Today we are going to tell you about how the researchers from ”TechnoCrash” lab tested a Sam-sung S5230 Star. It’s an inexpensive phone with a touchscreen. The quality of the assembly of this device is quite good. The only disadvantage is its battery cover which is made of a thin piece of plastic and it is not attached properly.

Samsung S5230 Star is made of a strong material though the phone has not got any metallic parts. It has a resistive touchscreen. The lack of stylus makes it difficult sometimes to operate the phone. You have to press the touchscreen harder if you want to browse the menu.

All in all this is a good and handy gadget. It looks smart and it is user-friendly. Let’s have a look how it can survive in extreme conditions.

The delivery set includes a handsfree with its own plug, a USB-cable, a charger and the docu-ments (pic. 2).

1. Stress test of the Samsung S5230. Stage 1 – ability to withstand light shocks

1.1. Drop-down

Drop-down stress test was performed in 2 steps: drop down on a carpet with 5mm pile and on the ce-ramic tiles. The Samsung S5230 Star was sequentially dropped onto each face, edge and corner from 1m on the carpet (video 1) and from 30cm on the ceramic tiles (video 2).

The Samsung S5230 easily survived the drop-down on the carpet. No damage was found. But when it was dropped down onto its lower edge on the ceramic tiles the battery cover fell off and the battery itself fell out of the slot. It was noted above that the battery cover of the Samsung S5230 Star is one of its disadvantages as it is not attached properly. After this test some scratches appeared on the glossy surface of the gadget which could hardly be noticed. In general the phone survived and operated well.

Video 1: Drop-down on the carpet from 1m.

The grade is 30 from 30 possible.

Video 2: Drop-down on the tiles from 30cm.

The grade is 20 from 30 possible.

1.2 Ability to withstand squeezing

In order to check the ability of the Samsung S5230 Star to withstand squeezing we put the phone on a flat surface and evenly placed the load of 3kg on it. The load pressed the buttons but did not cause any damage. The phone worked well then (pic. 5).

The grade is 24 from 24 possible.

1.3  Bend test

Sometimes the owners of cell phones sit down on a hard chair with a phone in their back pocket. We simulated this situation in this stress test and placed the device between the two supports and hitched a rope with a load of 1kg over it (pic. 6). It did not cause any damage or any bend.

The grade is 24 from 24 possible

1.4  Wearout test

This stress test was carried out in order to know how the exterior of the Samsung S5230 Star can be changed in the course of time. For this we put it into a centrifuge which rotated at the speed of about 500 rounds per minute. The radius of the cylinder was 75mm.

Video 3. How it works.

After the test we found some scuffs on the back cover and on the corners of the phone. You could see it only if you looked carefully. The display was all right after this test (pic. 7, 8).

The grade is 10 from 15 possible.

1.5 Quality of the material of which the phone is made

In order to check the quality of the materials of which the Samsung S5230 Star is made we pressed the display and the back side of the phone with the nail at the force of 100g.  We made a scratch on the display and on the back side (video 4, 5).

The scratch on the display could be noticed only in reflected light (pic. 9, 10). The scratch was hardly noticeable when we browsed the menu of the Samsung S5230. It did not spoil the picture on the display. But the scratch on the back side was quite noticeable, still it was not deep.

Video 4, 5. Scratching the phone.

The display gets 15 from 15 possible.

The back side gets 10 from 15 possible.

1.6 Hot temperature

Hot temperature stress test is a good example of the situations when the owners of cell phones leave their gadgets under the sun or near open fire.

We placed the Samsung S5230 Star into a metallic container. A 45Wt lamp was installed inside the container. The distance between the phone and the lamp was 5cm. The time of the test is 3min.

After the test we did not see any difference. The display was colorful as usual. But the phone itself was hot.

The grade is 12 from 12 possible.

1.7 Dust resistance test

Dust can penetrate everywhere, even inside cell phones. It can cause problems with operating your gadget and it spoils its design.

We checked how dust can affect the work of the Samsung S5230 Star.

