How to keep your filthy iPhone clean

Bacteria and viruses love to stick to the surface of your iPhone. Here's how you can keep your disgusting phone squeaky-clean.

Let's face it, smartphones can get incredibly dirty given how often they are touched by human hands. Bacteria and viruses just love to adhere to the surface of the iPhone.

But there are some ways you can keep it clean, according to a writer at CNBC.

Todd Haselton reports for CNBC:

Did you know the smartphone in your pocket might be the dirtiest thing on you at any given moment?

An oft-cited report from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found that 92 percent of the smartphones it tested were covered with bacteria Worse, 16 percent of the phones it examined had E. coli present. Another study says smartphone displays can be dirtier than a toilet seat.

Yuck! Here's how to keep your phone clean.

  1. Wash your hands

  2. Clean the display with a soft cloth

  3. Use a light disinfectant wipe

  4. Consider a UV gadget cleaner

More at CNBC

I'll share my thoughts below along with Apple's official iPhone cleaning tips, but here's a selection of comments from a thread on the MacDailyNews blog about the CNBC smartphone hygiene article:

Mark: "All you need to do is put a few big globs of Purell hand gel, get a napkin, and rub the gel all over the front, back, and sides of the phone. It dries instantly, and you have a germ-free phone. I do this once every two days"

Lynnw: "I use a little Windex with vinegar does the job and no streaking along with a microfiber cloth or paper towel. I quit using those alcohol wipe packets because they're expensive and they tend to streak."

Matt: "I use a solution of 50% rubbing alcohol (70%) and 50% distilled water. It may not disinfect my iPhone, bit I feel better."

Wabash Sphinx: "Everything is covered with bacteria. Being too antiseptic is not a positive thing. It's a question of what bacteria. If it's herpes or resistant TB, then maybe you have a problem. I'd ask, where's your phone been? E. coli? When I was in high school biology, it was considered one of the most common bacteria, in your gut and everywhere. I say, "get a grip" and live. I clean with just a soft cloth for months at a time."

Danox: "Step one wash your hands, Step two don't take it to the bathroom, Step three wash your hands…"

Ice Cowboy: "Lots of decent advice – but one thing: paper towels are like a very fine grade of sandpaper on plastics, probably finishes like Apple's black gloss phone and screens. Use something less abrasive."

Larrymagoo: "You should NEVER use paper to clean glass..it will ritually scratch it! Micro Fiber cloths are everywhere! Use them!"

The Other Steve: "Show me someone who avoids germs and constantly washes everything with disinfectant wipes, and I'll show you someone with a lousy immune system."

There ya have it: "I use just a drop of vinegar on very fine sand paper.

JUST a drop of vinegar."

More at MacDailyNews

Secret confessions of an iPhone slob

I got a kick out of the comments posted on the MDN site. I have to admit something here that I've never shared with anybody, I'm an iPhone slob.

Yes, I admit it.

I almost never clean my iPhone's screen beyond just wiping off fingerprints with a soft towel or by using my shirt or pants. Bacteria and viruses don't really scare me as that's why I have an immune system.

Note, however, that I do not use my iPhone while I'm doing my business in the bathroom. And when I'm done in there I always wash my hands thoroughly with soap and water.

Hopefully such precautions will preclude the possibility of E. coli bacteria and other bathroom nasties from sticking to the surface of my iPhone.

General hygiene aside, I can't help but feel that people today are way too paranoid about catching cooties from touching things. When I was growing up we ran around outside, got absolutely filthy and never died from it.

But today we have people running around with hand sanitizers, afraid to touch a doorknob or other surface. The germ phobia has gotten really out of control and it's not healthy.

Apple's official tips for cleaning your iPhone

I'm going to give Apple the last word on how to clean your iPhone. The company has a page up on its support site with recommendations on how to clean an iPhone properly.

Here are Apple's official iPhone cleaning tips:

iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus

Clean your iPhone immediately if it comes in contact with anything that may cause stains, or other damage—for example, dirt or sand, ink, makeup, soap, detergent, acids or acidic foods, or lotions. Follow these guidelines:

Unplug all cables and turn off your iPhone (press and hold the Sleep/Wake button, and then slide the onscreen slider).

Use a soft, lint-free cloth—for example, a lens cloth.

Avoid getting moisture in openings.

Don't use cleaning products or compressed air.

Your iPhone has a fingerprint-resistant oleophobic—oil repellant—coating. This coating wears over time with normal use. Cleaning products and abrasive materials will further diminish the coating and might scratch your iPhone.

iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus

Clean your iPhone immediately if it comes into contact with contaminants that might cause stains, such as ink, dyes, makeup, dirt, food, oils, and lotions.

To clean your iPhone, unplug all cables and turn it off. Use a soft, slightly damp, lint-free cloth. Avoid getting moisture in openings. Don't use window cleaners, household cleaners, compressed air, aerosol sprays, solvents, ammonia, or abrasives to clean your iPhone.

The front glass surfaces have an oleophobic coating. To remove fingerprints, wipe these surfaces with a soft, lint-free cloth. The ability of this coating to repel oil will diminish over time with normal use, and rubbing the screen with an abrasive material will further diminish its effect and might scratch the glass.

To clean the Home button (allowing Touch ID to work optimally), wipe it with a soft lint-free cloth.

More at Apple Support

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Jim Lynch is a technology analyst and online community manager who has also written for many leading industry publications over the years, including ITworld, InfoWorld, CIO, PCMag, ExtremeTech, and numerous others.

The opinions expressed in this blog are those of Jim Lynch and do not necessarily represent those of IDG Communications, Inc., its parent, subsidiary or affiliated companies.

Copyright © 2017 IDG Communications, Inc.