I have never done anything involving rice with my cell phone but it's definitely not a case of moisture getting in. I've actually disassembled it (after URC support telling me it's out of warranty) and haven't found anything that would indicate liquid. The only possibility is some liquid getting in between the touch screen layers. But, visually, there's nothing. Maybe it's at the border but enough to mess it up. Dealer said he's never hard of it. It's usually the soda getting under the keypad that breaks it.