For some time now, Apple iPhones have been able to detect liquids. This feature helps to prohibit charging when there is moisture present in the charging port, protecting the iPhone from any harm caused by a wet port.
Macs, however, have not included this feature. This could be the case because, in contrast to the water-resistant iPhones, Mac computers are less likely to be submerged or exposed to liquids. However, after the release of macOS Sonona, Macs can now identify if liquids are present in the USB-C ports on the device.
According to 9to5Mac, a daemon called “liquiddetectiond” is included in macOS Sonoma 14.1 and operates in the background to monitor the condition of the USB-C connectors. This daemon, also called the “Liquid Detection and Corrosion Mitigation Daemon,” is similar to the liquid detection feature found in iPhones and iPads. Its main objective is to warn customers to quickly unplug chargers when liquid is found within the charging ports in order to avoid any device damage. But there’s a special use case for Macs.
It’s possible that this function won’t alert consumers to possible liquid damage. Rather, its purpose is to notify Apple personnel when a gadget comes into contact with liquid and whether it is eligible for a free repair under warranty. Notably, as water damage is not covered under warranty, the laptop would not be eligible for free repairs if liquid was discovered in the ports.
It is unknown whether this functionality will be made available to Mac users as a user-alerting function or if technicians will still be the only ones able to utilize the “liquiddetectiond” daemon.