Samsung has announced a rugged Android smartphone, the GALAXY Xcover under the branding X-treme Edition. Given Motorola’s success with the Defy, there sure is a market for rugged smarphones. An Android 2.3 (gingerbread) phone, the Xcover can live as much as 30 minutes under water (up to 1mtr deep) and has a IP67 certification for dust / dirt resistance. The display is 3.64-inch (9.27 cm) and is made of tempered glass. Camera is a modest 3.2MP with LED flash, which can also be used a torch light.
The device is currently announced in Germany, and the release is set for October. No word on pricing yet, but given the specs, we would expect this to be on the lower side. The Motorola Defy at Rs 15,000 also happens to be our current top pick for an Android phone in that price range, and if Samsung can get the pricing for the Xcover right, it sure has a sizeable market potential. Incidentally Motorola is also gearing up to release the Defy+, which seems to have a better spec sheet than the X-cover.
