No more wetness woes

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GREENFIELD — New technology gives local residents a chance to save their cellphones after the device takes a dive into the toilet.

And it’s not rice.

TCC, the Verizon Premium Wireless Retailer at 1663 N. State St. in Greenfield, now offers Redux, a machine that removes moisture from wet cellphones to return them to working condition.

The technology is being rolled out at 300 TCC stores across the country and is now available in Greenfield.

Store employees are working to tell all customers who visit the store about the new technology because it can save them money, said sales associate Missy Mountain-Dawson.

“With every phone we send out or tablet, we’re letting people know,” she said.

And the device works for liquids other than water. It can dry phones after they’ve been dropped in mud, wine, beer, soda and more, according to the retailer.

“Everybody thinks their phone is fried when it gets wet, and that just simply isn’t the case,” Reuben Zielinski, co-founder of Redux, said in a news release. “This new technology will remove 100 percent of the moisture from wet electronics, allowing many mobile device users to recover their hardware investment and precious data.”

Big savings

When the technology works, it can save customers big bucks. The cost of replacing a device is between $300 and $700, said Scott Moorehead, president and CEO of TCC.

The cost to use the technology runs from $50 for a basic phone up to $100 for a smartphone.

Clumsy customers who want to be proactive can save money by purchasing a Redux membership. It costs $29.99 for two years, and customers are able to dry out their phone twice in that time period.

“Redux saves customers money by eliminating the cost to replace devices,” Moorehead said. “But what’s even more important to most customers is the ability to recover their data, and Redux enables them to save potentially irreplaceable information such as contacts, photos, videos and more.”

If the revive is successful, the device will maintain its existing life expectancy. And the process typically takes less than an hour.

The inspiration

Zielinski and Joel Trusty founded Redux in Indianapolis in 2013 after Trusty’s wife ran her cellphone through a full cycle in the washing machine.

She was upset the phone was ruined but was more devastated at the thought that all her contact info, photos, videos and data were lost.

Together, the founders fixed the phone using Trusty’s background in manufacturing and Zielinski’s equipment.

Within a week of fixing the phone, they created the first Redux model.

Growth on the horizon

Currently, the technology is offered in Indiana and Ohio, but TCC expects to offer it in other states soon.

And in the future, customers will be able to use it to revive MP3 players, digital cameras, tablets, hearing aids and more, the company said.

Mountain-Dawson said customers who plan to use the device should do so within 24 hours of it getting wet. And they shouldn’t plug the phone in.

“That’s the biggest deal,” she said.

And if the technology doesn’t return the phone to working condition, customers won’t be expected to pay the full price. They’ll be charged only $10 for a nonrefundable diagnostic fee.

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Customers who plan to use Redux to save their phones should follow these tips:

  • Don’t charge the device
  • Don’t put it in rice
  • Remove the battery if you can or shut the phone off
  • Relax. The smartphone won’t zap itself or become permanently damaged the second it comes into contact with liquids.
  • Get it to a Redux machine as quickly as possible

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