My Phone Survived a Trip Through a Washing Machine

In July 2020, I purchased a Unihertz Atom L Rugged Smartphone

Unihretz Atom L Smartphone
case worn by washing machine

. I did not realise how rugged it was until today. My washing machine was making some banging sounds, but I did not think much of it. When I opened the door after 45 minutes, one wash cycle, two rinses and a spin dry, I found my phone in among the clothes. The phone was covered with a black grease and there was a spot warn shiny on the brushed aluminum case. But it was still turned on and working. 

The sound was a bit muffled due to water in the speaker vent, but with that out it worked fine. The grease appears to be part of the rubber coating, which was worn off when the phone became wedged between the rotating drum of the machine and a rubber seal.

Phone in a plastic box, with a fan
and water absorbing sachets to dry out

I rinsed the phone in clean water and have left it in a plastic box with a low voltage fan and water absorbing sachets to dry out. I did not want to risk taking the phone apart, as being a rugged model has a lot of screws and gaskets.