In recent years, surveys have shown that the average American drops their smartphone about four times each week. They've also suggested that people have about six "heart attack" moments every week where they almost drop their phones before catching them at the last second.
Can you relate to either of these statistics? If so, you should start to take phone protection a little more seriously. Otherwise, you're going to continue to drop your phone all the time and put it in a position where it could break on you.
We've created a list of common phone protection mistakes people make regularly that put their phones at risk. You should avoid these mistakes at all costs to keep your phone safe.
Take a look at the phone protection mistakes that people make the most often below.
Failing to Invest in a Phone Case
The average smartphone costs at least a few hundred dollars these days. It's also not that uncommon for some people to spend close to $1,000, if not even more than that, on new smartphones.
With this in mind, it doesn't seem like anyone would be crazy enough to walk around with a smartphone without a phone case. But guess what? Millions of people still do it!
If you're one of them, you're making one of the biggest phone protection mistakes out there. Your phone is inevitably going to break if you don't stick it into a phone case ASAP.
There are so many phone cases that you can choose from today. You should shop around for a stylish phone case that will provide your phone with protection while also helping to turn it into a fashion accessory.
Buying the Cheapest Phone Case Possible
As we just alluded to, buying a phone case for your smartphone is one of the best things you can do for it. It'll pay for itself over time by protecting your phone and helping you avoid having to repair and/or replace it all the time.
But you shouldn't just buy the cheapest phone case you can find and rely on it for phone protection. Instead, you should look high and low for something like a leather iPhone case or leather Samsung case that you love for your phone.
The best leather iPhone case or Samsung case is going to set your smartphone up with all the protection it'll need. It's also going to make it more comfortable to use your phone and make it look fantastic in the process.
Forgetting to Put a Screen Protector on Your Phone
A recent study found that two smartphone screens crack every second in this country. In the time it just took you to read that sentence, about ten smartphone screens cracked.
If the screen on your smartphone isn't cracked yet, there's a pretty good chance that it will be cracked soon if you aren't doing enough to protect it. All it'll take is you dropping your phone one time for your screen to get a big crack in it.
For this reason, you should do more than just stick your phone into a phone case you protect it. You should also outfit it with a screen protector that will help to keep your smartphone's screen intact for the foreseeable future.
You might even want to spring for a screen protector that will also help you maintain your privacy while you're using your phone. It'll pull double duty and will prove to be well worth the investment you made in it.
Carrying Your Phone Around All the Time
Researchers recently discovered that the average person touches their phone about 2,500 times per day. This might sound like it would be impossible at first. But if you have your phone in your hand almost all day long, it wouldn't be difficult at all to touch it that often.
The more often you have your phone in your hands, the greater the chances of you dropping it at some point. You might have a tight grip on it the first 2,499 times you touch your phone today. But eventually, your phone will slip through your fingers and fall to the ground.
So, how can you get around this? Easy. Put your phone down every now and then! You aren't going to have to worry about dropping your phone when you're not holding it.
You should also try to limit yourself to only using your phone when you're sitting down in a place where it won't fall too far if you do drop it. You won't have to be too concerned about dropping your phone and damaging it if you're using it on, say, your couch.
Putting Your Phone Loosely in Your Pocket
Because so many people check their smartphones on a regular basis throughout the day, they won't usually tuck it away in a backpack, a purse, or somewhere else that it'll be safe. They'll shove it into their front pocket or, worse, put it into something like the pocket on their hoody so that they can access it easily.
This will make it easier for you to get to your phone. But it's also going to increase the chances of your phone flying out of your pocket and landing on the ground. It's why you should avoid putting your phone loosely into your pocket where it could fall out.
You might want to get a clip for your belt that you can use to keep your phone by your side when you aren't using it. You might also want to commit to sticking it in your bag when you don't need it.
Leaving Your Phone in the Sun
Generally speaking, you shouldn't ever leave any electronics sitting in the sun for an extended period of time. But it can be easy to do this when you're using your phone on the beach, by the pool, etc.
