Smartphones are no longer tough and durable like their precursors. The older mobile phones were strong as a brick but dedicated to calling and texting, or basic level gaming, who remembered Snake Xenzia yet? Over time, the number of reasons for buying a cell phone got increased, and now the users are getting larger screens, more cameras, massive batteries, and higher specs, all in a smaller width device for a higher price tag. But the problem with current touchscreen phones is they are dearer than Featured Phones, yet they can't bear two or more drops even below 3ft height and sometimes a single water submersion is enough to damage a cell phone, as there are many stories on the internet.
If dropping your cell phone suddenly is the cause of the stress for you or a smartphone you don’t like to treat as jewelry, read our Best Rugged Phones 2021 article and get the best pick for yourself. Our Best Rugged Smartphones are tough, durable, shockproof, dust and waterproof, and drop-proof up to 5ft height.
Before going onto the list of mobile, you must know the rugged phone criteria. Some rugged mobiles are manufactured for the army or labor in an industrial environment, those phones are not rich-featured but they acknowledged surviving under critical conditions. On the other hand, several rugged cell phones are assembled while keeping the entry-level features in front, they are not hard but adequate for water splashes or drops in daily life or the occasional purpose for active people with outdoor activities, such as Sportsman (at the time to play).
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Best Rugged Phones at a Glance:
1 – Cat S61
2 – Blackview BV9800 Pro
3 – Doogee S95 Pro
4 – Ulefone Armor 9
5 – Oukitel WP6
6 – Galaxy Xcover Field Pro
7 – Doogee S90
8 – Ulefone Armor 6s
9 – Cubot King Kong 3
10 – Galaxy Xcover 4s
Overall best rugged phone for everything i.e. gaming, camera, performance, and battery life, Cat S61 does it all. The tough device performs outclass in every aspect of durability. It is IP68 rated and can bear water splashes and submersions up to 3 meters in depth for a complete Hour. Cat S61 is confined against salt and sand, and it is also shockproof and pressure resistant. The rugged cell phone brings a thermal camera, laser-assisted distance measuring, and has an indoor air quality monitor.
Cat S61 is a MIL-STD-810G compliant and also rated for Drop-to-concrete resistance. You can make a drop from 5ft height without getting any crack. The other significant features are a 5.2inches FHD+ screen, Android 8 Oreo (upgradable to Android 9), 4k video recording ability, Snapdragon 630 chip, 4GB RAM, and 4500mAh powerhouse.
The drawback, Cat S61 is expensive just like a standard iPhone. The Price of Cat S61 is $700.
Blackview BV9800 Pro is the second-best rugged smartphone of 2021 on our list. The body of BV9800 Pro is enough solid to survive critical environments from plumbing to industrial (IP68-69 rated and MIL-STD-810G compliant). The cell phone has a responsive touchscreen and comes with a thermal Imaging Quad Camera setup (incl. 48MP lens). Thermal Images are created by a thermal camera, which locates the heat source in the surroundings. This is very helpful especially in the wild to check wild animals outside your tent. You can find your family members with this thermal camera even in the darkest night since their bodies are also a source of heat.
BV9800 Pro is 6.3inches tall, running on Android 9 OS, harnessed by Helio P70 processor, and has 6GB RAM and 128GB Storage. The rugged cell phone packs a long-lasting battery, 6580mAh. Blackview BV9800 Pro Price is $449.
Doogee S95 Pro is an IP69 K-rated smartphone and gives the best resistance to dust and water. The Doogee rugged phone is also military compliant (MIL-STD-810G) and brings an add-on body module to let the user add an optional 3500mAh battery and accessory speakers (having personal 2000mAh power cell for a long music play). The primary phone battery is 5150mAh, and hence you won’t consider a second-time charge in a day.
Doogee S95 Pro sports a 6.3inches FHD+ Display, Helio P90 chipset, and 48MP back camera that can record 4k movies. The Price of the Doogee S95 Pro is $370.
