Skip to main content

Samsung’s new rugged phone and tablet tout 5G and 5 years of updates

Samsung is adding a couple of new rugged devices to its portfolio – the Galaxy Tab Active 4 Pro tablet and the Galaxy XCover 6 Pro phone. Both are targeted at enterprise usage and frontline workers braving harsh conditions. The physical buttons on the phone and tablet can be programmed for a variety of tasks such as sending emergency SOS messages or enabling the walkie-talkie function.

Both the gadgets feature a military-grade build and come with a MIL-STD-810H certification that covers everything from water exposure and high temperature to extreme vibrations and high-altitude operations. Notably, these two are also the first 5G-ready rugged devices in Samsung’s portfolio, which is a neat addition. A Wi-Fi 6E upgrade is also part of the package, but there’s no satellite connectivity à la the iPhone 14 series.

Samsung Galaxy XCover 6 Pro marketing image
Samsung / .

Samsung doesn’t reveal the processor make, and instead only notes that it is based on the 6nm fabrication process. The onboard storage maxes out at 128GB, but the microSD card slot allows storage expansion by an extra terabyte. Another neat feature of the two rugged devices is a replaceable battery, and there’s also an option for charging via pogo pins.

Recommended Videos

Going a step further, Samsung is also offering a battery-free operation mode for the Galaxy Tab Active 4 Pro. In scenarios where the battery temperature becomes a cause of concern, it can be taken out, and the device will still function as usual, as long as it’s connected to a charging port.

Samsung Galaxy XCover 6 Pro
Samsung

The Galaxy Tab Active 4 Pro and Galaxy XCover 6 Pro can also be used as POS counters, and thanks to the in-house Knox system, they can be deployed for bar code scanning in warehouses. For the tablet, Samsung is promising three OS upgrades, while the Galaxy X Cover 6 Pro will get four Android version updates, matching the strategy Samsung has put in place for its flagship phones. Both devices will also get security updates for five years.

The phone and tablet come with an IP68-certified body, which means they can survive immersion in up to 1.5 meters of water for 30 minutes. Do keep in mind that the endurance claims cover only fresh water, and not saline water sources like the sea, which is also the case for wearables like the Apple Watch Series 8 and the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5.

Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 4 Pro and Galaxy XCover 6 Pro.
Samsung

The Galaxy XCover 6 Pro’s display is protected by a layer of Gorilla Glass Victus+, which is said to be capable of withstanding drops from a height of 1.5 meters, while also promising high resistance to scratches. The Galaxy Tab Active 4 Pro, on the other hand, goes with the Corning Gorilla Glass 5 that promises drop protection from a maximum height of 1 meter.

For scenarios where the screen is wet, or protection gear is necessary, the enhanced touch sensitivity feature comes in handy — as long as gloves are 2 millimeters or less in thickness. Notably, the S Pen that comes bundled with the tablet sits in its own silo and is also IP68-rated. Based on the market, Samsung may or may not ship the device with a charger in the retail package.

The Galaxy Tab Active 4 Pro is now up for grabs starting at $650 for the base variant with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage. It is available from Samsung and Amazon’s respective business client storefronts, as well as through IT channel partners. As for the Galaxy XCover 6 Pro, Samsung hasn’t revealed the price yet, but it will be available more widely via carrier partners starting October 2, 2022.

Nadeem Sarwar
Nadeem is a tech and science journalist who started reading about cool smartphone tech out of curiosity and soon started…
Boost Mobile’s 5G network is becoming a real threat to other carriers
Boost Mobile store.

Boost Mobile has always been seen as a smaller phone service provider, but the trade-off of that is the lower prices it offers. The company has now announced major upgrades to its growing 5G network.

Previously, Boost Mobile operated as an MVNO (or mobile virtual network operator). In other words, Boost didn't have its own towers — it sort of piggybacked off the towers of other networks.

Read more
I still don’t have 5G at home, and the reasons why amazed me
4G reception bars on an iPhone 16 Pro Max.

As I write these words, seated in my home office, my phone has one single bar of 4G reception. If I go to a different room, I may see two bars.

I have repeatedly wondered why I do not have 5G reception at home. Considering it's nearing the end of 2024, it's a not unreasonable request given 5G launched here in the U.K. in mid-2019. I decided to find out what was going on. What I discovered was a mix of expected, and highly unexpected, reasons why 5G continues to not be available near me.
Do I live in the woods?

Read more
Software updates for cheap Samsung phones may soon get a lot better
The Samsung Galaxy A35 and Galaxy A55's screens.

The Samsung Galaxy A16 5G is expected to launch in India at the end of September. TheTechOutlook first reported the leak, sharing an interesting tidbit of information: The A16 5G will get six years of guaranteed software updates.

Samsung started offering seven years of updates with the launch of the Galaxy S24 (a much more expensive device) earlier this year, a stark upgrade from the four years of updates offered with the S23.

Read more