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Back when phones were built to survive the outside world without a case, I never put cases on my phones. The whole Nextel and Nokia and Blackberry era, not a o

Back when phones were built to survive the outside world without a case, I never put cases on my phones. The whole Nextel and Nokia and Blackberry era, not a one. They looked a bit worn from a few years each in my pocket with my keys, but they all worked fine, and they'd all survive a drop to the floor. Today the only phone I'd trust to survive a naked drop would be a Unihertz Titan, but until there's an AOSP ROM for it, I'm not trusting it with my data. So, cases on everything.

thatguy0900 6y ago
There's also a line of phones made by CAT, the construction company, that looks pretty durable. I've been thinking about getting one just to have fun with the thermal camera.
- WrtCdEvrydy 6y ago
  I like those phones and never had one (either CAT or third party) fail... the issue is that the processor / RAM setup is always a little on the weak side and OS updates are a problem. I'd probably buy my first ever iPhone if Apple came out with a ruggedized version of the current iPhone SE.
  - thatguy0900 6y ago
    Yeah, the os updates is why I've been holding off. Basically just have to accept you won't get any
    - WrtCdEvrydy 6y ago
      I mean, to be honest, I didn't pay a lot of my original one (non-CAT) but it's on Android 8.0.1 forever... which isn't exactly a bad version. I wish Android would decouple the device drivers from the kernel space kinda like a desktop OS so your manufacturer could just supply their drivers and you could upgrade the OS at will... a man can dream.
      - simfree 6y ago
        The desktop OSes that use Linux do not have the device drivers decoupled from the kernel. Apple also builds these drivers into Darwin (hence Nvidia GPUs breaking on MacOS), Windows (on x86-64 only) is the only platform that has a semi-stable ABI for device drivers. Microsoft has dedicated many developer years to supporting said API, and all the kernel panics caused by said drivers.
  - NathanielK 6y ago
    Sony[1] has a ruggedized version of their flagship with all the same fancy specs. You might not like the price however. https://electronics.sony.com/mobile/smartphone/professional-smartphones/p/xqaq62-b https://electronics.sony.com/mobile/smartphone/professional-...
    - WrtCdEvrydy 6y ago
      I'd pay it gladly if I knew I could get OS updates beyond 2 years... my issue with current flagships is unless you go Apple, you'll be buying a new one every few years.
- tonyarkles 6y ago
  Sonim too. Got to play with one for a client. It wasn’t pretty, I seem to recall it ran a pretty crusty version of Android, but damn was that thing tough. And the speaker! Oh boy... the app I was helping with had to do with personal safety, and if the volume was turned all the way up that thing was LOUD!
adamlett 6y ago
Back when phones were built to survive the outside world without a case You mean: Back when phones had screens made of plastic instead of glass. And yes, sure, that does make them more likely to survive a drop, but also means the screen becomes a scratch magnet. That of course is the right compromise when the screen is tiny and the pixels are enormous, but not so much when it’s the other way around.
- ASalazarMX 6y ago
  One of the worst ideas was putting glass on the back, doubling the chance of cracking it.
- SahAssar 6y ago
  I think the nokia lumia line handled this pretty well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf1fRu9YgfE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf1fRu9YgfE My lumia 800 went through hell (including being dropped from a third floor balcony onto asphalt) but still looked good.
- xenomachina 6y ago
  Until about 2013, I didn't use a case on any of my (Android) smart phones, and never broke the glass screen. I know I dropped them several times. The worst that would happen was the battery door would fly off. I started using a case when I got a phone that was thinner, and had a glued-in battery. I think having a removable battery actually makes phones tougher in a sense, because I the case of a drop there's an place for the force of impact to go without causing permanent damage.
NoPicklez 6y ago
Well that's just completely wrong. You never lived in that time where people had their Nokia phones in those leather zip cases which completely covered the device clipped to their waist? Or the fact that many Nokia phones had removable front and back cases that you could replace yourself? I definitely remember my screen being scratched.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]

thatguy0900 6y ago

There's also a line of phones made by CAT, the construction company, that looks pretty durable. I've been thinking about getting one just to have fun with the thermal camera.

WrtCdEvrydy 6y ago
I like those phones and never had one (either CAT or third party) fail... the issue is that the processor / RAM setup is always a little on the weak side and OS updates are a problem. I'd probably buy my first ever iPhone if Apple came out with a ruggedized version of the current iPhone SE.
- thatguy0900 6y ago
  Yeah, the os updates is why I've been holding off. Basically just have to accept you won't get any
  - WrtCdEvrydy 6y ago
    I mean, to be honest, I didn't pay a lot of my original one (non-CAT) but it's on Android 8.0.1 forever... which isn't exactly a bad version. I wish Android would decouple the device drivers from the kernel space kinda like a desktop OS so your manufacturer could just supply their drivers and you could upgrade the OS at will... a man can dream.
    - simfree 6y ago
      The desktop OSes that use Linux do not have the device drivers decoupled from the kernel. Apple also builds these drivers into Darwin (hence Nvidia GPUs breaking on MacOS), Windows (on x86-64 only) is the only platform that has a semi-stable ABI for device drivers. Microsoft has dedicated many developer years to supporting said API, and all the kernel panics caused by said drivers.
- NathanielK 6y ago
  Sony[1] has a ruggedized version of their flagship with all the same fancy specs. You might not like the price however. https://electronics.sony.com/mobile/smartphone/professional-smartphones/p/xqaq62-b https://electronics.sony.com/mobile/smartphone/professional-...
  - WrtCdEvrydy 6y ago
    I'd pay it gladly if I knew I could get OS updates beyond 2 years... my issue with current flagships is unless you go Apple, you'll be buying a new one every few years.
tonyarkles 6y ago
Sonim too. Got to play with one for a client. It wasn’t pretty, I seem to recall it ran a pretty crusty version of Android, but damn was that thing tough. And the speaker! Oh boy... the app I was helping with had to do with personal safety, and if the volume was turned all the way up that thing was LOUD!

adamlett 6y ago

Back when phones were built to survive the outside world without a case You mean: Back when phones had screens made of plastic instead of glass. And yes, sure, that does make them more likely to survive a drop, but also means the screen becomes a scratch magnet. That of course is the right compromise when the screen is tiny and the pixels are enormous, but not so much when it’s the other way around.

ASalazarMX 6y ago
One of the worst ideas was putting glass on the back, doubling the chance of cracking it.
SahAssar 6y ago
I think the nokia lumia line handled this pretty well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf1fRu9YgfE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf1fRu9YgfE My lumia 800 went through hell (including being dropped from a third floor balcony onto asphalt) but still looked good.
xenomachina 6y ago
Until about 2013, I didn't use a case on any of my (Android) smart phones, and never broke the glass screen. I know I dropped them several times. The worst that would happen was the battery door would fly off. I started using a case when I got a phone that was thinner, and had a glued-in battery. I think having a removable battery actually makes phones tougher in a sense, because I the case of a drop there's an place for the force of impact to go without causing permanent damage.

NoPicklez 6y ago

Well that's just completely wrong. You never lived in that time where people had their Nokia phones in those leather zip cases which completely covered the device clipped to their waist? Or the fact that many Nokia phones had removable front and back cases that you could replace yourself? I definitely remember my screen being scratched.

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]