Rugged smartphone

[wiiawiwb]

I've decided to get a new smartphone as mine is very old. I'm considering a military-spec rated phone (MIL-STD-810G) that can be submerged in water or dropped. I'd feel more confident having it with me when I am in the backcountry than a regular slimline smartphone.

I'm looking at the Ulefone Armor 7 which is mil-spec and has a 5,500 mAh battery which is a huge plus. Does anyone have any experience with this particular phone or military-spec phones in general?
 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm0Tyt7Dd5A

 

https://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=10020&idPhone2=9076&idPhone3=9937

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

 

Edited March 27, 2020 by wiiawiwb

[wiiawiwb]

The effort to try to get an unlocked phone with GSM functional on a carrier I wanted in my area was impossible. I nixed the rugged phone and got a sissy Samsung Galaxy S10. The rugged is going to be phone case.  Life's trials and tribulations!

[Huntster]

I'm an iphone guy. From the beginning I've relied on the toughest cases available. Greater technology for me includes such additional items as personal locator beacons, satellite phones, and SPOT type communicators. I'm currently looking at the InReach Mini, which bluetooths to a cellphone and provides satellite interaction that allows navigation, mapping, and email communication for a very small and customizable subscription price. I've also recently heard that satellite phone time has come way down in price.

[VAfooter]

Wii, I hate you!

 

Was thinking about getting a new phone, spent hours researching, and finally came to a decision. Now you pop this on me and I think I love it. A little above my price point, but not that much.... I hate you for giving me something else to think about. 

 

 

Seriously, looks like a great phone and I am going to look into it. May end up not getting a new one at all, but this is in the running (and maybe some of their other models as well) now. The only "negatives" (for me) I see are no audio jack, will not upgrade to A10, smaller screen, and "only" expand up to 256 Gb. Along with the aforementioned higher pricing. Thanks for the tip! I did not even know these existed.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Ulefone-Armor-Smartphone-Unlocked-Waterproof/dp/B081T54Y4Z?th=1

 

 

[wiiawiwb]

WVfooter....I realize are compromises but thought the concept of having the phone itself rugged made sense. If you can live with GSM (AT&T and T-Mobile I think) these phones are a good idea.

 

You might also look at CAT phones which is another company that builds rugged phones, which are a direct competitor of Ulefone, and are sold by Best Buy.  Moreover, the CAT S61and CAT S60 have a FLIR sensor for thermal imaging.  I think the phone is made by a company that is a related to Caterpillar, thus the name.

 

https://www.catphones.com/en-gb/products/

 

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/cat-s41-4g-lte-with-32gb-memory-cell-phone-unlocked-black/6179601.p?skuId=6179601

[VAfooter]

Another option, thanks!

 

Chances are great that I probably stick with my current phone, but I do like these as potential options. I loved (NOT) the review on Best Buy where the person gave it a 4 because it did not work for Sprint and they had to send it back. Of course it says in the description that it does not work for Sprint. 

[wiiawiwb]

Can someone recommend a rugged phone case with a high lip? I just got an Otterbox Defender Pro which is on the Galaxy S10 and will be ordering a Ghostek Nautical Extreme Waterproof Case. I'm also going to get Juggernaut IMPCT case when they are back in stock. I'll see how the last two are and keep them if they're useful or return them if not.

 

Any other suggestions are welcome.

[Huntster]

I first had a Lifeproof case for my first Iphone. That was tge case that my phone was in when I drove to the bottom of Big Lake through the ice.......44' down. I was down there for at least a minute, too, and remained in the water at the surface for another several minutes. The phone was in my pocket, and was completely fine. But it was brand new, purchased and installed the night before. I had a few Lifeproof cases afterwards for my phones, and I found that they don't last over a year. My only other problem with them is that they muffle my speech into the phone, but seem to work fine in speaker mode. Hearing through them at the ear is also muffled. 

 

So this last phone git a Pelican case. This case is much more sturdy. I've had it for almost two years now and it looks and appears as bulletproof as the day I got it. But it still muffles my voice as I speak. I hear fine with the phone at my ear, and speaker mode is flawless.

[norseman]

On 4/11/2020 at 6:28 AM, Huntster said:

I first had a Lifeproof case for my first Iphone. That was tge case that my phone was in when I drove to the bottom of Big Lake through the ice.......44' down. I was down there for at least a minute, too, and remained in the water at the surface for another several minutes. The phone was in my pocket, and was completely fine. But it was brand new, purchased and installed the night before. I had a few Lifeproof cases afterwards for my phones, and I found that they don't last over a year. My only other problem with them is that they muffle my speech into the phone, but seem to work fine in speaker mode. Hearing through them at the ear is also muffled. 

 

So this last phone git a Pelican case. This case is much more sturdy. I've had it for almost two years now and it looks and appears as bulletproof as the day I got it. But it still muffles my voice as I speak. I hear fine with the phone at my ear, and speaker mode is flawless.

You should sell them that story! 
 

“There I was 44 feet down in the murky deeps..... thought I was gonna die! But that Life proof case saved my durn phone! Came out of that frozen Alaskan lake as dry as a Mojave wind! I KNOW if I bought the cheaper case.... my phone would have died right there with my pickup at the bottom of that lake!”