We put tit into a container full of domestic dust and shook it for 2 minutes. In the result we saw dust in the gaps between the buttons. However the Samsung S5230 worked well. We found much dust un-der the loudspeaker grill and it was problematic to get rid of it. But it did not spoil the sound.

A lot of dust penetrated under the battery cover. We even saw some under the battery. It is sur-prising but we found very little dust in the slots (pic.11 – 14).

The grade is 8 from 12 possible.

All in all for the first stage the Samsung S5230 Star gets 153 points from 177 possible.

2. Stress test of the Samsung S5230. Stage 2 – tougher conditions

2.1 Drop-down

We increased the height of the drop-down on the carpet from 1m to 1,5m and we also dropped it from 50cm on the tiles. Result: no damage, full survival. Once the battery cover fell off but the battery remained in its place (video 6, 7).

Video 6: Drop-down on the carpet from 1,5m. The grade is 3 from 3 possible.

Video 7: Drop-down on the tiles from 50 cm

The grade is 20 from 30 possible.

2.2 Ability to withstand squeezing

We increased the weight of the load from 3kg to 10kg. Result: no damage, full survival.

2.3 Bend test

We increased the weight of the load on the rope from 1kg to 5kg. There was a little bend but when the test was over the design of the phone was OK and the device operated well.

The grade is 24 from 24 possible.

2.4 Wearout test

We put the Samsung S5230 into a centrifuge again for 10min. After the test we found some scuffs on the display. But it could be noticed only in reflected light and the scuffs did not spoil the picture on the dis-play. There also appeared more scuffs on the edges of the phone (pic.15 – 16).

The grade is 10 from 15 possible.

2.5 Quality of the material of which the phone is made

We scratched the display and at the back side of the Samsung S5230 with the nail again. But this time we pressed the display and the back side of the phone at the force of 300g.

We made a scratch on the display and it was noticeable but not deep. The scratch on the back side was deeper. Look at the pictures of the phone after such a test in Stage 3.

The display gets 5 from 15 possible.

The back cover gets 5 from 15 possible.

2.6 Cold temperature

In order to find out how the Samsung S5230 Star survived in a cold temperature we put it into a freezer (-150 °С) for 2 hours. The phone was in speaking mode.

Usually operating time all cell phones decreases in such extreme conditions because Li-lon bat-teries are unadapted to cold weather.

After 2 hours in -150 °С the Samsung S5230 Star was still working. The battery ran down only for one point. Although the phone was frozen it worked well. The display was as colorful as be-fore. The sound quality of the loudspeaker and the microphone was all right (video 8).

Video 8: The work of the phone in cold temperature. The grade is 18 from 18 possible.

2.7 High temperature

We increased the time of the stress test from 3 to 5min. Although the Samsung S5230 was very hot the display was OK and the gadget operated well.

2.8 Water resistance test

No cell phone can be absolutely secured from being dropped into water. We found out what could happen to the Samsung S5230 Star if we dunked it under distilled water for 1 second (video 9). Result: no damage, full survival. Water did not penetrate in the slots though it pene-trated under the loudspeaker grill (pic. 17). But the sound of the incoming call made all the drops of water disappear. After this stress test the quality of the sound level decreased a bit. The microphone was also all right. There was a lot of water under the battery cover (pic. 18). Water penetrated even under the battery! But it did not cause any damage. The phone passed this test well.

Video 9: Water resistance test

The phone gets 30 points from 30 possible.

2.9 Dust resistance test

We increased the time of this stress test from 2 to 5min. This time we saw two times less dust under the battery cover than we saw in the previous stage of the test. We found almost no dust under the battery (pic.19). Larger pieces of dust scratched the battery (pic.20). The gaps between the but-tons were all in dust (pic.21). It took a lot of time to get rid of it. Small pieces of dust were under the cover of the slot (pic.22). As in the previous stage of the test dust penetrated under the loud-speaker grill.

But soon all the dust disappeared and the Samsung S5230 Star was OK.

