Cell phone for the field

[s219]

Been real pleased with my iPhones for durability, and I do not use any case at all. I have a 4S now, and it's been rock solid. I switched to Verizon for this one, and it's much better than AT&T was in my area.

 

[unclemoustache]

Add another hip hip horay for the otterbox. I have a iphone3gs as well as a Samsung Galaxy S, and both are wrapped in an Otterbox. To date both phones dont show a ding on them, and occasionally I take both out of the case to wipe them down. The Iphone is two years old, the Samsung is a year old, and I wouldnt dream of hauling either of them out into the woods, crawling in crawl spaces, etc without an Otterbox protecting the phone.

The Iphone sucks power, with occasional use it lasts three days before needing a charge, but if you play games on it a bit at break time or in the docs office expect to charge it up daily.

Believe you me, if Avalancher can keep a cell phone alive for more than a month, then you KNOW it's a good phone (and of course, the otterbox as well). I also have the iphone with otterbox - love that thing. :msp_wub::msp_wub:

 

[Gamedic]

I held off on getting a smart phone for a while, because I had previously broken almost every phone I had ever owned. I will break the clip on any type of protective case in just a couple of weeks. The good news is OtterBox will usually replace a clip free of charge a few times. I finally broke down and bought a HTC smartphone fully expecting to break it very soon. I put it in a protective case which I broke pretty quick. After that I started carrying the phone in my pocket. Two years and one month later it is still going strong. I am a fireman, a paramedic and I own a landscape company. The phone is always in my pocket, come rain, extreme temperatures and through the nasty dust that a landscaper can create. The thing has been hit hard in my pocket. dropped and subjected to abuse that I thought would break a rock, but it still keeps going. I,m glad I switched to a smartphone. They are much more robust than they look. The guys around the fire station have similar stories. Hardly ever do I see one broke.

 

[blackdogon57]

Sonim XP3.2 Quest Pro - YouTube

Check out this video. I have one of these phones and they are as tough as advertised. The company also has an
unconditional guarantee for three years. If you break it you get a new one. If you are looking for a basic phone they
are good but they lack most of the true smart phone features. I keep an ipad in the truck for playing with. I love I phones
but they are not made for guys with big fingers and poor eyesight like me.

 

[bluestem]

I have a personal smart phone, the original Motorola Droid with Verizon service that I have been using for just about 2 years now. It has really held up well, we don't have decent internet service where we live out in the sticks and the 3g coverage and speed is outstanding. I use it all the time and the battery still lasts all day. It is a little beat up but I carry it with me everywhere out in the field.

I also have the Motorola Quantico like Spider through work and it has held up nicely as well. The nice feature with this is that I can put a MicroSD card in it and listen to my music while I run equipment and still be able to receive calls and hear it ring.

 

[BrokenToys]

So far my Casio gZone Commando has been put up to everything except being dropped into my wood stove and it holds up quite well. Sucks it's an Android though-if it was a normal cell phone it would sell millions !!

 

[Genius.]

I have a Nextel i1. It is their rugged smart phone. I was worried about how it would hold up. But I am on 1 1/4 years with it.

I am hard on phones. Farm life is not to nice to them, dropped 50 feet a few times, got wet, I lost it, and retraced my steps only to find it in a pig pen with the hogs chewing on it.

I have had Nextel's rugged phones for over 10 years, and only 1 lasted me longer than this one. Otherwise I planned on a new phone every 6 months.

 

[Maplekid]

Another vote for the casio camando. I have one and put it threw everything. I dont even have a case on it just a screen protector. Rain snow dirt dust and just about anything else you throw at it wont stop it. Dropped it more times than I can count too. Ive taken pictures under water with it. My buddy has the flip phone by casio and it made it through a tornado and still works. He had it on him in the basement when the house got ripped off the foundation. We found his old one too. It was in a neibors yard 150+ yards away and we charged it ( sat in his room for a year) and it still works. That says something about a phone.

 

[jeff-kc9ftp]

Are all phone equal when it comes to recieving/sending in areas that have weak signal strength?

I frequent areas that have poor signal strength, and ever since switching to a newer phone (Motorola Tundra) I seem to have more problems with poor calls. (Had a non-flip Nokia - no camera, not internet capable)

I don't need a Smart phone, but I really would appreciate a phone that would work in marginal areas. (like my house)

Suggestions?

If the service matters, I have AT&T (yeah, I know :censored They're about the only game in town, but I'd switch when the contract runs out in 2012 if going to a different service would help with reception.

I see your from north central indiana, I've spent a fair amount of time around the Peru and Logansport area. I have a verizon phone and carry a nextel for work. Verizon is out of the question for that area. Sprint/Nextel has great service. Several areas around Peru I had next to no service on my Verizon phone. Full signal strength on my previous Sprint/Nextel Powersource phone and now with my Nextel i686. The nextels we have had at work are great for durability. The only problem, nextel's going away in a year or so. So I'd look into a ruggedized Sprint, should do real well if you're around Peru or logansport.

jeff.

 

[esshup]

Thanks Jeff. I'm about 12 miles West of Plymouth, and about 30 miles SW of South Bend.

 

[crzybowhntr]

I carry a Motorola Quantico. I have ran it over with my Tractor and had to dig it out of the mud, dropped it in the holler and the neighbor ran it over with her dually, lost it in the rain a few times when fixing fence, dropped in water, and it is still working like it was new. Had it 2 years and it may look like I had it 25 years, but when it bites the bullet I will look for another.:msp_thumbup:

 

[jasult]

phone

I had the Blackberry curve for a year but I traded up to Droid Samsung Galaxy S II and love it. I am in the construction field and also work on repairs. This phone is great and the apps that are available are plenty. I keep a screen guard on it at all times.