RF Radiation Exposure (SAR data)

[rcliff]

With the recent reports about cell phone radiation, I'm trying to figure out the SAR values for the Motorola/Verizon device. It's a shame it's so hard to get this information and that the FCC doesn't require manufacturers to publish this information for the consumer to easily read.

Anyway the first thing you need to find it is the FFCID so that you can do a search on the <sarcasm> always user friendly </sarcasm> FCC Web search page. I've seen 2 FCCIDs (IHDP56KC2 and IHDP56KC5) for 2 Motorola phones that are likely Droids but not necessarily the one that Verizon is releasing next week. After digging through the FCC documents for those devices I found the following...

IHDP56KC2: SAR 0.57 W/kg for head-adjacent use and 0.49 W/kg for body-worn use
IHDP56KC5: SAR 1.10 W/kg for head-adjacent use and 0.89 W/kg for body-worn use

This question is, is either of these the Verizon Droid that ships on November 6th? Perhaps someone with a review unit can check on FCCID on the device to verify?

FCC Search page (requires device FCCID)
FCC's page to manufacturers SAR info (essentially worthless)

- Cliff

 

[rcliff]

It looks like neither of those FCCIDs were the Verizon phone but rather GSM versions of the Droid. The FCCID for the Verizon Droid appears to likely be IHDP56KC1 since that model uses CDMA 800 and 1900 Mhz. It looks like SAR reading for this device is 1.42 W/kg for head-adjacent use and 1.16 W/kg for body-worn use.

What I've realized through a little research is that the sites that publish this SAR info (EWG, CNET, etc) are all error prone and the numbers are all over the place and don't match the FCC reports or manufacturer data. Lots and lots of misinformation out there. The other question is how reliable this testing data is in the first place since it appears to be supplied to the FCC from the manufacturer without verification by a third party.

My takeaway, limit overall usage and use bluetooth whenever possible.

 

[michaelk]

from the user manual- page 43

Before a mobile device is available for sale to the public in the U.S. and Canada, it
must be tested and certified to the FCC and Industry Canada that it does not exceed
the limit established by each government for safe exposure. The tests are performed
in positions and locations (e.g., at the ear and worn on the body) submitted to the
FCC and available for review by Industry Canada. The highest SAR value for this
mobile device when tested for use at the ear is 1.49 W/kg, and when worn on the
body, as described in this guide, is 1.5W/kg. Body-worn measurements can differ,
depending upon available accessories and regulatory requirements. The SAR
information includes the Motorola testing protocol, assessment procedure, and​

measurement uncertainty range for this product.

no clue how that compares to any of the other sources (as in are they ALL talking about the same measurement)- seems the manual is talking about the highest but maybe others are talking about average measurements?

 

[rcliff]

Thanks. I hadn't seen the manual but that should be conclusive. The numbers are disappointing being just shy of the maximum limit.