Rugged Android powered smartphone hitting the market from Caterpillar

Rugged phones have been popping up on the mobile market for a little while now and today Caterpillar announced a new Android powered smartphone for the rough and tough customer.  The CAT B10 has the IP67 certification which means that it is resistant to scratches, dust and wind, plus it is waterproof for up to 30 minutes in 1 meter of water.  The other features are not exactly top shelf compared to other new smartphones on the market, but the marketing team on Caterpillar is likely targeting those that don’t need a quad-core processor or even 4G LTE connection support.

The CAT B10 comes with a smaller than normal 3.7-inch touch screen display, an 800MHz processor and Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread running the show.  The back side of the phone sports a 5MP camera, with a smaller web cam on the front side for video chatting, etc.  According to reports, the phone is going to be eventually getting the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich update in the future, however there no official date set.  The CAT B10 will be available globally be the end of May this year and will cost you $500 if you want it off contract, so it will likely be half the price if you can find a carrier offering it with a two-year contract.

Other rugged smartphones that have hit the market recently include the Motorola DEFY+, Samsung Galaxy Xcover and the Sony Ericsson Xperia Active.  These tough devices sport features that are a little more tempting to the smartphone consumer these days along with the IP67 certification.  The Motorola DEFY+ runs on Android 2.3, comes with a 3.7-inch display and a 1GHz processor.  Connect via Wi-Fi and take pictures with the 5MP camera on the back side.  The Samsung Galaxy Xcover also runs on Android 2.3, comes with an 800MHz processor and a 3.2MP camera on the back side.  The display is 3.65-inches and protected by Gorilla Glass.  The Sony Ericsson Xperia Active runs on Android 2.3, has a 1Ghz processor and a 5MP camera with LED flash, 720p recording and a web cam on the front side.  It comes with a 3-inch Bravia engine powered display with scratch resistant glass.  All of them come with onboard storage, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connections and plenty of battery life to get you through the day.