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iPhone still works after falling from a plane and spending 13 months on the ground in Iceland

Published Sep 25th, 2019 10:05PM EDT
iPhone 6s
Image: Mary Altaffer/AP/Shutterstock

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In a bizarre story out Iceland, an iPhone 6s that fell out of a plane more than a year ago and spent the ensuing months in extreme weather conditions was recently found and, surprisingly enough, was mostly in working order.

In a story first highlighted by The Next Web, a photographer named Haukur Snorrason went to Iceland last year to take photos of some of the country’s most scenic spots. At one point during the trip, Snorrason stuck his hand out the window of a small propeller plane and decided to film some video footage with his trusty iPhone 6s. But as luck would have it, a sudden burst of wind knocked the phone out of his hand and down about 200 feet onto “rocky terrain — where a massive river was overflowing and rupturing roads.”

Seeing as it was the ultimate of drop tests, Snorrason naturally thought his iPhone 6s was a goner and simply moved on.

Flash forward 13 months, and a group of hikers in Iceland stumbled across the phone whereupon they contacted Snorrason to tell him that they had found his lost phone. And again, the phone — remarkably enough — worked even after “spending over a year exposed to the harsh Icelandic elements.”

Interestingly, the only feature impacted by the fall is that Snorrason’s voice can’t be picked up when talking on the phone.

Now has to how the iPhone survived the fall, Snorrason explained:

Luckily the phone landed on a patch of moss that grows here and there in the lava field. The moss in this area is rather thick, can be up to 30 cm, so that’s the main reason it survived the fall I think.

Lastly, there’s actually video footage of the iPhone 6s’ fall which can be viewed over here.

Yoni Heisler Contributing Writer

Yoni Heisler has been writing about Apple and the tech industry at large with over 15 years of experience. A life long expert Mac user and Apple expert, his writing has appeared in Edible Apple, Network World, MacLife, Macworld UK, and TUAW.

When not analyzing the latest happenings with Apple, Yoni enjoys catching Improv shows in Chicago, playing soccer, and cultivating new TV show addictions.