Survival Cellphone

Ivan said...Iphone is very "cool" but I'd rather carry a Mil-spec phone. My dad carries one called the rugby, you can drop it in water while on a call and it will be fine! not as pretty as an iphone, but more reliable in a variety of situations.

Thanks Ivan for the comment. I love it when I read comments and end up learning something new that opens to some other things I didn't know where out there.
I've known about tough cell phones for a while, but looking for info about the Rugby I found that today the survivalist has several alternatives to choose from. These are the models I found to e most interesting.

Samsung Rugby II SGH-A847 

  $0.01 (with new service plan)

This one is the second version of the one you mention. Its basically an improved version of the Rugby I with better call sound, better camera and a few other improvements. Doubt I would buy this one but looks pretty good all things considered if you want a shock and water proof phone.

Sonim XP3 Quest Rugged Unlocked GSM Phone 

   $499.00

The worlds toughest cell phone costs 499 bucks at Amazon. Its submergible and has a no questions asked 3 year guarantee no questions asked. The apps and software included isn’t anything to brag about but it has a solid built in GPS, flashlight mode, 3 MegaPixel camera and 18 hour talk, 2 month standby battery.
Besides being submergible and shock proof, it also tolerates extreme temperatures -20C to +55C. Basically if the phone dies you’re already dead. :-)  This same phone was taken to the top of mount Everest and I think that’s the kind of place it  belongs. Dead serious about being tough, I’d say this is what you want for extreme expeditions where ruggedness and waterproofing are top priorities. You have to pay for it though and you sacrifice more “nice to have” features you may want to have, but this is as rugged and disaster proof as it gets.

Unlocked Samsung Xplorer B2100 Solid Extreme Anti-Shock Waterproof Quad-Band Phone Red -International version with Embedded Flashlight 

$149.00-$152.95

Maybe not the worlds toughest phone but this is pretty nice and far more rugged than your average cell phone.
For 149 unlocked, its not a bad deal and the overall size and shape looks practical enough. The flashlight is something I’d really like to have in my iPhone and this phone has it, besides the other desirable features such as shock resistance and one meter water resistance. 25 days worth of standby battery and 9 hours of talk time, this is also something I’d really like to have in Apple’s phone!

Casio G'zOne Rock C731 

  $49.99 (with new service plan)

These are a neat discovery, at least for me. Never heard of these but they seem to be Casio’s G-Shock version of cell phones.
Mil Spec, one meter submergible for 30 minutes and of course, shock resistance as well. A dedicated flashlight button to turn on the LED light, camera, GPS with voice prompted turn by turn directions, these seem like nice rugged cell phones and wish I had bought one when IN was in USA. The battery provides 5 hours talk time and about 25 days of stand by. It also includes more typical pathfinder Casio watch features like thermometer, and tide cycles which I find to be pretty neat.
The Casio G'zOne Brigade has some similar features as its brother but includes a keyboard.



I'm not getting rid of my iPhone any time soon. The thing is like an AR rifle  when it comes to add-ons, accesories and apps for it, and using the Otter Box Defender case, its pretty rugged and drop-proof. Wish I had laerned about these cellphones before though. Probably would have snatched one to keep in the jacket or bag as an emergency cell phone.

FerFAL