DeWalt are launching a tough Android powered smartphone for the British market in 2016.
The launch date of the device is rumoured to be early summer with the 16GB edition costing £379.
The phone is being made in conjunction with the same company, Global Mobile Communications Ltd, that make the RugGear, CAT, and JCB “tough” mobile devices.
Main selling points are its ability to survive drops of 2 metres onto hard surfaces, extreme weather proofing, and waterproofing. The Gorilla Glass screen can be operated while wearing gloves, solving one of the construction industries’ most maligned points.
DeWalt Phone: What We Know
ITS haven’t been able to get hold of one yet but Darren Barber, DeWalt UK Marketing Director has been quoted saying “The DEWALT MD501 Android smartphone offers all the performance of a high-end smartphone, as well as the intelligent, robust and durable DEWALT design integrity that pushes our products to excel in on-site environments,”
The large size of the device also means a comparatively long battery. This could prove useful for users that use their mobiles to stream media during the day.
According to early reports the phone will run Android Lollipop 5.1 on a MediaTekin quad-core chip. Inside there are two SIM card slots, an expandable microSD card slot, and 4G compatibility. The phone will be equipped with a 5megapixel front facing camera and 13megapixel rear facing camera.
Is this the first step towards a DeWalt “smart tools” ecosystem or is this just a standalone product? Will you be replacing your Apple or Samsung device?
DeWalt’s official phone website can be found here