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Anyone using Milspec/Rugged cell phones?

Xshot

Private
Full Member
Minuteman
Dec 21, 2009
294
284
71
Evansville, WI
I'm tired of flimsy cells phones that crack, shatter or can't tolerate mother nature. I'm looking at:

Sonim CP7 or 8
CAT S41
Samsung S7 Active
Motorola Moto Z2 Force

Anybody have real world experience with any of them. My needs are simple:

  • Good Quality speaker (clarity, tone & volume)
  • Glass shatter/crack resistant
  • Good battery life
  • Decent GPS
  • Decent camera
  • 4G LTE

Everything else is of lesser importance.
 
Why no iphone with lifeproof case?


Back in the days of flip phones I dropped a "rock" and shattered the screen. Some of those "hardened" phones are bs
 
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Best I had was Motorola v60( flip)Fell off balcony at the bar 2stories on to sidewalk. Flew off dash out the window around a curve somewhere between 20-30mph. Had a cigarette foil as an antenna cause it worked better one day when I was stuck in the mud by myself( aired down to 10psi and got out).
 
I have an engineering business and spend a lot of time in and around water for work.
Currently I have a CAT S41 and haven't been able to break it in 14 months, beating the previous record by 8 months (Samsung S7). Camera is good, phone speaker is loudish (I guess, my hearing is pretty buggered) and the battery is awesome -3600mA from memory.

Also, fuck Apple.
 
iPhone in a life proof or otterbox. Been running it like that years now on deployments. Dropped on rocks, dirt, mud, tile, concrete, and thrown around in packs and vehicles. Cases start to look a bit rough if you abuse em but no damage to the phone. The abused the hell out of my 6S/LP combo and so far, the XS is holding up just as well. Tech has come a long way since the old days of drop once and replace.
 
+1 on any really good phone and an Otter Box. I have dropped my phone on concrete and then accidentally kicked it across the parking lot as well as dropped it off the top of a 6' ladder multiple times and the phone could pass for new inside the case. No cracks, chips, looks brand new.

VooDoo
 
iPhones aren't used by the military (that I know of), unless they're personal ones. The reason is, the phone is not what makes it "milspec", it's the secure operating system (i.e. not your standard android OS, but a hardened version of it distributed by one of the agencies).
 
Not interested in iphones. My last choice would be a consumer phone in some sort of protective case. The Milspec I was refering to are for shock and waterproof ratings.
 
My son breaks cell phones on a regular basis.
He got the Samsung active.
Showing off,
Has tossed it accross the room, put in a sink with water just to piss me off.

It never missed a beat, and has all the functions you want.
My next cell phone will be a Samsung active.
 
My s5 or s6 or whatever has put up with a lot of shit. The lifeproof case was badass while it lasted. I sank that fucker 15ft in my pool one day for ac ouple of hours, no issues.

Those things fall apart, though, and the required 3.6mm adapter is a pain in the ass to keep track of.