I've handled a lot of rugged smartphones, and I've come to expect big, chunky, heavy, rubberized units that look like tanks and can take knocks and bumps and scrapes — and dunks in water. What I don't expect is a smartphone that feels like an iPhone 14 Pro Max in the hand.
And what I really don't expect is satellite capability.
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With the Cat S75, you get it all.
The Cat S75 boasts a modern, robust design, and has passed more than 100 laboratory stress tests. It's drop-proof up to 1.8 meters on steel, dustproof, dirt-proof, and waterproof to IP68/IP69K.
While companies such as Blackview and Ulefone have popularized rugged Android smartphones, the Cat S-series handsets — built by Bullitt — were some of the first that I remember. The brand positions itself as a professional, industrial brand that is aimed at demanding industries such as construction, surveying, and security.
A big difference between phones from the likes of Blackview and Ulefone, and the Cat S-series handsets is that the latter feels more like premium smartphones. In fact, the S75 looks and feels so much like my iPhone 14 Pro Max that I was reluctant at first to subject it to any harsh treatment.
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One of the first things I wanted to test was waterproofing, so I used it to take some underwater photos.
This worked great, although I did get warnings about water in the port, and these warnings were hard to bypass because the display was unresponsive when it was wet.
There may be a way to disable these warnings, but I've not come across it yet.
While a lot of ruggedized smartphones use rubber bungs on the charging port, the Cat S75 doesn't, with the only rubber cover being on the SIM slot.
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To get that SIM tray out, I had to use a tool. It's not something that you need to do that often, but if you do need to do it, you'll need something to coax the SIM tray out.
I also tested the cameras on land, and the outputs are more than acceptable for an industrial handset. I took some shots with both the Cat S75 and my iPhone, and while I felt that the iPhone shots had more “pop”, the underlying quality felt very similar.
On the ruggedized front, the Cat S75 is tough.
Very tough.
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It feels a bit weird initially to be dropping and banging a handset that feels like my iPhone, and the shell itself feels very plasticky, but this handset took all the punishment I could dish at it, no problem. I keep my iPhone 14 Pro Max in a case, and this makes it bulkier in the hand and pocket than the Cat S75.
That's weird!
As far as other aspects of the Cat S75 go — the display, call quality, performance, battery life — this handset oozes a premium feel. Yes, this is a rugged handset, but it's a no-compromise rugged handset.
The Mediatek Dimensity D930 octa-core processor, backed up by 6GB of RAM, keeps the handset running smoothly no matter what is loading. Not once did I feel the handset get bogged down or have any performance issues.
It offers a smooth Android experience.
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One aspect of the Cat S75 I've not yet tested is the satellite connectivity, but I hope to put this through its paces real soon, and use it to pull off tricks that your iPhone can't do.
Overall, the Cat S75 is a very nice smartphone. It shows that a rugged handset doesn't have to be a huge brick, and that it can look equally at home in an air-conditioned office or a muddy field. Even putting aside the satellite communication feature, it's a very well-made handset, and one that has been engineered, rather than overbuilt, to be tough.