This morning I dropped my BlackBerry Bold 9700 into water – given I grabbed it within 5 seconds of the drop. None the less, the handset was soaked and would no longer even turn on. The screen wouldn’t show anything, and the infamous red light would go on for a little, then just die.

Not that I love my BlackBerry, but it is so much better than the other currently alternative I have – my Sony Ericsson C902 (or something along those lines). Stupidly, I tried to turn it on after only drying it with a towel – then decided after multiple failures to place the handset (with the battery removed) into rice. I also put the battery into the rice – just to ensure that all the moisture would be absorbed.

I then left the handset and tried not to think about the fact that I possibly would have to spend the next 10 months using a Sony Ericsson. About 1 hour later, I decided to try the handset again. This time, the screen turned on and the phone actually loaded the OS. The keyboard was not functional. I put it back into the rice and about 10 hours later removed it.

Everything is functioning perfectly again. Apparently one should leave the handset in for at least 24 – 36 hours – so if faced with this situation – if you have the patience (unlike me), try to give it that amount of time to ensure that all is perfectly dry.