The Specific Absorption Rate, or SAR, is a measure of how much radiation
a cell phone emits -- based on how much energy the human body absorbs from
using the device. The FCC requires each device to pass a series of tests
and no phones that radiates a SAR value over 1.6 W/kg of energy can be sold
in the U.S.
But that doesn't mean cell phones are still safe. Unfortunately, The
SAR limit was established twenty years ago, when handsets were only available
to the few, and rarely used. Nobody foresaw the widespread usage, or duration,
that consumers now are using their handsets -- so regulators aren't even
sure if the 1.6 limit is low enough.
Regardless, we've combed through the FCC test records to find the SAR
value for each handset -- so concerned consumers can see the lowest and
highest radiation phones to help their buying process.
We say handsets with a SAR value under 0.8 are "Low Radiation Phones"
and devices over 1.3 are "High Radiation Phones." This is not an indication
of the health danger of the devices (again, nobody knows if 1.6 is too high
or low enough), but rather saying the phone is low or high compared to the
handsets on the market.
For more information, including rankings of the safest and most dangerous
cell phones, please visit CellRisk.com
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