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Samsung's smartphone UV Sterilizer goes global. No, it doesn't kill coronavirus.
- Samsung has launched its UV smartphone sterilizer globally.
- The device doubles up as a wireless charger.
- It promises to kill 99% of bacteria and infections from your devices.
Samsung launched a new UV Sterilizer for smartphones in Thailand last week and it’s now making it available in other parts of the world.
What does it do? Well as you probably know, it’s pretty important to keep smartphones clean. Our phones travel with us all day and are kept on unsanitized surfaces where they could pick up infectious germs. Devices like the Samsung UV Sterilizer help keep those bacteria and germs away from handsets so that your devices remain hygienic.
Samsung says that its device can disinfect your smartphones in just 10 minutes. The company also claims that it removes 99% of bacteria and germs, including E. Coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Candida albicans.
Can it kill the coronavirus? Likely not. Studies have proven that the coronavirus can live on phone screens for up to 96 hours. The Samsung UV Sterilizer uses UVC light which has strong germicidal properties but hasn’t been established as a successful deterrent against the coronavirus. Experts believe that an object would need a high amount of exposure to UVC light to kill the virus and that’s likely not the case with Samsung’s UV Sterilizer. That’s also probably why the company doesn’t claim that benefit.
How does it work?
Samsung’s UV Sanitizer box measures 196 x 96 x 33 mm so it can easily fit even large phablets like the Galaxy S20 Ultra. Smaller earbuds and earphones can get in there too. You can even disinfect your sunglasses using the box.
There’s a single button that turns on/off the UV function. The box will automatically turn off in 10 minutes in case you accidentally left it on. There’s no separate button to turn on wireless charging and it will happen simultaneously while your device is being cleaned. Charging isn’t affected by the automatic shutdown feature either, so your phone should keep getting juice.
Where can you buy the new Samsung UV Sterilizer?
Samsung hasn’t officially revealed a list of countries of regions where it will sell its new UV Sanitizer box but folks over at The Verge were able to find it on Samsung’s website in Germany, Romania, Singapore, and Hong Kong.
The box costs €58.38 (~$65.84) and could also come to the US since Samsung has said that it’s going global, but there’s no confirmation on that so far.