David Pass believes it’s better to be safe than sorry.
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Should you be afraid that the radiation in your phone is harming you? I feel like you should have some real concerns about this. My mother made me wear fireproof pajamas thinking they were going to save my life one day, but they turned out to be made with asbestos which was later discovered not to be so good for you.
Time and again “safe products” under more scrutiny have turned out to be unsafe. Mobile phones use electromagnetic radiation in the microwave range. It’s similar to holding a very tiny microwave oven up to your head and it does heat up your brain. I couldn’t find any hard evidence that this is actually damaging however. There have been studies that showed no damage, but still a lot of large organizations have recommended caution. For example the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a “precautionary principle” where you try to minimize risk where there is a high degree of scientific uncertainty. I am 100% onboard with this policy. Better safe than sorry.
Because I’ve always tried to be cautious, I used to buy phones that gave out the lowest levels of radiation. Then I got hooked on the iPhone and unfortunately iPhones give out some of the highest radiation levels of all cellular phones. Cellphones are rated with a SAR level – which is the specific absorption rate of radiation energy during cell phone use. The popular Samsung Galaxy phones for example have some of the lowest rates in the .19 to .43 depending on the model and carrier. In comparison my iPhone 6Plus has a SAR level of 1.16. The FCC limit is 1.6. The FCC is worried about cell phone radiation levels as they created the SAR rating system and set a legal limit. I do some common sense things that are easy to do to reduce exposure. I try to talk hands free as much as possible as radiation levels quickly drop off when the phone is farther from your body. I put my phone on airplane mode when letting kids play with it. Levels also go up when your phone is struggling to find a signal so I’m cognizant of that.
In recent years some companies have come out with cell phone cases that also reduce radiation. When I moved to the iPhone 6 Plus I also switched to using the case made by SafeSleeve. The SafeSleeve cases are tested in FCC Certified Labs and proven to block 92 to 99% of all radiation. These numbers are impressive, but besides blocking radiation I find the case to be one of the better cases I’ve come across. I’m a minimalist in general and I don’t like to carry too much stuff with me. I’ve always been in search of the smallest wallet. With the SafeSleeve case I’ve been able to ditch my wallet entirely. I keep a couple of credit cards and wallet in the case now. The case has three card slots. They recommend not overfilling them as the pockets can wear out over time. I made this mistake and after about a year of use my cards started to slip out. The newer model of case has improved pockets. I used ApplePay wherever I can and I keep cash with a money clip on me. So although my phone is larger I’ve eliminated having to carry a wallet. The same technology that blocks radiation also protects my credit cards from RFID theft – where a person could swipe your card remotely. I don’t hear much about this kind of credit card theft, but I’m happy I’m protected.
The case has a nice feel to it. The outside cover has a matte vinyl feel with a leather look and resists water, the inside feels like a soft felt. The back of the case folds into a handy stand. The flap that closes up the case occasionally gets in my way, but this is the only small complaint I have with the case. I’ve recommended the case to many friends and they always seem to think that you have to have the case open to talk on the phone. This isn’t the case with this case at all. It has a small cutout where your ear is and the speaker at the bottom is exposed. There is also a cutout for the camera lens. SafeSleeve doesn’t offer phone cases for too many models of phone, but they do have all the iPhones covered going back to the 5. They also make cases for laptops.
All opinions in this article are mine. The phone case was provided by SafeSleeve.