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Fujifilm reveals the FinePix XP90, a durable point-and-shoot
Fujifilm couldn't let Olympus, which introduced the TG-870 at CES 2016, have all the fun in the multi-purpose camera space. As such, Fuji has introduced the FinePix XP90, its new rugged point-and-shoot with waterproof (50ft), shockproof (about 6ft), freezeproof (14 degrees Fahrenheit) and dustproof capabilities. Compared to the XP80, Fujifilm's XP90 hasn't changed much, featuring the same 16.4-megapixel, 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor, 5x optical zoom and 28mm wide-angle lens.
The Olympus Stylus TG-870 is a ruggedized compact camera
The Nikon D5 is, without a doubt, the biggest camera announcement from CES 2016—so far, at least. But if that beastly DSLR is a little too much for you, maybe you'll be interested in what Olympus has to offer. Today, the camera manufacturer introduced the Stylus TG-870, a small rugged shooter with a 16-megapixel CMOS sensor, an ultra-wide-angle lens (21–105mm), 5x optical zoom, GPS, WiFi and 1080p video at 60 fps.
Casio's first smartwatch is an even more rugged G-Shock
Phone makers and start-ups were the first to attempt the modern smartwatch. Then, even more tech companies as well as a trickle of high-end watch makers, testing the water to see if their clientele were in the market for a wrist piece with something more modern than literal clockwork. Now, at a time where cheaper fitness wearables and the Apple Watch seem to have cornered the market, it's Casio's turn. The company reinvented its own basic digital watches years ago when it introduced the G-Shock, and its taking a specialized approach with the WSD-F10: a smart outdoor watch that not only does all things Android Wear, but also has a "timepiece" (or dumbwatch) mode that'll last around a month on a single charge.
With this rugged speaker, sound takes a backseat to accessories
It takes a lot to get me excited about a Bluetooth speaker these days. Although subpar sound quality plagued early devices, newer models offer both good looks and solid audio. Even so, most of the current offerings are same-y; unremarkable. Now, a company called Braven has found a way to evolve the Bluetooth speaker even further, with a large selection of rugged wireless speakers. The BRV-PRO was unveiled earlier this year at CES, and while it certainly looks the part of a weatherproof speaker, it's the optional accessories that make it most compelling -- everything from a solar charging panel to a mount for your action camera. As you can imagine, though, those extras add up quickly. I spent some time with the $150 speaker and the various extras to find out if Braven's latest is worth it.
Dell's latest tablet is designed for war zones
If your typical day involves saving someone's life or trekking around a glacier, a regular tablet may be a bit... dainty. That's why Dell has just buttressed its Rugged series with a brand new model, the Latitude 12 Rugged Tablet. The company is pitching it as an extreme tablet, saying it's "designed for performance and reliability in the harshest conditions." Specifically, it'll handle spills, mud, dust and sand, drops from over four feet, temperatures between -20 and 145 degrees F and even an "explosive atmosphere." As such, Dell sees it as ideal for the military, emergency response crews, industrial work and adventuring.
Samsung Galaxy S6 Active heads to AT&T with extra battery power
Samsung's Galaxy S6 broke cover last month and today AT&T revealed its exclusive grip on the rugged device. The IP-68 rated dustproof and water and shock resistant handset packs a 5.1-inch Quad HD Super AMOLED display that touts a whopping 577 PPI to handle your swipes through Android 5.0.2 (Lollipop). Inside, a 64-bit Octa-core processor and 32GB of internal storage do the heaving lifting with 16-megapixel rear-facing and 5-megapixel front-facing cameras for photo duties. In addition to staying dry in depths of up to 1.5 meters for up to 30 minutes, the S6 Active also packs in a beefy 3,500mAh battery. That's significantly larger than the battery inside the regular Galaxy S6. And yes, when it does run down, you can juice up with wireless charging accessories or make use of the Fast Charging option to charge to 50 percent in around half an hour.
Samsung Galaxy S6 Active breaks cover with an expectedly rugged look
If you're looking for a phone with great specs that can be tossed around and survive a swim, Samsung's Galaxy S6 Active appears to be on the way. Both GSM Arena and trusted leaker @evleaks offered a glimpse of the forthcoming handset today, one that features an outer shell similar to last year's version. Like previous Active models, a trio of hardware buttons reside on the front, so don't expect the same fingerprint scanner found on both the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge. They do have to be waterproof, after all. Other than a look at both sides, details remain scarce besides save for word that the S6 Active packs a 3,500 mAh battery. If history is any indication, you can expect similar specs to the flagship while being both shock resistant and dustproof, as this handset will be built to withstand a bit more stress.