The grade is 8 from 12 possible.

All in all for the second stage the Samsung S5230 Star gets 186 points out of 225.

3. Stress test oh the Samsung S5230. Stage 3 – the toughest conditions

3.1 Drop-down

We increased the height of the drop-down on the carpet from 1,5m to 2m and we also dropped it from 1m on the tiles. Nothing new happened. Only once the battery cover fell off and the battery fell out when the gadget was dropped down on the tiles. When we examined the Samsung S5230 carefully we noticed a small dent near the sound buttons (pic. 23). Except this no damage was found, al-most full survival.

Video 10: Drop-down on the carpet from 2m. The grade is 30 from 30 possible.

Video 11: Drop-down on the tiles from 1m. The grade is 20 from 30 possible.

3.2 Ability to withstand squeezing

This time we increased the weight of the load from 10kg to 20kg. The phone is flat and thin. This design helped the phone survive. In our opinion the Samsung S5230 Star can carry 2 or 3 times heavier load.

The grade is 24 from 24 possible.

3.3 Bend test

This time we increased the weight of the load on the rope from 5kg to 10kg.

When the display was down the bend was clearly seen. When the display was up the bend was not so evident. After the test we examined the phone carefully and did not find any damage. The Samsung S5230 Star passed this test successfully.

The grade is 24 from 24 possible.

3.4 Wearout test

At this stage we put the Samsung S5230 Star into a centrifuge for 15min. After the test we no-ticed that much more scratches appeared on the edges and on the corners of the gadget. We also saw that the coverage of the buttons was a bit damaged (pic. 26, 27).

The grade is 8 from 18 possible.

3.5 Quality of the material of which the phone is made

This time we pressed the display and the back side of the Samsung S5230 with the nail at the force of 600g. We scratched the display and the back side (video 4, 5). The scratch on the display was quite deep. It was noticeable and spoiled the picture on the display. The scratch on the back side of the phone was even deeper than in the previous test. Pic.28, 29 show you the result.

5 point (from 15 possible) for the display

5 point (from 15 possible) for the back side of the phone

3.6 High temperature

We increased the time of the experiment to 10min (video 12). The display darkened but soon it was OK again. When the phone cooled down we checked its performance. And it operated well! The plastic did not fuse.

Video 12: The result of the test.

The grade is 12 from 12 possible.

3.7 Water resistance test

At stage 3 we increased the time of immersion to 20sec. It is surprising but water had no influ-ence on the phone. When we took it from water the sound was all right and the device worked well. Some water penetrated inside the battery cover (pic. 30). We dried the Samsung S5230 Star for an hour by a blow of hot air. After this we checked the phone again and found no damage.

Video 13: Water resistance test

The grade is 30 from 30 possible.

3.8 Immersion in beer

Sometimes the owners of cell phones can spill some drink on their gadgets which can cause more damage than water. We took the most popular drink as an example. We dunked the phone under beer for 10 seconds (video 14) and made a call on it. The phone rang. Surprisingly the Samsung S5230 Star for operated well when took it out. We could make calls and receive calls without any problem. The sound quality was as good as before. The beer did not penetrate in the microphone. It worked nicely.

But beer penetrated inside the battery cover (pic.31). But it caused no damage. We dried the Samsung S5230 Star for an hour and then we noticed that the sound button did not always work. But it did not matter that the phone was broken. So we did not repair it and went further.

Video 14: Immersion in beer

The grade is 3 from 9 possible

3.9 Dust resistance test

We increased the time of this test to 10min. This time much dust penetrated under the cover of the slot (pic. 32). There was also a lot of dust under the battery cover (pic. 33). All the other re-sults were the same as in the stage 2. We tried to get rid of the dust and we succeeded.  At first sight there was no dust inside the phone. But even if some dust was not ckeaned it did not affect the Samsung S5230 Star badly.

The grade is 8 from 12 possible

3.10 Test for the keyboard

Usually a keyboard breaks when water or any liquid is spilled on it. Rarely it can be broken by dust. “Camera” and “Switch on” buttons may easily get stuck if you press it heavily.

