Don't Try This: Watering Down The Music

Another memo to self: Check garment pockets for electronic devices before laundering.

You're probably not old enough to remember the classic Timex watch commercials where Timex wrist watches -- pre-digital -- were put through a variety of funky tests and "keep on ticking." (I'm not sure I'm old enough -- I have a feeling what I'm really remembering is Mad Magazine spoofs on the ads.)

Some -- but not all -- of today's electronic devices can hold up to this.

• My digital wrist watch has survived being worn in the shower and swimming pool. (I look for "water-resistant" when I buy them.)
• My first NEC MobilePro 780 (that two-pound computer I have in my oversized shirt pocket at trade shows) never fully recovered from my spilling a glass over water on it, several year ago... and a one-third-working keyboard really isn't enough. (Lesson learned: don't hold a drink, even water, and a computer at the same time.)
• Some new notebooks, like Panasonic ToughBooks, and HP's new 2133 Mini-Note PC, claim they can survive about half a cup of liquid being spilled on the keyboard.

After a large dollop of shampoo got spilled on a SanDisk Sansa C1 flash MP3 player, it stopped working. It "wakes up," but the controls don't work beyond that. (I haven't yet given up hope of resurrecting it, though.)

But, I'm happy to report, my little SanDisk Sansa radio/MP3 player has survived a cycle through the washing machine.