Acer's latest Chromebooks are built to survive the classroom
Chromebooks are a big deal for schools because they're cheap and relatively easy to lock down. However, not just any Chromebook will do -- ideally, you want a laptop that can survive bumps and drops from less-than-careful students. Acer thinks it can handle that unforgiving audience, so it's launching two educational Chromebooks built to take pupil-inflicted punishment, the 15.6-inch C910 (shown up top) and 11.6-inch C740 (below). Both have shells that withstand up to 132 pounds of force, corners that handle falls from up to 18 inches high, and reinforced hinges that won't easily snap. The C740 even gets specially extended hinges to make sure it won't flop or twist in high-stress situations, such as a kid's backpack.
LaCie's latest artist collaboration is a hard drive wrapped in Gorilla Glass
For the past two years, LaCie has revealed at least one new artist collaboration at CES, and this year is no different. Keeping with the reflective theme of last year's device, the 2015 edition is wrapped in Gorilla Glass and appropriately called Mirror. After teaming up with Philippe Starck and Christofle for previous releases, the company tasked French designer Pauline Deltour for a shiny 1TB hard drive that's covered in Corning's durable glass material and powered through a USB connection (no Thunderbolt here). To properly show the thing off on your desk, a stand of ebony wood provides a resting spot. If you're looking to keep the collection going, or just nab this particular entry, Mirror will arrive later this month for $280. What's that? You were hoping LaCie would have a new Rugged portable hard drive, too? Well, read on.
Ricoh's new action cam isn't a toy, even if it looks like one
When you're in the market for an action camera, we'd imagine GoPro or Contour would be the first names that sprang to mind. Ricoh is hoping to crowbar itself onto your psychological roster, however, with the WG-M1, its latest ruggedized action camera. Looking more like the sort of spy compass you'd get for free on the front of a magazine, the hockey puck-style device offers a 14-megapixel CMOS sensor and a six-element lens with an f/2.8 aperture. That'll be good enough for 1080p video of you on your longboard hurtling through traffic at 30 miles an hour.
CAT's next phone is so rugged we're surprised it doesn't have a beard
We'd hate to admit it, but you could never really mistake your humble narrator for a manly man, breaking cinder blocks with his pectoral muscles and hanging out at monster truck rallies. That doesn't mean, however, that we can't appreciate the engineering and effort that went into CAT's newest rugged smartphone, the S50. We're told that it's designed "for the outdoors," that terrifying world where there's no WiFi and comfortable furniture we see only in our nightmares. The 4.7-inch handset is coated in a liberal helping of Gorilla Glass 3, but the first time we asked about resolution -- which we later learned is 1,280 x 720 -- the device just glowered at us as if we'd challenged its masculinity.
Xplore's latest Windows tablet promises rugged design without the bulk
Xplore Technologies makes tablets that are so rugged, just picking one up will cause your palms to go all hairy. Up until now, it's made chunky Windows tablets like the XC6, and slender, less powerful slates that are capable of running Android. The Xplore Bobcat wants to sit between the two ranges, offering the brawn of Windows 8 with the svelte looks of the company's RangerX tablets. Of course, this isn't just about shedding weight and size, since the Bobcat will still work in freezing conditions, withstand drops of nearly two meters onto concrete and all of the other tortures most gadget geeks could conceive.
Sprint's outdoor-ready Galaxy S5 Sport packs free fitness training
Americans: you no longer have to flock to AT&T to get a Galaxy S phone that can handle your outdoor adventures. Sprint has unveiled the Galaxy S5 Sport, a spin on the Galaxy S5 Active's formula that revolves around fitness. It's not as tough-looking as the Active, but it still offers both a grip-friendly shell and mechanical buttons that are easier to use when you're on a run. The real highlight, though, is the software. The Sport is the first phone with Sprint's Fit Live, an app and services bundle meant to get you moving. It includes a year's worth of Under Armour's MapMyFitness MVP, which brings custom audio coaching and training plans on top of the usual working stats. You'll also get half a year's worth of Spotify Premium music to amp yourself up, and there's an avalanche of health content that you can plaster across your home screen.
LaCie's popular portable drive adds more convenience and durability
Who hasn't misplaced an accessory cable at one time or another? We've all been there. Well, to combat that issue with its popular orange-draped Rugged portable drive, LaCie has built it right in. A Thunderbolt cable is now attached to the mobile storage unit, wrapping around the edge of the device for safekeeping. What's more, there's a cap that protects the jack and an additional USB 3.0 port with IP54-rated dust and water protection. This means that not only are the drives capable of taking a fall of up to two meters (just over 6.5 feet), but it can also keep debris and moisture out whilst in the field.
