Find Out Your Cell Phone's Radiation Level
A leading public heath and environmental advocacy group recently released a report of its investigation into the cell phone radiation issue. Environmental Working Group (EWG) looked at existing studies and came to the conclusion that there is cause for concern. Scientists around the world have recently associated serious health problems with using cell phones for 10 years or longer, including two types of brain tumors (glioma and acoustic neuroma) and salivary gland tumors. It also cited studies linking cell phone use and behavioral problems among children, and other health issues such as migraines and vertigo. More details of the report can be found in EWG's report, Cell Phone Radiation: Science Review on Cancer Risks and Children's Health.
EWG also created an online database where cell phone users can check how much radiation they may be exposed to when using their cell phones. Radiation level is measured by Specific Absorption Rates* (SAR), which is a measure (in W/Kg) of how much radiation is absorbed by the body when the phone is sending a signal to the network. Based on the maximum SAR readings of 1000 cell phones looked at, here are the cell phones with the top 10 highest and lowest cell phone radiation levels:
TOP 10 HIGHEST RADIATION CELL PHONES:
1. Motorola MOTO VU204 [Verizon Wireless], 1.55 W/Kg
2. T-Mobile myTouch 3G [T-Mobile], 1.55 W/Kg
3. Kyocera Jax S1300 [Virgin Mobile], 1.55 W/Kg
4. Blackberry Curve 8330 [Sprint, U.S. Cellular, Verizon Wireless, MetroPCS], 1.54 W/Kg
5. Motorola W385 [U.S. Cellular, Verizon Wireless], 1.54 W/Kg
6. T-Mobile Shadow [T-Mobile], 1.53 W/kg
7. Motorola C290 [Sprint, Kajeet], 1.53 W/kg
8. Motorola i335 [Sprint], 1.53 W/kg
9. Motorola MOTO VE240 [Cricket, MetroPCS], 1.52 W/kg
10. Blackberry Bold 9000 [AT&T], 1.51 W/kg
TOP 10 LOWEST RADIATION CELL PHONES:
1. Samsung Impression (SGH-a877) [AT&T], 0.35 W/kg
2. Motorola RAZR V8 [CellularONE], 0.36 W/kg
3. Samsung SGH-t229 [T-Mobile], 0.38 W/kg
4. Samsung Rugby (SGH-a837) [AT&T], 0.46 W/kg
5. Samsung Propel Pro (SGH-i627) [AT&T], 0.47 W/kg
6. Samsung Gravity (SGH-t459) [CellularONE, T-Mobile], 0.49 W/kg
7. T-Mobile Sidekick [T-Mobile], 0.50 W/kg
8. LG Xenon (GR500) [AT&T], 0.52 W/kg
9. Motorola Karma QA1 [AT&T], 0.55 W/kg
10. Sanyo Katana II [Kajeet], 0.55 W/kg
The current limit set in the United States by the FCC is 1.6 W/kg. Scientists and health experts are calling for a review of the current safety standards because the thermal or heating effect of radiofrequency radiation as measured by SAR is very limited. Most studies that link cell phone use with brain tumors and other health issues are based on the non-thermal (non-heating) effects of cell phone radiation. This means one should not be lulled into thinking that just because their cell phone has a low radiation that it is safe. It is not necessarily so.
You can find our more details about the radiation readings of your cell phone and others here: All available phones, and all phones (current and legacy).
*Specific absorption rate (SAR) is a measure of the rate at which energy is absorbed by the body when exposed to a radio frequency (RF) electromagnetic field. It is defined as the power absorbed per mass of tissue and has units of watts per kilogram (W/Kg).
EWG also created an online database where cell phone users can check how much radiation they may be exposed to when using their cell phones. Radiation level is measured by Specific Absorption Rates* (SAR), which is a measure (in W/Kg) of how much radiation is absorbed by the body when the phone is sending a signal to the network. Based on the maximum SAR readings of 1000 cell phones looked at, here are the cell phones with the top 10 highest and lowest cell phone radiation levels:
TOP 10 HIGHEST RADIATION CELL PHONES:
1. Motorola MOTO VU204 [Verizon Wireless], 1.55 W/Kg
2. T-Mobile myTouch 3G [T-Mobile], 1.55 W/Kg
3. Kyocera Jax S1300 [Virgin Mobile], 1.55 W/Kg
4. Blackberry Curve 8330 [Sprint, U.S. Cellular, Verizon Wireless, MetroPCS], 1.54 W/Kg
5. Motorola W385 [U.S. Cellular, Verizon Wireless], 1.54 W/Kg
6. T-Mobile Shadow [T-Mobile], 1.53 W/kg
7. Motorola C290 [Sprint, Kajeet], 1.53 W/kg
8. Motorola i335 [Sprint], 1.53 W/kg
9. Motorola MOTO VE240 [Cricket, MetroPCS], 1.52 W/kg
10. Blackberry Bold 9000 [AT&T], 1.51 W/kg
TOP 10 LOWEST RADIATION CELL PHONES:
1. Samsung Impression (SGH-a877) [AT&T], 0.35 W/kg
2. Motorola RAZR V8 [CellularONE], 0.36 W/kg
3. Samsung SGH-t229 [T-Mobile], 0.38 W/kg
4. Samsung Rugby (SGH-a837) [AT&T], 0.46 W/kg
5. Samsung Propel Pro (SGH-i627) [AT&T], 0.47 W/kg
6. Samsung Gravity (SGH-t459) [CellularONE, T-Mobile], 0.49 W/kg
7. T-Mobile Sidekick [T-Mobile], 0.50 W/kg
8. LG Xenon (GR500) [AT&T], 0.52 W/kg
9. Motorola Karma QA1 [AT&T], 0.55 W/kg
10. Sanyo Katana II [Kajeet], 0.55 W/kg
The current limit set in the United States by the FCC is 1.6 W/kg. Scientists and health experts are calling for a review of the current safety standards because the thermal or heating effect of radiofrequency radiation as measured by SAR is very limited. Most studies that link cell phone use with brain tumors and other health issues are based on the non-thermal (non-heating) effects of cell phone radiation. This means one should not be lulled into thinking that just because their cell phone has a low radiation that it is safe. It is not necessarily so.
You can find our more details about the radiation readings of your cell phone and others here: All available phones, and all phones (current and legacy).
*Specific absorption rate (SAR) is a measure of the rate at which energy is absorbed by the body when exposed to a radio frequency (RF) electromagnetic field. It is defined as the power absorbed per mass of tissue and has units of watts per kilogram (W/Kg).