4 – UIefone Armor 9
With a rate of 1.2m drop-to-concrete resistance, UIefone Armor 9is the best Rugged Gaming Phone. It is rated at IP69K for top-level dust and water resistance. The handset has also received MIL-STD-810G certification. The Armor 9comes with a 64MP FLIR Thermal Camera setup and useful sensors like heat palates, temperature, and spot meter. Ulefone is offering a large 6.3inches FHD+ display, the latest Android 10 OS, and a 6600mAh powerhouse. There's inside an Helio P90 chipset aided by 8GB RAM. Storage is 128GB. The Price of Ulefone Armor 9 is $549.
With a 10,000 mAh battery, Oukitel WP6 gives days of stand-by. The rugged cell phone is powered by an Helio P70 chipset. Oukitel WP6 is military compliant, gets an IP68 rating, and comes with 6GB RAM and 128GB Storage. Another version is available with an Helio P60 processor, 4GB RAM, and 64GB ROM. The Price of Oukitel WP6 is $290.
6 – Samsung Galaxy Xcover Field Pro
The best rugged smartphone for the geeks who required the best performance, Galaxy Xcover Field Pro is powered by the 10nm Exynos 9810 chipset. The device gets the military-grade MIL-STD-810G certification and also rated with IP68, ensuring 1.5m water submersion for 30mins.
Samsung Xcover Field Pro is also the best for watching Netflix, as it carries a 5.1-inch QHD+ Display. The device comes with 4GB RAM, 64GB Storage, 12MP main camera, and a longer life 4500mAh battery. The Xcover Field Pro Price is $1,100.
Best Battery Life Rugged Phone, Doogee S90 sums up a single 10,050 mAh battery of two half-power cells. It is sufficient to run the smartphone for days. Users can spend a week on multimedia consumption with a single charge. The downside is it took 3 hours to recharge fully, despite the fact Fast Weird and Wireless Charges are supported.
The DOOGEE S90 is a prime rugged smartphone with MIL-STD-810G military-grade rating, and IP68 rated assuring dust and water resistance up to 1.5 meters for 30 minutes. The gadget is drop-to-concrete compliant. The other vital specs are Android 9 OS, 6.18inches FHD+ display, Helio P60 processor, 6GB RAM, and dual 12MP photo cameras. Doogee S90 Price is $290.
Ulefone Armor 6s is not only the best rugged phone but also safe for health. The device does not emit harmful radiations either for the head or body, protects against solar radiations, and keeps the mobile temperature fine whether you're playing PUBG on its 6GB RAM and Helio P70 SoC.
Ulefone Armor 6s boots Android 9, having 6.2inches FHD+ Display, Gorilla Glass 5 shield, and a 5000mAh battery that gives 25hours of talk and long hours for music and web-surfing. The device is IP68 rated and you can submerge the Armor 6s in water up to 1.5 meters for half an hour. It is pressure defiant and resists sand and dust.
The downside is the unsatisfactory camera quality. One more thing remembers Armor 6s is strong for daily life outdoor activities, but not too much hard for industrial surroundings. The Price of the Ulefone Armor 6s is $349.
Best value for money, Cubot King Kong 3 is a strong device with military-grade MIL-STD-810G and IP68 certification. It can is waterproof and drop-proof up to 6ft. The device withstands dust, sand, temperature, pressure, and scratches.
Cubot King Kong 3 packs a 6,000mAh battery that delivers 46h of talk time, 100h of music play, and 20h of video playback. The rest of the features include a 5.5inches HD+ Display, Helio P23 chipset, 4GB RAM, and a 16MP vlogger. Cubot King Kong 3 Price is $220, yes it is the Best Cheap Rugged Phone and hence the user can buy it easily.
Disadvantage: King Kong 3 operates an old operating system, Android 8 (Oreo).
10 – Samsung Galaxy Xcover 4s
A cheaper alternate to Samsung Xcover Field Pro, the Galaxy Xcover 4s brings a 16MP f/1.7 primary camera, which can shoot excellent shots and is capable of 1080p at 30fps video recording. Samsung smartphone is IP68 certified and MIL-STD-810G compliant. The body is too strong and tightly sealed so that it can prevent water, sand, and dust.
The device measures a 6.0inches HD screen that runs Android 9 Pie, driven by Exynos 7885 chip, 3GB RAM, and a 2800mAh power bank. Samsung Xcover 4s Price is $260.