durablity

The Sonim XP3: It can take a beating

Testing a rugged phone like the Sonim XP3 Quest is always fun. It's not every day that you get to throw a handset down the stairs as part of the review. With most phones, a drop to the floor and even a few drops of water can render it useless. But with the XP3, it's all part of the fun.

As the successor to the XP1, the XP3 is also built like a tank, bit it goes a step further by being able to withstand a full dunking. We did just that, and even placed a call to … Read more

Go ahead, throw this phone

Last year we reviewed the Sonim XP1, one of the most durable cell phones we've ever had the pleasure of throwing to the floor. As it never made it to a U.S. carrier, the XP1 wasn't widely available in the United States. But thanks to Best Buy's welcome interest in unlocked phones, an XP1 descendant will live in a big box store.

You wouldn't call the Sonim XP3 Quest attractive--the yellow version is particularly ugly--but brawn before beauty is the whole point. Sonim claims the phone can withstand drops to a concrete floor, excessive shock … Read more

The Pre's Strength and Build - Part 2

In answer to a question on my previous post, yes, two of the Pre's falls resulted in scuffs on the corners. Guess that's what happens when a smooth, shiny object collides with concrete... Sigh.

In keeping with a review of the Pre's hardware durability, I wanted to touch on the little USB port cover. This baby fits in there tight, almost too tight. There are days when I'm not sure I'll get it open... Once it is pulled out I feel like it's going to stay on, unlike other phones I've had where … Read more

Chrome debuts new Corsair and Vega commuter bags

Chrome started with a couple of guys in Boulder, Colo., who set out to built a bag that could stand a lifetime of daily abuse. Eight years later, the operation is now based out to San Francisco, where Chrome bags have become the staple of bike messengers, students, and packrats alike. Today, Chrome also announced its sojourn into the techie commuter market with the release of two stripped-down, laptop-friendly bags: the Vega and Corsair.

The Vega draws inspiration from the classic "musette" bags used to feed cyclists in the middle of a big race. Since weight is everything to these pros, the bags have to be minimalist and utilitarian, and the Vega is no different. It's light, tough, and can easily fit up to a 15-inch laptop.

It's important to stress the tough material used in the build: 1,000 denier Cordura material, a heavyweight nylon with a urethane coating to protect from water, abrasian, and grime. Make no mistake about it: these are some of the toughest bags you can get.… Read more

The Iomega eGo portable hard drive can take a serious beating

It's been awhile since we've seen a ruggedized external hard drive come to the market. The last one we reviewed was the LaCie Rugged All-Terrain Hard Drive; it scored well in the speed tests and even withstood a 30-inch drop off a desk in nonoperating mode.

Iomega's eGo camo portable hard drive takes it a step higher and bumps the maximum drop height to 60 inches (5 feet), or so they report. Along with the standard read and write tests, we also took the liberty of performing a drop test to prove its toughness. The day we … Read more