Smartphone Case Maker Questions FCC Test Methods for Measuring RF Radiation

A manufacturer of radiation reduction accessories published findings from an independent testing lab Tuesday, claiming the iPhone 11 Pro emits “more than twice the FCC’s legal safety limit for radio frequency (RF) radiation from a cellphone.” The test could be an indication other phones expose users to more radiation than legally allowed, it said.

Penumbra Brands sells mobile phone cases under the alara brand that are said to redirect radiation away from users, without degrading the wireless signal. Penumbra referenced findings from testing by RF Exposure Lab, showing the iPhone 11 Pro, bought by Penumbra, exposes users to a specific absorption rate of 3.8 W/kg, above the FCC’s maximum of 1.6 W/kg. SAR is the rate at which the body absorbs RF energy. The SAR limit is 1.6 watts per kilogram in countries that set the limit averaged over 1 gram of tissue and 2.0 watts per kilogram in countries that set the limit averaged over 10 grams of tissue, says Apple’s website. SAR limits for the iPhone 11 Pro are 1.16 when placed in a position that simulates the head, 1.18 against the body.

Penumbra’s tests were performed using FCC guidelines with the phone positioned 5 mm away from a mannequin engineered to simulate human tissue, said the company. If a device is closer, in a pocket, the exposure could increase more, it said.

Apple referred us to findings in August from testing at the same lab on radiation exposure from the iPhone 7 and other phones from BLU Products, Motorola and Samsung. That study by the Chicago Tribune said “federal standards may not be adequate to protect the public.”

That led the FCC to conduct its own internal tests. “The FCC takes claims of non-compliance with its regulations seriously and commenced its own testing program of the implicated handsets to determine if those handsets comply with the FCC rules as asserted by the manufacturers or if they are indeed operating over the RF exposure limits as claimed by the Chicago Tribune,” it said in the test report Dec. 19 (see 1912190085).

The FCC lab requested and received device samples with necessary test software and cables for Apple’s iPhone XS, the Samsung Galaxy S9, Motorola Moto g6 play, and BLU Vivo 5 Mini and tested them, along with products from the open market, Aug. 30-Sept. 23. Each was tested for the specific bands of operations investigated by the Chicago Tribune’s test laboratory under the same configuration identified in the manufacturer’s RF exposure compliance report submitted at the time of its application for equipment authorization.

All sample cellphones tested by the regulator's lab, both grantee-provided and FCC-purchased samples, produced maximum 1-g average SAR values less than the 1.6 W/kg limit specified in rules, said the commission. The tests didn't produce evidence of violations of any FCC rules on maximum RF exposure levels, it said. The agency declined comment Tuesday.

Penumbra noted Tuesday that in the FCC tests, the iPhone XS model that wasn’t supplied by Apple “reveals the testing flaws -- radiation is 28 times higher than the agency’s original report,” said Ryan McCaughey, chief technology officer. The discrepancy “should have been cause for alarm at the FCC, but they didn’t even comment on it,” he said. The company maintains the FCC's test methods are "outdated" and don't reflect how cellphones are used today.

Apple suggests users reduce exposure to RF energy by using a hands-free option, “such as the built-in speakerphone, the supplied headphones, or other similar accessories.” Phone cases with metal parts “may change the RF performance of the device, including its compliance with RF exposure guidelines, in a manner that has not been tested or certified.” The Penumbra cases that were tested were a slim and rugged version of Gadget Guard cases with alara technology, McCaughey emailed. The cases contain a silver alara antenna, he said.