Samsung introduced the Galaxy XCover6 Pro in the summer and, just a few weeks later, also introduced the Galaxy Tab Active4 Pro to the world. Now, undoubtedly inspired by our series of flashbacks, the Korean company has decided to take us on a trip down memory lane and revisit the successes of the two robust formations.
It all started with the Galaxy XCover. Samsung’s first ruggedized smartphone was introduced in August 2011 – it had Wi-Fi, an accelerometer, and a touch screen with Corning Gorilla Glass – features not available on many regular phones at the time. The successor was called XCover 2 and it arrived in March 2013. It brought a selfie camera, HD quality video recording and Android Jelly Bean with TouchWiz UI 5 from Samsung.
Samsung Galaxy XCover 2
The first rugged tablet for Samsung was called the Galaxy Tab Active and it arrived at the end of 2014. It was primarily a B2B device with IP67 dust and water resistance for field workers. It also had a Snapdragon 400 chipset with a quad-core CPU, which offered decent performance.
Samsung’s rugged family followed with Galaxy XCover 3 in April 2015. It has a bigger screen, 4G LTE capabilities and a customizable key for quick app launch. Samsung also introduced the Samsung Knox internal security platform – after all, these devices were used mainly by corporate users, often working with sensitive information.
Two years later, in April 2017, we saw the XCover 4 arrive on stage. It had a faster chipset and more RAM and storage space, which are logical steps of evolution in the smartphone world. However, Samsung has also brought MIL-STD810G certification for even better durability. Military-grade standard covers the widest selection of durability tests.
Official images Samsung Galaxy XCover 4s
Big screens are essential and that’s why in the fall of 2017 we saw the arrival of the Galaxy Tab Active 2, an 8-inch rugged tablet with S Pen support, 3GB of RAM and once again IP68 certification for dust and water resistance. Two years later, in the summer of 2019, the XCover 4s got a minor update with double the storage space and dual-SIM capability.
In the fall of 2019, Samsung further improved the performance of its rugged devices. We have seen that the Galaxy Tab Active Pro comes with a 10nm Snapdragon 670 chipset, 4GB of RAM, and a 10.1-inch screen. It supported Samsung DeX and brought touch sensitivity for use with thick gloves.
Samsung Galaxy Tab Active Pro
The Galaxy XCover Pro arrived in early 2020: a B2B device with a 6.3-inch screen and uncompromising protection against drops of up to 1.5 meters. A testament to the business-oriented product quality was a deal between Samsung and Walmart, in which the retail giant agreed to purchase 740,000 units for its associates.
In the fall of 2020, we saw the Galaxy Tab Active3, which was even more advanced than its predecessors. Samsung introduced a cool feature called No Battery Mode, which essentially allowed the phone to run without using the battery, when plugged in. It also had fast Wi-Fi 6 connectivity and MIL-STD-810H certification for ruggedness.
The Galaxy XCover 5 also has the latest MIL-STD-810H military-grade protection, an Exynos 850 chipset, and a larger 5.3-inch screen. It was also the first XCover phone to get rid of physical keys on the front, something its non-rugged Samsung Galaxy siblings ditched way back in 2017.
This quick tour concludes with the latest devices: XCover6 Pro, the first 5G smartphone in the series. It also has 6GB of RAM and Samsung DeX support. The Galaxy Tab Active4 Pro has also joined the hype train of next-generation connectivity thanks to the Snapdragon 778G chipset. It also has other features previously only seen on XCover devices: touch sensitivity, battery-free mode, and active key.
The evolution of the XCover line is certainly impressive, showing how far we’ve come when it comes to achieving greater durability without losing much in terms of user experience. Who knows that in a few years the rugged line may become the latest casualty of its success as traditional phones adopt the same level of durability.
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