was dead. The phone could not be used either but > I helped him to keep the phone for 6 months along with the spare > battery. His new phone (another Samsung) was grabbed by my > youngest brother 6 month later. So he was thinking of buying a > new phone. Then I took out the old phone and it actually worked > fine after 6 months of nature drying process. So he saved the > money and continued to use the phone for quite some years. > > Xiaofan > More than once I have "repaired" somebody's MP3 player by pulling it apart, cutting the battery wire and leaving it in the sun for the morning. Solder the battery wire back on and all is well again.

My SanDisk flash drive has survived three washing/drying cycles in the pocket of my shirt. I am amazed every time. --Bob A On Mon, Jul 7, 2008 at 2:37 AM, Jake Anderson <EraseMEjakespam_OUTTakeThisOuTvapourforge.com> wrote: {Quote hidden}> Xiaofan Chen wrote: > > On Fri, Jul 4, 2008 at 8:57 PM, Cedric Chang <ccspam_OUTnope9.com> wrote: > > > >> I ran my cell phone through the laundry** and immediately pulled the > >> battery and sloshed the phone around in distilled water. I am still > >> using the cell phone months later albeit with a different battery. > >> The first battery was DUI. ( Dead Upon Immersion ) > >> cc > >> ** not on purpose > >> > > > > Last time my younger brother has a Samsung cell phone going > > through a Samsung washing machine. Just like your experience, > > the first battery was dead. The phone could not be used either but > > I helped him to keep the phone for 6 months along with the spare > > battery. His new phone (another Samsung) was grabbed by my > > youngest brother 6 month later. So he was thinking of buying a > > new phone. Then I took out the old phone and it actually worked > > fine after 6 months of nature drying process. So he saved the > > money and continued to use the phone for quite some years. > > > > Xiaofan > > > More than once I have "repaired" somebody's MP3 player by pulling it > apart, cutting the battery wire and leaving it in the sun for the morning. > Solder the battery wire back on and all is well again. > -

... and will continue to be amazed until you finally o it once too often and trash it! [grin] Several years ago Maximum PC magazine did a series of test on ten different brands of flashkeys. The ten tests involved, washing machines, steaming mugs of coffee, being dropped from the third floor in open atrium, driven over by a Toyota Landcruiser, etc. The tests were all reasonable daily hazards for an on the go propeller head. The most interesting (to me, anyway) aspect of the tests was the 'winner,' if you will of each test was a different brand/model. No one flashkey survived every test. Each seemed to have its own achilles heel. there was no clear cut winner. I seem to remember that one of them 'won' three tests. I am sorry but don't remember which brand. cheers ... BBR On Jul 7, 2008, at 10:48 AM, Bob Axtell wrote: {Quote hidden}> My SanDisk flash drive has survived three washing/drying cycles in the > pocket of my shirt. > I am amazed every time. > > --Bob A > > On Mon, Jul 7, 2008 at 2:37 AM, Jake Anderson <@spam@jakeKILLspamvapourforge.com> > wrote: > >> Xiaofan Chen wrote: >>> On Fri, Jul 4, 2008 at 8:57 PM, Cedric Chang <KILLspamccKILLspamnope9.com> wrote: >>> >>>> I ran my cell phone through the laundry** and immediately pulled >>>> the >>>> battery and sloshed the phone around in distilled water. I am >>>> still >>>> using the cell phone months later albeit with a different battery. >>>> The first battery was DUI. ( Dead Upon Immersion ) >>>> cc >>>> ** not on purpose >>>> >>> >>> Last time my younger brother has a Samsung cell phone going >>> through a Samsung washing machine. Just like your experience, >>> the first battery was dead. The phone could not be used either but >>> I helped him to keep the phone for 6 months along with the spare >>> battery. His new phone (another Samsung) was grabbed by my >>> youngest brother 6 month later. So he was thinking of buying a >>> new phone. Then I took out the old phone and it actually worked >>> fine after 6 months of nature drying process. So he saved the >>> money and continued to use the phone for quite some years. >>> >>> Xiaofan >>> >> More than once I have "repaired" somebody's MP3 player by pulling it >> apart, cutting the battery wire and leaving it in the sun for the >> morning. >> Solder the battery wire back on and all is well again. >> --

On Mon, 7 Jul 2008, Bob Axtell wrote: > My SanDisk flash drive has survived three washing/drying cycles in the > pocket of my shirt. > I am amazed every time. I am not terribly suprised based on my experiences with water and electronics, which is substantial due to my being clumsy. :-) Water kills powered electronics dead by forming shorts and burning out bits of the hardware. With an unpowered flash drive, you are down to damage due to corrosion and damage with water mixing into components, like those axial tin can caps. Most flash drives are a small board with some SMD components, and most of those are build in tiny plastic shells where water can't get in. If the device was rinsed and dried, it should still work. Hmm.. I wonder if the tempature of the water or dryer is hot enough to cause reflow problems with the solder? -- Ian Smith http://www.ian.org

If you call in for warranty repair on your cell phone, they'll ask you to open the battery compartment and tell them if you see a red dot. If you tell them yes - too bad, warranty is off. The red dot is normally a white dot... until it gets wet. They won't ask if the phone has gotten wet, too many people would lie about that. They don't tell you what the dot is for - they just ask the color. I just looked at my new(er) Samsung phone and the 'dot' is a small square, but its there. I think I've found it in all but one of the phones I've owned (~6). The dots are a 3M product. GC

In message <RemoveME755cfb060807041009v1242e047tad93852e4e101336TakeThisOuTmail.gmail.com>, andrew kelley <spamBeGoneleetslackerspamBeGonegmail.com> writes >Funny, must have been that particular manufacturer. Sandisk's USB >survives the washer and the dryer. (verified at least twice) > >--andrew My Sandisk Cruzer has survived once but I did disassemble it and wash it off with Isopropyl alcohol while it was still wet. Oh, my Motorola Bluetooth headset was resurrected after a wash cycle by the same procedure. -- Clint Sharp