 

Thats gotta be worth something!

[BlackRockBigfoot]

On 4/4/2020 at 3:42 PM, Huntster said:

I'm an iphone guy. From the beginning I've relied on the toughest cases available. Greater technology for me includes such additional items as personal locator beacons, satellite phones, and SPOT type communicators. I'm currently looking at the InReach Mini, which bluetooths to a cellphone and provides satellite interaction that allows navigation, mapping, and email communication for a very small and customizable subscription price. I've also recently heard that satellite phone time has come way down in price.

I have the Inreach Mini.  It has exceeded my expectations so far.  

9 hours ago, norseman said:

You should sell them that story! 
 

“There I was 44 feet down in the murky deeps..... thought I was gonna die! But that Life proof case saved my durn phone! Came out of that frozen Alaskan lake as dry as a Mojave wind! I KNOW if I bought the cheaper case.... my phone would have died right there with my pickup at the bottom of that lake!”

 

Thats gotta be worth something!

I want to throw a GoPro on Hunster and just film his day to day life.

 

Shot twice by friends while hunting, breaking through the ice and sinking 44'...

 

I could make a hell of a reality show if the camera could survive.  

[Huntster]

8 hours ago, BlackRockBigfoot said:

I have the Inreach Mini.  It has exceeded my expectations so far.........

 

Good to know. It looks like the communication device for me. It looks like it interfaces with the iphone well and turns the iphone into a great navigation device as well.

 

........I want to throw a GoPro on Hunster and just film his day to day life.

 

Shot twice by friends while hunting, breaking through the ice and sinking 44'...

 

I could make a hell of a reality show if the camera could survive.

 

Well, it's true reality/tragedy, not scripted. I always thought of my life as boring and frustrating, but rudely interrupted on occasion with utter stupidity (on my part or that of my "buddies"). I sure love my solo trips now. Hopefully I can get this bathroom remodel worked around a bear baiting trip for next month and get some bear pics!

[BC witness]

I picked up my spring bear tag and cougar tag today, now I just need a chance to get out during all this lockdown craziness. At my age, I won't go out alone, and all of my hunting buddies are "social distancing" for the foreseeable future, which is fine by me, since I'm in the very vulnerable age group.

 

Huntster, your second sentence above is pretty much the story of my life, too ;-) We can't bait any game in BC, "fair chase" only. I still managed to bag a dozen or so black bear hides, and one very pretty grizzly with a blonde saddle. Never sank a pickup or got shot, though. (Yet). I have fallen through the ice on a beaver pond 2 miles from camp, which made for my closest brush with hypothermia, and sank an Argo close enough to the shoreline to get it back out of the lake by hand.

[BlackRockBigfoot]

12 hours ago, Huntster said:

 

Good to know. It looks like the communication device for me. It looks like it interfaces with the iphone well and turns the iphone into a great navigation device as well.

 

 

 

 

Well, it's true reality/tragedy, not scripted. I always thought of my life as boring and frustrating, but rudely interrupted on occasion with utter stupidity (on my part or that of my "buddies"). I sure love my solo trips now. Hopefully I can get this bathroom remodel worked around a bear baiting trip for next month and get some bear pics!

I have to work redoing my floors into my schedule this year.  I feel for you.

 

The Mini is great.  I really like the ability to charge it on the go.  It will take a different plug than your iPhone, but a small battery charger can keep it topped off if you are going to be running it constantly for days or weeks at a time.  

 

It's rugged too, so it should stand up well to your adventurous lifestyle.

[wiiawiwb]

My adventure to get a rugged smartphone to hold up to the challenges of the outdoors is finally coming together.  I chose a Galaxy S10 which, oddly enough, is a fairly fragile phone, all things considered. 

 

When outdoors sasquatching, it will be enclosed in a Juggernaut IMPCT case, which is clipped into a flip-down PALS case holder mounted on a Condor tactical vest. This will allow hands-free operation while doing ops in the woods yet the phone, and GAIA topo, will be fully visible all-the-while when flipped down. Underneath the tactical vest will be a chest pack (Hill People Gear or Emerson) which will carry a power bank that can be recharging the phone as I move through the forest.

 

While it sounds a little clumsy, it really isn't as I've tried the setup sans the case holder which will arrive later this week. I'm confident the setup will work nicely to allow for hands-free operation for an entire weekend or day or night time ops. I'll take a few pictures and post them up once I'm out in the field with it. 

 

I'm sure the setup will evolve over time but I'm pleased with where it's come so far.  Thanks for everyone's help with this.

[wiiawiwb]

Well, I've had the Juggernaut IMCT case (and PALS tactical vest) out on several bushwhacks. Wowser!  It is all I hoped any more. I now can move, hands-free, through the bush and keep an eye on the topo map.

 

I assumed the phone mount would be a cheap piece of plastic but is exceedingly rugged so when you adjust the angle of the phone, it simply doesn't move. The vest fits nicely over the HPG chest pack so I can still access a firearm without restriction.  That was a concern which has been allayed.

 

For those of you who wish to be able to view your phone while moving about in the woods,  I would highly recommend the Juggernaut.  I'm sure it would move as much sense, or more, at night but I haven't used it in that regard yet.