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Cell Phones SARs - Specific Absorption Rates - Electromagnetic Fields (EMF) and Your Health

Cell Phones SARs (Specific Absorption Rates of Radiation

What is a SAR?

The FCC has adopted limits for safe exposure to radiofrequency (RF) energy. These limits are given in terms of a unit referred to as the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR), which is a measure of the amount of radio frequency energy absorbed by the body when using a mobile phone. The FCC requires cell phone manufacturers to ensure that their phones comply with these objective limits for safe exposure. Any cell phone at or below these SAR levels (that is, any phone legally sold in the U.S.) is a "safe" phone, as measured by these standards. The FCC limit for public exposure from cellular telephones is an SAR level of 1.6 watts per kilogram (1.6 W/kg).

The SAR is a value that corresponds to the relative amount of RF energy absorbed in the head of a user of a wireless handset. The FCC limit for public exposure from cellular telephones is an SAR level of 1.6 watts per kilogram (1.6 W/kg). Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) for Wireless Phones and Devices Available at various Web sites.

Find out how much radiation you cell phone emits!

The easiest way to ascertain SAR for many cellular phones is via the FCC's links to individual manufacturers' Web sites farther down on this page. We have links to most manufacturers' Web pages that include SAR information for their phones, along with instructions on how to search each site for SAR information.

You can also obtain SAR information on many cellular phones from the FCC's database if you have the FCC ID number of the phone or device and if it was produced and marketed within the last 1-2 years. It's a bit more complicated but here are the steps:

The FCC ID number is usually shown somewhere on the case of the phone or device. In many cases, you will have to remove the battery pack to find the number. Once you have the number proceed as follows. Go to the following Web address: www.fcc.gov/oet/fccid . Once you are there you will see instructions for inserting the FCC ID number. Enter the FCC ID number (in two parts as indicated: "Grantee Code" is comprised of the first three characters, the "Equipment Product Code" is the remainder of the FCC ID). Then click on "Start Search." The grant of equipment authorization for this particular ID number should appear. Look through the grant for the section on SAR compliance, certification of compliance with FCC rules for RF exposure or similar language. This section should contain the value(s) for typical or maximum SAR for your phone.

Find your phone's emission levels in 4 steps:

  1. go to www.fcc.gov/oet/fccid (To search for an SAR value on this site consumers will need the FCC ID number for a phone, this is not the same as the manufacturer's model number for the phone. The FCC ID number for a phone is usually found on a sticker located on the phone under the battery.)
  2. fill in the Grantee Code search box with the first three numbers and/or digits of the FCC ID number
  3. fill in the Equipment Product Code search box with the rest of the numbers in the ID; run the search
  4. click on Display Grant on the search results page and the SAR values can be found towards the bottom of the page.

What if you have an older phone?

SAR information on older model phones can be found through the FCC's website - www.fcc.gov/oet/fccid - and performing the same search as for new phones. However, the SAR information for older phones will be found in the Display Exhibits section, rather than the Display Grant section. Information on some older model phones can also be found by contacting the manufacturer of your phone directly or by visiting their website.

For portable phones and devices authorized since June 2, 2000 , maximum SAR levels should be noted on the grant of equipment authorization. For phones and devices authorized between about mid-1998 and June 2000, detailed information on SAR levels is typically found in the "exhibits" associated with the grant of equipment authorization. Therefore, once a grant is accessed these exhibits can be viewed by clicking on the appropriate entry labeled "View Exhibit."

Electronic records for FCC equipment authorization grants were initiated in 1998. Therefore, prior to this date FCC records for grants are in the form of paper records that are not part of our electronic database. At this time, due to staff limitations, we are unable to routinely search through FCC paper records to extract SAR information for grants filed prior to mid- to late-1998.

If you want additional consumer information on safety of cell phones and other transmitting devices please consult the information available below at this Web Site. In particular, you may wish to read or download our OET Bulletin 56 (see "RF Safety Bulletins") entitled: "Questions and Answers about Biological Effects and Potential Hazards of Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fields." If you have any problems or additional questions you may contact us at RF Safety ([email protected]) . [ July 18, 2000 ]

You may also wish to consult a consumer update on mobile phone safety published by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that can be found at: www.fda.gov/cdrh/phones .

SAR Information from individual manufacturers can be found on the below web sites:

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  • Alcatel:

    Click on the link for "To know the SAR value of your Alcatel mobile phone, just click here".

  • Audiovox:

    Click on the wireless phone product type, select the repective phone, click on "Find A Manual". The SAR information is located in the manual.

  • Benefon:

    Select the respective phone type, click on the phone model, click on product data. The SAR information is located on the product data page.

  • Kyocera:

    Select the phone model, click on User Guide. The SAR information is located in the first few pages of the user guides.

  • Mitsubishi:

    Select phone model. The SAR information is located on the respective page for each phone.

  • Motorola:

    Click on Sar Information, select your region, native language and the phone model number.

  • Nokia:

    From shortcuts at bottom of page, select phone model from drop down menu, click FCC Certification Information.

  • Panasonic:

    Sar information is located on the Health and Safety page.

  • Samsung:

    Select phones and fax machines, select Mobile Phone, select phone model from drop down list, select Get Manual. Most SAR Information is available in the user manual in the Safety information section. If you cannot find the information in the manual, you can also call customer care at 1-888-987-4357 to obtain SAR values per phone model.

  • Siemens:

    Select phone model. SAR information is found either in the technical data section located towards the bottom of the technical data page, or in the manual and can be found by searching for the keywords "Specific Absorption Rate".
    NOTE: SAR Information does not appear to be available on-line for some models.

  • Sony Ericsson:

    Select phone model, click on Support, click on SAR Information.

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    FCC SAR Database - You can usually find the SAR value of a cellular phone through the FCC database if you can get the FCC ID number from the instrument.

    The FCC ID number is usually shown somewhere on the case of the phone or device. In many cases, you will have to remove the battery pack to find the number. Once you have the number proceed as follows. Go to the following Web address: www.fcc.gov/oet/fccid. Once you are there you will see instructions for inserting the FCC ID number. Enter the FCC ID number (in two parts as indicated: "Grantee Code" is comprised of the first three characters, the "Equipment Product Code" is the remainder of the FCC ID). Then click on "Start Search." The grant of equipment authorization for this particular ID number should appear. The highest SAR values reported in the equipment certification test data are usually included in the comments section of the grant of equipment certification.



    Additional information on Specific Absorption Rates (SAR) can be found on:

  • the FCC's website at http://www.fcc.gov/oet/rfsafety/Welcome.html

  • the FDA/FCC's website at http://www.fda.gov/cellphones/

  • the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA) website at http://www.wow-com.com/consumer/issues/health/articles.cfm?ID=334

  • the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA) website at http://www.cwta.ca


  • CNN article about "FDA to participate in study on mobile phones", dated June 9, 2000

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