5 Best Waterproof Phone in 2024

A single drop of water can destroy most modern electronic devices. Customers hate this and manufactures to their best to keep moisture away by making their gadgets waterproof. With the arrival of the USB Type-C connector, which is inherently designed with waterproofing in mind, more smartphones than ever come with the IP67 or IP68 waterproof rating. But what do these rating really mean, and what are some of the best waterproof smartphones that you can purchase in 2024? Continue reading to find the answers to these questions.

---

At A Glance: 5 Best Waterproof Phone in 2022

• Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge G935F Factory Unlocked Phone 32 GB
  Our Top Pick
• CAT PHONES S60 Rugged Waterproof Smartphone with integrated FLIR camera
• Sony Xperia XZ - Unlocked Smartphone - 32GB - Forest Blue

---

IP67 vs IP68: What’s the Difference?

The initialisms IP stands for Ingress Protection. This industry standard is used to specify the protection against solid objects and the second against liquids of enclosures around electronic equipment.

The first number after IP specifies protection against solid objects and dust. The lowest number a device can get is 0, which means no protection at all. The highest number is 6, and it guarantees complete protection against dust.

The second number specifies the level of protection against moisture and water. 1 is the lowest level of protection, sufficient only to keep vertically falling drops of water away from the sensitive electronic components inside the enclosure. At the opposite end of the spectrum is the number 8, which makes the device suitable for continuous immersion in water under conditions which shall be specified by the manufacturer, usually up to 3 meters. One step below is the 7^th level of liquid ingress protection, which makes it possible for the device to be immersed up to 1 meter under water for around 30 minutes.

Manufacturers often rate their devices as IPX7 or IPX8. Customers often wrongly misrepresent this as no protection at all, whereas in really it only means that devices with these ratings haven’t been formally rated when it comes to ingress of solids. Most smartphones with IPX7 or IPX8 ratings would easily earn the highest solid particle protection rating of 6, making them completely dust tight.

Best Waterproof Phone

1. Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge – IP68 Waterproof

All devoted readers of our website will surely know that we love the Galaxy S7 Edge. With this gorgeous smartphone, Samsung has pushed the envelope of Android smartphone design and functionality.

Under the hood, the Galaxy S7 Edge is a flagship smartphone through and through. It features Samsung’s own Exynos 8890 Octa chipset and 4 GB of memory, 5.5” Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen with the resolution of 1440 x 2560 pixels, 12 MP rear-camera sensor with optical image stabilization and 4K video, as well as 3600mAh battery.

But force yourself to take your eyes of the specifications, and you’ll discover another side of the S7 Edge, one that loves adventure and excitement. The smartphone is IP68 waterproof, and it can even be used as underwater selfie camera (see this example footage). The included Micro SD card slot allows you to expand the storage space, so you can save more high-definition recordings and high-resolution pictures.

Buy on Amazon

2. Cat Phones S60 – IP68 Waterproof

We’ve already mentioned the Cat S60 as the best rugged Android smartphone in one of our previous articles, and it deserves to be mentioned again in here for its excellent dust and water protection. Admittedly, this isn’t one of the prettiest smartphones on the market, but if you’re in the market for a durable smartphone with an infrared camera, looks probably don’t concern you too much.

The S60 utilizes the MSX Technology exclusive to FLIR, the world’s largest commercial company specializing in the design and production of thermal imaging cameras, allowing you to captures shareable clear thermal imagery, video, and even time-lapse footage.

The smartphone has been rigorously tested to survive depths of up to 5 meters for 60 minutes using Cat’s unique Lockdown Switch. The rugged case is drop-proof to 1.8m, and the Gorilla Glass 4-protected display certainly can survive even without one of those ugly plastic protective covers that so many concerned owners of luxury smartphones end up buying.

Buy on Amazon

3. Sony Xperia XZ – IP68 Waterproof

The Xperia XZ could easily have the best camera of any IP68-certified smartphones. Sony devices have always been known for their excellent video-recoding and picture-taking capabilities, but the XZ takes them to a whole another level. Featuring a brand-new RGBC infrared sensor that separates natural and fluorescent/LED light to ensure the most accurate color reproduction together with laser autofocus sensor that calculates the distance to the subject and focuses on it with lightning-fast speed for blur-less shots, the Sony Xperia XZ is a dream-come-true of all fans of mobile photography.

Beyond the amazing camera, the Xperia XZ features a smooth 5.2” Full HD 2.5D Corning G Glass display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chipset, 3 GB of memory, and 32 GB of internal storage space. You can expand the storage space using up to 256 GB micro SD card, and the smartphone comfortably lasts a whole day thanks to the 2900mAh battery and the presence of USB Type-C quick charging technology.

 

Buy on Amazon

4. LG G6 – IP68 Waterproof

So far, the LG G6 is by far the hottest smartphone of 2017. The G6 features sexy curved screen corners which not only look gorgeous, but they also make the display more resistant to damage from corner drops. Instead of trying to come up with seemingly revolutionary features that usually don’t go anywhere, LG focused on the basics, and we’re glad they did. The design is understated but very appealing.
The smartphone features a 5.7” 4K display with an unusual aspect of 18:9, which will please or fans of heavy multitasking as it allows you to place two apps on top of each other. The screen-to-body ratio is at 80%, and the hardware specs are similarly impressive. There’s the Snapdragon 821 processor and 4GB of RAM, 32GB of storage, a 5 MP selfie camera with 100-degree field of view, and two 13 MP cameras on the back. The G6 is IP68 waterproof, so you’ll be able to enjoy its lovely curves even under water or in the shower.

Buy on Amazon

5. Use a Universal Waterproof Case

Last but not least, instead of paying bunch of money for a new, waterproof smartphone, you could just spend a few dollars on a universal waterproof smartphone case. This one from JOTO is compatible with all smartphones up to 6”, and it will keep you device protected against water, dust, snow, and even deep submersion.

Buy on Amazon