Wet And Wild

Are Waterproof Gadgets Really Waterproof? T3 Heads for the Coast With the Latest Tech to Find Out…

- Chris Barnes

From Dunkable Smartphones to Beach-ready Speakers, Loads of Tech Companies Are Shouting About the Waterproof Capabilities of Their Latest Gadgets – Welcome News for Victims of the Smartphone Toilet Drop or Swimmers Who’ve Discovered Their Smartwatch Isn’t Waterproof After All. To Test the Validity of These Claims, T3’s Putting a Selection of H2o-proof Gadgets Through Their Paces in Extreme Situations.

Suited and booted

I knew this mission would involve me getting as wet as the gadgets I’m testing, so I thought why not combine it with some high-tech water sports? A quick web search throws up Aquatic Jetpacks, a Dorset company specialising in extreme water sports. They’re offering everything from Fly boarding – effectively strapping jetski-powered boots to your feet and hovering up to 30 feet above the water – to jetski safaris and powerboat trips. Perfect. With a Flyboard and jetski session booked, I now need some top waterproof gadgets to test – after some collaboration with the T3 team, LG, GoPro, Garmin and Ultimate Ears will be my guinea pigs.

My journey to Poole is lashed with strong wind and rain – there’ll be no issues getting my test kit wet today, then – and on arrival the Aquatic Jetpacks crew tell me this weather would usually mean cancellation, but they’re bending the rules for T3. No turning back now.

One safety briefing later, I jump into a Ribeye 650 sports boat, powered by a meaty Yamaha 150HP engine. Skipper John Vinson guides us through the relative shelter of Poole Harbour and out towards the churning waves of the English Channel. I’m too focused on keeping my lunch down to protest. Mercifully, as we approach the shelter of Studland Bay, the scene of my Flyboarding mission, the wind settles and we anchor up.