The good news is that most modern-day iPhones and Samsung phones will tell you when they're starting to overheat so that you can get them into the shade. But even still, you might find that your phone will stop working altogether if it's ever left in the sun for too long.
Both the glass and the metal that are used to make most smartphones nowadays can absorb a lot of heat from the sun in a short period of time. This can lead to phones overheating and even shutting down completely if you aren't careful.
You should make sure your phone isn't ever left out in the sun, even if it's sitting inside your house where you might think it's safe. The sun and its harmful UV rays might still do damage to your phone if they're able to get access to it.
Charging Your Phone Under Your Pillow
About two-thirds of Americans admit to sleeping with their smartphones. This makes total sense when you consider that many people will check their phones right before they go to sleep at night as well as right after they wake up in the morning.
Some people will even go as far as to sleep with their smartphones charging underneath their pillows. This is another thing that could potentially lead to your phone overheating if you get into the habit of doing it all the time.
As you might imagine, it can get to be pretty warm underneath your pillow at night while you're sleeping on it. When you combine this heat with the heat that some phones will generate while charging, it could be too much for your phone and the battery inside of it to take.
Rather than sleeping with your phone under your pillow, you should stick it on your nightstand. You might even want to put it on the other side of the room to give yourself a break from it.
Exposing Your Phone to the Elements
If you're going to be walking around outside on a partly sunny day with mild temperatures, you shouldn't have to worry about your phone being exposed to the elements. As long as you don't stick it right in the sun for a long time, it'll be just fine.
But if you're going to be walking around outside on a day when it's raining, snowing, or even just bitterly cold, it'll be a much different story. In this case, you're going to want to do everything in your power to stop the elements from wreaking havoc on your phone.
The cold, in particular, can do almost as much damage to your phone as heat can. It can result in your battery draining quickly and cause other complications with your phone.
Instead of messing around with your phone when it's freezing outside, you should keep it tucked away somewhere safe. You should also wrap it in a leather iPhone case or leather Samsung case to make it a little warmer than it would be otherwise.
Using Your Phone Around Water
Most people used to keep their smartphones away from water at all costs. They wouldn't even think to use them anywhere in the general vicinity of water.
But today, it isn't out of the ordinary at all to see someone using their phone near a pool, a lake, or, heck, even the bathroom! Studies have shown that a large percentage of people take their phones into the bathroom with them, which could result in them getting exposed to water.
Fortunately, many smartphone manufacturers have started to make their phones waterproof to some degree. There are some phone cases that can prevent water from coming into contact with phones.
But even still, you should try not to take your phone anywhere that it could be exposed to water. Even a little bit of water could work its way into your phone and cause trouble with it. It isn't worth the risk.
Charging Your Phone With the Wrong Charger
When you first crack open a new iPhone or Samsung phone, you'll probably stick to using the charger that was provided with it. But as your smartphone starts to get older, there is a chance that you might misplace this charger. It could lead to you buying a third-party charger that isn't always going to be right for your phone.
A charger like this might fit into your phone's charging port and even provide your phone's battery with juice. But it also might be made out of low-quality materials that could harm your phone over the long haul.
Rather than using a charger like this, you should either buy a new charger from your phone manufacturer or pick up phone accessories like this Leather MagSafe Charging Mat that will make it possible for you to charge your phone wirelessly.
You're better off doing this versus using a charger from a third-party company that isn't going to be any good for your phone. You'll find that it'll be so much easier to use a charging mat that won't require you to plug your phone in every time it needs to be juiced up.
Putting Off Updating Your Phone
At this point, you should have a pretty good idea as to how to provide phone protection to the outside of your smartphone. But what about protecting everything happening inside of it? This will be very important, too!
One thing you should try to get into the habit of doing is updating your phone as necessary. It should be simple enough to do this since your phone will let you know when it's time to update it.
You don't always have to update it on the spot if you're busy using your phone. But you should make it a point to update it within a day or two of when you receive a notification about it needing to be updated.
Oftentimes, the automatic updates that are done to your phone will include security patches and other things that will protect what's happening inside your phone. You might put your phone at risk if you don't update it accordingly.
