If you need a smartphone for demanding situations, there are a couple of rugged options that can withstand the elements. At MWC 2016, we saw the CAT S60 which is basically the Chuck Norris of smartphones. It’s waterproof up to 5 metres and you can drop it onto concrete from up to 1.8 metres high. The biggest highlight, of course, is its FLIR camera which provides thermal imaging in the palm of your hands.
If predator vision isn’t your thing, check out this new Kyocera DuraForce Pro.
On the surface, the Kyocera DuraForce Pro has a lot of similarities with the CAT S60 smartphone. It has IP68 dust and water certification and it is shockproof with Military Standard 810G ruggedness. At the front, it gets a rather decent 5″ Full HD display that works with gloves and under the hood, it runs on a Snapdragon 617 processor with 2GB RAM and 32GB of storage. Keeping the lights on is a 3,240mAh battery which supports both Wireless Charging and Quick Charge 2.0.
For imaging, it gets a 13MP rear camera and a 5MP front shooter for selfies. The biggest party trick for the Kyocera DuraForce Pro is its Super Wide View action camera which shoots in any given situation including underwater. It records video in full HD 1080p resolution and there will be a case which integrates with popular action-camera mounts. To playback your videos in noisy situations, it even comes with a pair of front speakers that are rated above 100db. Out of the box, it runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow and the power button comes with an integrated fingerprint scanner for better security. At the moment there are no pricing details yet, but we believe it should be rather costly considering its niche target.
Would you consider a smartphone with a built-in action camera? or you would rather have a dedicated action camera instead? Let us know in the comments below.
