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This article was taken from the September 2013 issue of Wired magazine. Be the first to read Wired's articles in print before they're posted online, and get your hands on loads of additional content by subscribing online.
We put six rugged devices in the path of a bowling ball to see which ones strike out
How we tested
Wired took over the All Star Lanes bowling alley in Brick Lane, east London (allstarlanes.co.uk), and bowled a size 8 (3.63kg) house ball at each device, using a training ramp to maintain consistent speed and distance. Following the impact, we recorded physical and operational damage to the devices, and assessed ease of use, ruggedised features and overall design.
CAT B15 mobile phone
Phones with an emphasis on durability often have to compromise on technology, yet the sturdy B15 benefits from both the latest Android OS (Jelly Bean) and a highly responsive, four-inch Gorilla Glass display. The anodised aluminium and rubber chassis sustained no significant damage, although the plastic backplate -- complete with oversized CAT logo -- was battered.
Wired: Intuitive Android UI; tough; bright screen
Tired: Plastic detailing; naff logos
Score: 7
Cost: £299
Specifications
Weight: 170g
Dimensions: 12.5 x 7 x 1.5cm
Rugged specs: 1m water resist (WR), 1.8m shock resist (SR), -20 degrees Celsius freeze resist (FR), IP6X dust resist (DR), N/A crush resist (CR)
Features: GPS, wet-finger tracking
Fujifilm XP200 camera
This finely weighted compact camera sits nicely in the hand, and the controls are well-positioned for capturing photo and video. It survived the bowling test unscathed, but the video capture and the power both crashed on impact, although we managed to reboot them afterwards. The Wi-Fi setup is fiddly, requiring an app and other sync operations to function.
Wired: Great design and image capture
Tired: Struggled with impact; cumbersome Wi-Fi sync
Score: 5
Cost: £230
Specifications
Weight: 232g
Dimensions: 11.6 x 7.1 x 3cm
Rugged specs: 15m WR, 2m SR, -10 degrees Celsius FR, IP6X DR, N/A CR
Features: 16MP CMOS sensor, 5x optical zoom, Wi-Fi transfer, ten-frame burst mode, three-inch LCD screen
Xplore Technologies iX104C5 tablet
Used by the US Departments of Homeland Security and Defense, this brick of a Windows 8, Core i7 tablet is monstrously tough. It's been tested against rain, sand, thermal shock, high altitude, solar radiation and much more. In our bowling test, the impact sounded like a car hitting a wall -- and the tablet still worked. The 10.4-inch XGA touchscreen is responsive, but attracts fingerprints.
Wired: Ultra-rugged; biometric security
Tired: Very heavy
Score: 8
Cost: $5,300
Specifications
Weight: from 2.3kg
Dimensions: 28.4 x 21 x 4.1cm
Rugged specs: IPX5 WR, 2.1m SR, -36 degrees Celsius FR, IP6X DR, N/A CR
Features: field upgradable and repairable, optional dual SSDs, gloved-touch operation capability
Otterbox Armor for iPhone 4/4S
Dubbed "the toughest case ever built", the Armor shell is locked in place by hinged metal latches, providing instant protection. The level of water, dust and shock-resistance is admirable (even the mesh speaker grille keeps out the rain), and it trumped our bowling assault. However, the buttons and port covers are very stiff, requiring fingernails of steel to use, and the case is so chunky it's hard to tell what's inside it.
Wired: Instant smartphone protection
Tired: Boxy, lacklustre design
Score: 5
Cost: £75
Specifications
Weight: 263g (including phone)
Dimensions: 13.1 x 7.5 x 2.1cm
Rugged specs: 2m WR, 3m SR,N/A FR, IP6 DR, 1,800kgf CR
Features: over-moulded bumpers, screen protector, also available for iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy S3
Pentax WG-3 GPS camera
Despite a wealth of adventure-minded functionality (compass, dual anti-shake), the design is over-styled and gives the WG-3 a plasticky, Fisher Price feel. The 16MP backlit CMOS sensor captures great imagery in myriad conditions, and the camera stood up well to the bowling-ball test -- although the three-inch screen is prone to scratching. Additional perks include geotagging and wireless charging via the Qi system.
Wired: Image quality; advanced geotagging
Tired: Display scratches too easily
Score: 7
Cost: £330
Specifications
Weight: 239g
Dimensions: 12.5 x 6.5 x 3.2cm
Rugged specs: 14m WR, 2m SR, -10 degrees Celsius FR, JIS Class 6 DR, 100kgf CR
Features: LED macro lights, "Night Snap" mode, 4x wide-angle optical zoom, three-inch LCD screen
Panasonic Toughpad FZ-G1 tablet
This rather basic-looking tablet combines excellent connectivity (LAN, HDMI etc) with a stylus, shortcut buttons and a 10.1-inch multitouch screen optimised for viewing in strong sunlight. With 4GB of RAM and an Intel Core i5 processor, it sails through Windows 8 Pro apps and software suites. It emerged from our impact test withouta scratch, suffering no noticeable performance lag.
Wired: Resilient; fully-featured tablet
Tired: Bland design
Score: 8
Cost: £2,015
Specifications
Weight: 1.1kg
Dimensions: 27 x 18.8 x 2cm
Rugged specs: IPX5 WR, 1.2m SR, N/A FR, IP6X DR, N/A CR
Features: flexible configuration (4G LTE, SDXC), HD display, eight-hour battery life, 128GB SSD
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