Signing Onto a Public WiFi Network With Your Phone
Most businesses have set up public WiFi networks so that customers can use them. You might be tempted to use one of these networks when you're waiting in line at the coffee shop, bank, doctor's office, etc.
You're free to connect to a public WiFi network if you would like to do it. But you should be careful about how you use your phone while you're on this network. You might end up putting any data that you have stored on your phone at risk if you don't stay off public WiFi networks.
Many people don't even realize that they could be exposing everything from their banking information to their social media passwords by using a public WiFi network. You should watch what you do when you're on one of these networks so that you don't become a victim of cybercrime.
Downloading Too Many Apps Onto Your Phone
The average American has somewhere in the neighborhood of 80 apps downloaded on their smartphone. From banking apps and time management apps to music streaming apps and, of course, gaming apps, people just can't get enough of apps.
You don't have to shy away from downloading apps on your phone completely. One of the best parts about owning a smartphone is being able to download apps and use them.
You should, however, be wary about who you trust to provide you with apps. Before downloading apps, you should look at who created them and make sure you're obtaining apps from reputable sources.
There are some apps that could install malware and other harmful software on your smartphone, your tablet, and your other devices. You'll obviously want to steer clear of downloading any apps like this since it could hurt your phone and possibly even put your personal information at risk.
Neglecting to Purchase Insurance for Your Phone
Every year, about 87 million Americans do some kind of damage to their smartphones. Some people crack their screens after dropping their phones, while others find that their phones don't work at all as a result of falls.
Because so many people break their phones each year, many people have finally started to say, "Yes," when they're asked if they would like to insure their phones. The smartphone insurance industry has blossomed into a big business.
You might still be tempted to say, "No," when you're asked if you would like to insure your phone. But you should really think about purchasing an insurance policy for your phone, especially if it's still on the newer side and cost you a lot of money to begin with.
In some instances, you'll be able to secure an insurance policy for your smartphone directly through your cell phone company. In others, you can turn to a third-party insurance company for help obtaining a policy.
Either way, you shouldn't be afraid to insure your phone since there is always at least a tiny chance that it could get broken. A good case should protect it, but there is no telling when you might drop your phone when you take it out of the case to clean it, put a new case on it, etc.
It's always better to be safe than sorry when it comes to the well-being of your phone. For just a few dollars each month, you can make sure you don't get stuck paying for phone repair bills caused by a lack of an insurance policy.
Leaving Your Phone in a Place Where It Can Get Stolen
A decade ago, smartphones were getting stolen all across the country at an alarming rate. These smartphones could be wiped clean and resold relatively easily, so they turned into a big target for thieves.
Over the years, most cell phone companies have put "kill switches" on cell phones that make them virtually worthless to those who aren't their rightful owners. It has led to a decrease in smartphone thefts since then.
But this does not mean you should let your guard down at all when it comes to phone protection. You should continue to treat your phone like the expensive electronic device that it is and work to keep it out of the hands of others.
Here are some ways you can do this:
- Keep your phone in front of you and not in a bag or jacket hung up on your chair when you're at a restaurant
- Avoid leaving your phone in your car regardless of whether it's locked or unlocked
- Stop putting your phone into an unlocked locker at the gym
If you aren't careful with your phone, it could still get stolen in 2023. And while you should be able to replace it fast as long as you have insurance for it, you'll still have to deal with a lot of hassle to get your hands on a new phone.
Your best bet will be to keep your phone either in your hand or in a place where others won't be able to steal it from you. You'll be making a mistake if you leave it anywhere else and someone comes across it and steals it from you.
Let Us Help You Take Phone Protection More Seriously
Would you like to provide your smartphone with more phone protection? BlackBrook Case has gorgeous 100% leather phone cases that will keep your phone safe.
We also carry a wide range of other iPhone accessories and Samsung accessories that you can use with your smartphone. We invite you to shop around on our website to see what we have in stock today.
Contact us with any questions you might have about the phone cases and other phone accessories that we sell.