Mobile phones for Outdoor activities?

laoisfan

Hi

Just wondering can anyone point me towards some websites which sell mobile phones for outdoor activities i.e. shock resistant from being dropped, splash resistant etc etc.

I did see the Samsung Rocky E1130.

I would be bringing the phone with me while hill walking, mountain climbing. I know that from time to time I could possibly lose signal etc.

I will keep looking in the meantime.

Thanks!

ste2006

Hi,

Have a look at the Sonim range of phones, You can get them at a reasonable price on Pixmania,

I have a friend with a Sonim XP3 Quest Pro, He was digging out pipes, dropped the phone out of his pocket at the start, Never realised, Laid all the pipes filled it all in etc,

Then he worked out he lost his phone and he had it when he started, He dug back out all the earth, rang the phone and it rang, Eventually dug it out of a foot of water and dried it out and the phone is perfect,

They are genius, I am just saving up to get my very own :-)

concussion

I've been using the Sony Ericsson C702 for about 18 months and will get another one if this ever breaks! For regular use, it's very well laid out and easy to use. Internet connection, 3.2MP camera, Bluetooth, torch, radio etc. There is also a micro-SD slot which will support cards up to 2 Gb (I think) so you can save a good amount of photos, videos or music.

For outdoor activities it has a full GPS (Lat/long coordinates only, no Irish Grid). There's a built-in training program which allows you to analyse your runs and upload them as .gpx files and also access to Google maps which makes it very handy to use as an emergency SatNav (the screen's pretty small to be using it as a dedicated SatNav, plus the data transfer could be pretty expensive).

It has an IP 54 rating which means
"Ingress of dust is not entirely prevented, but it must not enter in sufficient quantity to interfere with the satisfactory operation of the equipment; complete protection against contact"
and
"Water splashing against the enclosure from any direction shall have no harmful effect. Test duration: 5 minutes. Water volume: 10 litres per minute Pressure: 80-100kN/m2"

There are videos on YouTube of C702 being flushed down toilets and surviving but I wouldn't suggest doing it yourself! I've dropped this phone several times on concrete, rocks and mud and had it rained on repeatedly - it's also small so that it's perfect for everyday use. Battery life is (at a guess) 4-5 days if just using it for calls and texts. Using the radio/MP3/camera/GPS a lot will obviously reduce this. Overall - I highly reccomend this phone

laoisfan

Thanks! Will do.

Sounds like a good phone!!

concussion

I've been looking online for a while now and can't find it - seems to be quite rare these days The Samsung you mentioned seems good if you want a rugged phone to make calls from, without splashing out on all the extras.

Git101

Have you considered a waterproof case for your phone ?

Handy to use, reasonably cheap, easily available, fit any phone.
I have a couple of waterproof phone cases and use them for a variety of activities including, cycling, hiking, kayaking and running.
Doesn't matter about the weather the phone is always safe and dry.

Some samples here. I'm not recommending this site, just the first hit in google.

hmmm

As Git said, consider a waterproof case. I use an Aquapac - I don't usually have the phone on, but it can be used while inside the case and it has been through the worst soakings Irish hills can deliver.

c-note

i've had the samsung for a year.

It's pretty basic, the menu's, etc are very outdated by todays standards, the screen is pretty small and its rubbish for mobile web etc etc

but
Its spent many a day falling in and out of tractors, has been dropped in pools of cow **** more than once and promptly run under a tap, spent today in a jacket pocket full of ice which melted and was well and truely DAMP all day.
Its been up and down ski slopes and been left outside in the rain

the sound is as good as the day i bought it, the battery is great 1 year on, and it has a good led torch which has proved so useful that i'd hate to own a phone in futre without one.

It has an IP57 certification which basicallly means dust wont get in and it'll survive 30mins under 1m of water.

if you want a BASIC phone that you can drop from a height into a barrel of icy water at night and not worry about rushing to rescue it and keep it under a hairdryer in the hopes it may still work, then this is a good choice.
i've been tempted to upgrade to fancier phones but i know that what this 1 phone has been thru would've killed an army of iphones.

laoisfan

Thanks guys for all the recommendations.

I guess at the moment cost is the deciding factor - won't rush into buying...will wait a few weeks and in the meantime "hum & haw" about it some more.

Merry Christmas!