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Thread: RFI: Rugged Smartphones

  1. #1
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    RFI: Rugged Smartphones

    I am starting to look around for my next smartphone. My current phone is a Samsung S8 Active, which I like well enough. I appreciate the rugged aspects of it because I tend to be hard on phones. They get wet, they get dropped and they may get submerged occasionally. In today's world, I like that I can wash it as well. I hate (con brio) bixby, which is Samsung's answer to siri, et al., and cannot be completely disabled or removed. I can live with it if a Samsung is my best option, though. I would like my next phone to be unlocked and able to work with multiple carriers so I'm not tied to my current one by my phone. I wouldn't mind a dual sim capability also, but it's not really important to me.

    There are a number of options out there now: Ulefone, Blackview, Cat, Doogee, etc. I've been doing some reading and trying to sort through features. Some of these phones have great specs on paper and an astonishing number of features. I don't need a FLIR camera or night vision or the ability to run an endoscope but...who doesn't want all the toys? Does anybody on the board have any experience with any of the current crop of rugged smartphones or recommendations?

    One specific question/concern I have is, are there brands I should steer clear of on the basis of privacy issues? Basically, almost every one of these phones is going to be made in, or use components made in, China and at least some have, in the past, been found to be surreptitiously sending user data back to unknown destinations (as opposed to Samsung, I suppose, which is at least up front about trying to look in my medicine cabinet...). I would love a privacy oriented phone but the pickin's are slim (maybe only librim at this point?) and there doesn't seem to be any kind of rugged option.

    Thanks

  2. #2
    What's wrong with just getting a more mainstream phone and just getting a good case? Water resistance is pretty standard on higher end phones these days, and there are many good options to protect a phone from impact. And if privacy is that huge an issue, can always just get an Android phone and flash on a privacy-oriented ROM.

    Maybe something like a Google Pixel 5 with CalyxOS, slap on an Otterbox Defender Pro and Amplify screen protector.
    Last edited by Default.mp3; 02-15-2021 at 12:17 PM.

  3. #3
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    Most of the time my phone lives in my pants pocket, which is my strong preference. When the world is normal, I work in an office (I'm hard on the phones, not my job, per se), so no cargo pockets and no phone clipped to my belt or anything. Cases like the otterbox make putting the phone in my pocket pretty much a no go, last I checked. I probably should have added that I'm trying to stay within a reasonable (to me) footprint.

    I don't know what flashing on a privacy-oriented ROM means but whatever phone I get will almost certainly be android based. Can you point me towards a resource to read about that? It sounds like it could address my main concerns. Thanks.

    ETA: Google is my friend on the ROM question. Thanks.

  4. #4
    Quote Originally Posted by Erik View Post
    Most of the time my phone lives in my pants pocket, which is my strong preference. When the world is normal, I work in an office (I'm hard on the phones, not my job, per se), so no cargo pockets and no phone clipped to my belt or anything. Cases like the otterbox make putting the phone in my pocket pretty much a no go, last I checked. I probably should have added that I'm trying to stay within a reasonable (to me) footprint.
    I'm an office worker, too, and I still rock the holster/case combo like it's 2008. I honestly don't really get why anyone would want to keep a phone in their pocket, but I guess that's the world we live in (pretty sure the vast majority of folks think I'm the retard here). That being said, you could try something like the Otterbox Symmetry and see if that works better than a Defender, or some other lower profile but still impact-resistant case, as something like a Pixel 5 is on the smaller side, and the case might bump up the length and width to just phablet size, which most folks seem to be able to pocket okay, though the thickness might still present an issue.

    Quote Originally Posted by Erik View Post
    I don't know what flashing on a privacy-oriented ROM means but whatever phone I get will almost certainly be android based. Can you point me towards a resource to read about that? It sounds like it could address my main concerns. Thanks.

    ETA: Google is my friend on the ROM question. Thanks.
    Yeah, lots of good resources out there. Just be aware that many of the ROMs only work with a limited number of phones, so it's not quite as wide open as it might look on first blush.

  5. #5
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    IF you consider Apple: My XS was underwater for a couple days last year in a river. Someone found it and it was returned to me. Works fine. UAG cases go into a pocket easily, drop proof, both on website claims, and in real life for me...... Use a screen protector.

  6. #6
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    Thanks. No apple for me (it's just a personal quirk, I'm one of those people who hates apple irrationally). I will re-think cases and look at the flashing options. Much appreciated.

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by Erik View Post
    Thanks. No apple for me (it's just a personal quirk, I'm one of those people who hates apple irrationally). I will re-think cases and look at the flashing options. Much appreciated.
    Just a quick note, Apple is better for privacy then an android based operating system. I used to hate Apple as well, but prefer their business model of selling devices vs Google which is purely data collection and Android is one of those avenues.

  8. #8
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    I had a Lifeproof case on my old S7. I liked it better than the bulkier and slicker Otterbox. It still protected well and fit in my back pocket just fine with my notebook. It did dampen the sound a little so on phone calls I would crank up the volume.
    --Jason--

  9. #9
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    Thanks guys.

  10. #10
    Site Supporter rdtompki's Avatar
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    Unicorn Beetle all the way (on my S8). Saved my phone many, many times

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