Samsung's extra-rugged Galaxy S5 variant gets caught on video
Rumors of a truly rough-and-ready Galaxy S5 variant have so far had little support beyond vague filings and benchmarks. However, TK Tech News has just delivered the motherlode: it has posted hands-on videos (below) of what looks to be a Galaxy S5 Active for AT&T. The rugged device shown on camera shares a few superficial similarities with its bulked-up Galaxy S4 Active ancestor, including the all-mechanical navigation keys. However, this isn't as much of a step down as last year's toughened Galaxy -- the GS5 Active appears to have the same 16-megapixel camera as the regular S5, and it sports an ever-so-slightly faster variant of its sibling's Snapdragon 801 processor.
Olympus Stylus TG-3: a ruggedized camera that doesn't suck
In the past, opting for a ruggedized camera has required some serious sacrifices. Whether that's meant comically large housings or mediocre performance, you couldn't get a fantastic point-and-shoot camera that you could also safely take on the slopes, the back of a motorcycle or on SCUBA dives. This year's Olympus Stylus Tough is the first such model I've seen that's worthy of your 350 bucks. A fast lens, speedy focusing and solid image quality make the TG-3 a great option even if you only plan to document your backyard rose garden or a child's first steps, but it'll also handle much more sophisticated shooting situations with ease.
Panasonic's latest Toughpad has the strength, thickness of 10 smartphones (hands-on)
Panasonic may have bowed out of the consumer smartphone game, but gadgets for businesses are a completely different story. That's why the Japanese company came to Mobile World Congress with a new pair of rugged Toughpad smartphones in tow. You can't mistake them, despite their identical looks, because one runs Android 4.2.2 and the other has Windows Embedded 8 Handheld -- and we just got a chance to see what they're made of.
Ricoh's rugged WG-4 and WG-20 are its first cameras to drop the Pentax badge
Ricoh acquired the Pentax brand more than two years ago, but you almost wouldn't know it when the badging has largely remained the same. However, that's changing today -- Ricoh's new WG-4, WG-4 GPS and WG-20 compact cameras are its first to ditch the Pentax name. From now on, you'll only find the label on interchangeable lens cameras and their accessories. These rugged point-and-shoots haven't seen dramatic changes beyond the corporate logo, mind you. The WG-4 and its GPS-equipped variant add user-programmable and shutter priority modes to the WG-3's basic formula, which includes a 16-megapixel sensor, a 4x lens and a body that's waterproof to 45 feet. The WG-20 (shown below) is very similar to the WG-10, sharing its 14-megapixel sensor, 5x lens and 33-foot waterproofing. All the new models ship in March; the WG-20 will be available for $200, while the WG-4 and WG-4 GPS will respectively cost you $330 and $380.
Fujifilm reveals the FinePix S1, a weather-ready 50x superzoom camera
Fujifilm is launching a quintet of point-and-shoots at CES, and one of them may be just the ticket for those who want both extreme zoom and weather resistance in a single camera. Its new FinePix S1 (above) packs a 50x (24-1,200mm) f/2.8-5.6 lens, yet is tough enough to survive the dust and rain; you can take that close-up concert photo even if you're stuck in lousy weather. The 16-megapixel shooter also offers WiFi image sharing, 10fps burst shooting, 1080p video, a 920,000-pixel electronic viewfinder and a tilting 3-inch LCD. The S1 will ship this March for $500. The remaining FinePix models all share that 16-megapixel resolution, but sacrifice the S1's do-it-all design in the name of price. The S9200 and WiFi-equipped S9400W both share the 50x lens and 10fps burst mode, but lose the weather-hardened design and step down to a 200,000-pixel viewfinder. The entry S8600 moves to "just" a 36x (25-900mm) lens, 720p video and AA battery power. Photographers who need a truly rugged camera can pick up the XP70, a waterproof compact cam with 5x (28-140mm) optics and 1080p movie making. All four of these designs also arrive in March, with prices starting at $230 for the S8600 and XP70; the S9200 costs $330, while the S9400W is slightly costlier at $350.
Quechua's new smartphone aims to tag along on your next wild adventure
Even though it is a pretty populated world already, Quechua wasn't going to let that interrupt the (rugged) vision for a smartphone of its own. The company, which is known for selling mountain sports gear and equipment, has partnered with Archos to introduce the Quechua Phone, a 5-inch handset with Android 4.1. Aside from packing ruggedized traits such as IP54 certification, Quechua's Phone also features a Qualcomm 1.2GHz, quad-core chip, 1GB RAM, 4GB of internal storage (expandable via microSD), a 5-megapixel rear camera and one rather beefy 3,500mAh battery. Other details like the screen's total pixel count or when/where it'll be up for grabs are still mum -- but we do know the Quechua Phone will be priced at €230 (around $310) once it eventually becomes available.
