Going to the Arctic? Take a Samsung Galaxy S II with you

Samsung Electronics UK is proud to announce that its best-selling smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy S II, has prevailed in an independent test to ascertain whether phones can function in severe sub-zero temperatures. The endurance test conducted by Finnish magazine MikroPC, has verified that the Galaxy S II is able to function in temperatures ranging from 38°C to -20°C.

The technical review team at MikroPC tested 15 of the most popular mobile phones available to buy in Finland at the Weather Room, a scientific lab situated in the VTT Technical Research Centre at Espoo, Finland. This specialised research lab enables researchers to control the internal temperature, meaning readings can be altered to a fraction of a degree.

MikroPC discovered that the most weather resilient smartphone was the Samsung Galaxy S II, which functioned until temperatures reached -35°C. It was also the only smartphone to run smoothly when the temperature reached -30°C. While the Samsung Galaxy Xcover was not part of the comparison between the 15 most popular mobile phones, it performed just as well as the Galaxy S II.

The initial temperature in the research lab was set to 0°C, from which it was lowered by increments of five degrees until the smartphones being tested stopped functioning. One by one the popular smartphones gave into the cold; however, all five tested Samsung phones survived beyond -20°C.

A major contributing factor that causes smartphones to fail at sub-zero temperatures is the battery. When the temperature drops low enough, mobile phones register that its battery is empty, even if fully charged, and will not turn on.

For those willing to brave the cold, the Samsung Galaxy S II is the smartphone of choice for the arctic climate.

Posted by: James