Samsung Australia owes $9.7 million for deceptive waterproof claims

Samsung Australia has been ordered by the Federal Court to pay a $14 million (about $9.7 million USD) tremendous for a deceptive advertising and marketing marketing campaign, as spotted by PhoneArena. The advertisements in query advised that a few of its waterproof telephones may very well be utilized in swimming pools and at seashores, which Samsung’s personal web site advises towards.

The advertisements ran between March 2016 and October 2018, depicting Galaxy A-series, S7-series, and S8-series telephones. They’re all rated IP68, which implies you may totally submerge them in water for an prolonged period of time — on this case, as much as half-hour to a depth of 1.5 meters (about 5 toes). But that safety solely extends to freshwater — saltwater and chlorinated pool water are a unique matter.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (or ACCC) took Samsung Australia to process on these claims in 2019, and the Federal Court is ordering Samsung to pay up. The ACCC’s chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb says that the group reviewed tons of of complaints from Galaxy homeowners who say their telephones malfunctioned or stopped working altogether after being uncovered to water. The weak hyperlink appears to be the charging port: if the telephone is utilized in saltwater or chlorinated water after which charged earlier than the port is completely dry, corrosion can happen.

It’s all reminder that even a robust waterproof score like IP68 comes with sure limitations. Best to err on the aspect of warning earlier than you consider one thing you see on TV and take a swim along with your smartphone.