The buttons at the edges of the Samsung S5230 Star proved to be damaged by water or beer. The liquid penetrated under the bottom layer of the button and oxidized the metallic parts inside the phone. For more description look at the photos in the section “Disassembling”.

The buttons on the front side turned out to be more protected from liquid. It did not penetrate there.

Beer and water penetrated inside the gaps between the front buttons but the keyboard operated without any squeak.

The grade is 5 from 15 possible

3.11 Electric overloads

At first we tested the charger. We made a short circuit by closing the power supply terminals for a second when the charger was in operating mode. Video 15 shows that it did not damage the phone.

Video 15: Short circuit of the charger

The grade is 15 from 15 possible

Then we found out the voltage extremes of the charging. For this we plugged the cable of the charger in the EPU and then gradually decreased the power supply till the charging was over. The voltage was 4,2volts which is quite good. Usually when Li-lon battery is full the voltage is 4,2 – 4,3volts.

The grade is 15 from 15 possible

The batteries of today’s cell phones are provided with the special system which switches off an accumulator capacity of a cell phone in the moment of a short circuit. It protects the battery from a quick discharging and from a possible explosion caused by overheating. In order to check it we closed the power supply terminals for a second. Video 16 shows that after this the Samsung S5230 Star switched on without any problem and the battery was absolutely full.

Video 16: Short circuit of the battery

The grade is 15 from 15 possible

In order to find out the power supply extremes we plugged in the controllable power supply in-stead of the battery and started increasing the voltage up to 7 volts (video 17). Result: full survival.

Video 17: Increasing and decreasing the power supply

With the increase of voltage there was the increase of the consumption current. Although it was insignificant it proved that the feed circuits of the phone were not very good.

Then we were gradually lowering the power supply till 3,2volts – it switched the phone off. There is a very useful function in the Samsung S5230 Star: when the voltage is close to its minimum the instrument panel lamp stops working. It increases the lifetime of the battery when you can’t use a charger.

The grade is 15 from 15 possible

3.12 Disassembling, the quality of the assembly

At the end of the stress test we took the Samsung S5230 Star apart (Рiс.34-36). There were some reasons for it. We had to know what had happened with the sound button after the “beer” test. We also wanted to check a build quality of this gadget. The board (which is small) was in the upper part of the phone. Compound is spilled on the large chips. It protects the board from me-chanical overload, bends and blows. But it makes the board less maintainable. We must say that no beer and no water influenced the chips of the board. After we took off the dural frame which is between the board and the display we saw corrosion. It meant that water and beer penetrated under the display through the gaps between the front buttons because there were more oxide than anywhere inside the phone. Happily the water did not influence the loop circuits. This corrosion damaged only the sound button of the phone. Probably the liquid penetrated inside when we pressed this button. The design of the diaphragm of the sound button is prone to let liquid in. You must dry the Samsung S5230 Star carefully after it has been in liquid.

The grade is 20 from 30 possible

All in all our stress test the Samsung S5230 gets 261 out of 336 points in this stage of the test

Conclusion:

The Samsung GT- S5230 passed the stress test successfully. Drop-downs, cold and hot tempera-tures did not cause any damage to the phone. It could have even fully survived in water if it had been operated properly. It’s not so easy to scratch the touchscreen but if you use a nail you can make deep scratches.

The quality of the assembly is good. The phone can easily bear mechanical attacks. The electric circuits work well.

It’s hard to find the disadvantages of this gadget. However the phone passed the 2 tests not so well as the others. First of all we need to say that the Samsung S5230 is not very dust resistant and you’d better keep it in a wrapper if you do not want to have much dust inside the gaps. Sec-ondly the sound button stopped working after the phone was immersed in beer. It tells about a lack of leaktightness.

We may say that the phone has a good value for money.

All in all the Samsung S5230 gets 600 points from possible 738

According to 100-mark grading system the Samsung S5230 Star gets 81 points

1.2 Wearout test