...by (accidentally) dropping it into a hot cup of coffee! 
Grabbed it out as quick as I could (after a cartoon-style pause as I realised what I'd done), switched it off straight away, let the coffee drip out, then stuck it in a bowl full of uncooked rice to dry out.
What are the chances it'll still be working when I fish it out of the rice tomorrow?
I dunno.
Was it really a cup of Java though? Once you realised, did you fetch it out in a Flash?
Nah, I know it's not Java compatible.
Just not sure how it will take to Douwe Egberts.
did you fetch it out in a Flash?
I see what you did there.
I'd leave it longer than a day. I'd also disassemble it and dry it with a hair dryer, before putting it (in pieces) in to silica.
Fan assisted oven at 60 degrees for a couple of hours? Worked for a couloir of our phones that took an unscheduled dunk in the river Severn. Good luck, I feel your pain...
Leave it in the rice for a minimum of 72hours and don't be tempted to power it up before then.
I'd not try taking it to pieces. iPhone's aren't the easiest to dissasemble without causing damage.
Rice trick works for 99% of our customers
G
Last time a phone of mine was accidentally summed, I wrapped it in a towel and left it on a radiator overnight. Worked fine (although a couple of buttons were stiff for a week as the sugar in the lager had dried)
Cheers all.
Guess I'll dig out my old Nokia dumbphone, fashion a microSIM to normal SIM adapter, and leave the iPhone in the rice for a few days.
Woopsy.
Can lend you an android one if you like 
currently on my old niche/retro 6230
GrahamS - Membercurrently on my
old niche/retrocrap 6230
On the plus side: it's small, the battery lasts days and it offers no distractions.
On the down side: it offers no distractions.
iPhone is currently sealed in a freezer bag, filled with dry rice and five big silica packets, on top of a warm radiator - I anxiously await the prognosis, but the flash light was still shining away (despite being "off") so I suspect it's not very well. 
This deserves a place in the "why I'm more middle class than you" thread. 
Yeah yeah, I know, http://whitewhine.com/
The really middle-class bit was deciding which rice to use: long grain, medium grain or short grain? Brown or white? Basmati? Arborio? Sushi?
Might the risotto rice be better? Or paella?
The question is whether or not it had long enough to short anything. If it didn't you'll be fine, if it did you won't be fine!
Take it off the radiator and open the box, you're creating a sauna, and that will not work well for it.
Leave it somewhere warm, airing cupboards work well.
Trust me, on this I do know what I'm talking about for a change
G
stuck it in a bowl full of uncooked rice to dry out
won't the rice just absorb moisture from the air, not specifically the phone?
I was advised to put a wet phone in one of those resealable freezer bags, along with a load of rice.
Also, re-emphasise: do not charge or turn on for days or you've a good chance of completely killing it if it's not already dead.
bigG: it had 24 hours in (uncovered) rice, but not on the radiator, to soak up the worst of the water first.
It's on top of the wooden radiator cover, so it only really gets warmish. Don't have an airing cupboard so it was the best I could do. Figured the rice and silica would soak up any moisture. Is that bad?
Is it worth taking the back cover off and the battery out? Looks like a fairly simple job.
If anything the battery will be fried, thats usually what goes. If the contacts arent corroded youre prob ok PCB wise. But it will boot to apple logo then die and reboot. Replacing battery should sort that. Err what else..if its fairly new 4 youll need a special screwdriver to access the battery, if its an older itll be a tiny posi drive.
If it doesnt work after that or you dont want to strip it i can take a look, if its in warranty even better.
I'm hoping the battery will be okay. It went in headfirst - the bottom third of the phone didn't get wet and (looking at that teardown) this seems to be where the battery contacts are.
Don't think it is under warranty (I'll check) but Apple don't do warranty repairs for water/coffee damage do they?
No warranty on liquid damage, tell-tale indicators in the phone prove you dunked it. It's usually a good idea to flush with distilled water before drying out to remove salts and sugars from the electronics.
Do you take sugar in your coffee?
It might be worth chancing your arm with Apple anyway. Their customer service is pretty legendary.
Do you take sugar in your coffee?
Cougar - MemberIt might be worth chancing your arm with Apple anyway. Their customer service is pretty legendary.
+1 on what he said. If it's knackered then apple are worth a go. Be honest about what happened and appeal to their good nature..
Ooohh bugger.. now did I put sugar or sweetener in that coffee?... erm... I dunno
For Apple's website: "..an iPhone that has failed due to contact with liquid may be eligible for out-of-warranty service... £146.44 ( 
).. the final service fee we charge will be determined during testing and may be less than the service fee listed above."
£140 quid to fix a £400 handset that you broke is a good deal, IMHO.
But as I said, talk to Apple, see what they say. You might be surprised.
£140 quid to fix a £400 handset that you broke is a good deal, IMHO.
Yeah it's not bad. Just an expensive cup of coffee! I could probably claim on home insurance I guess, but I suspect that would up my premium by more than £140.
I will speak to Apple if it is still borked. But I think my Apple Goodwill might already have been used up when they replaced my 3GS for free out-of-warranty (after an IOS update bricked it).
Graham - drop me a mail, in profile (honest)
Update: Sent the missus to kneel before one of the High Genii Knights today. In Their wisdom They replaced it with refurbed phone and accepted a monetary tribute of £119.
Most. Expensive. Coffee. Ever!
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