Looking for a "reliable and tough" android work phone (as ff5 seems to be out of picture), with decent support in future, and good repairability

[Dulus]

My current  phone (doogee s98 pro) keeps crashing, front camera does not work, night vision camera does not work, body is scratched, dinged and all kinds of damaged. already replaced the screen once.
i really really wanted to upgrade to FF5 for the repairability, support, ... and especially spare parts, so i can keep using it for years....
now i dont know what to upgrade to, as the quirks linus mentioned would really annoy me (for me phone is a work tool), and overall seems FF5 is not that great phone.

my current doogee s98 pro, is actually from hw side pretty decent, but the sw seems to be a problem, as it keeps freezing and restarting a lot, weird bugs like not able to switch to loudspeaker, BT randomly disconnecting, sometimes seems like internal memory is not accessible (no photos in gallery, apps are behaving like on first start, but after restart its ok) etc ... front camera stopped working (could be due to screen replacement as timing suggests it )

i am located in EU, for the 4g/5g bands etc.

any recommendations ?
- needs big battery (long battery life)
- has to be able to withstand beating (no glass back, no rounded edge glass etc), as beside office work i also do a lot of work in data centers and on construction sites
- at least some water and dust resistance
- dont mind it being "thicc boy/chonker" (thick & heavy)
- has to have good repairability ( screen being broken is just a matter of time)
- doesnt have to be 5G
- back camera has to be decent, selfie can be mediocre, ois is a plus
- rather have telephoto lens than macro or ultrawide, if any
- additional camera like night vision, thermal etc is a plus
- wireless charging is big advantage but not strictly needed.
- 2x sim slot (or eSIM + SIM slot) is a must
- dedicated microSD card slot is a plus
- integrated call recording is a plus
- at least some sw support ( even through 3rd party OS) for at least 3-5 years
- gpay/nfc is a must
- full gsuite support (so no huawei etc )
- as stock android as possible

- used to root all my phones, but nowadays its not that needed i think ...
- i do not game on phone at all,
- i do not care about 90hz display etc.

budget is around 600-800 eur, but if its an excellent phone i can go higher

Thanks.

[Agall]

1 minute ago, Dulus said:

My current  phone (doogee s98 pro) keeps crashing, front camera does not work, night vision camera does not work, body is scratched, dinged and all kinds of damaged. already replaced the screen once.
i really really wanted to upgrade to FF5 for the repairability, support, ... and especially spare parts, so i can keep using it for years....
now i dont know what to upgrade to, as the quirks linus mentioned would really annoy me (for me phone is a work tool), and overall seems FF5 is not that great phone.

my current doogee s98 pro, is actually from hw side pretty decent, but the sw seems to be a problem, as it keeps freezing and restarting a lot, weird bugs like not able to switch to loudspeaker, BT randomly disconnecting, sometimes seems like internal memory is not accessible (no photos in gallery, apps are behaving like on first start, but after restart its ok) etc ... front camera stopped working (could be due to screen replacement as timing suggests it )

i am located in EU, for the 4g/5g bands etc.

any recommendations ?
- needs big battery (long battery life)
- has to be able to withstand beating (no glass back, no rounded edge glass etc), as beside office work i also do a lot of work in data centers and on construction sites
- at least some water and dust resistance
- dont mind it being "thicc boy/chonker" (thick & heavy)
- has to have good repairability ( screen being broken is just a matter of time)
- doesnt have to be 5G
- back camera has to be decent, selfie can be mediocre, ois is a plus
- rather have telephoto lens than macro or ultrawide, if any
- additional camera like night vision, thermal etc is a plus
- wireless charging is big advantage but not strictly needed.
- 2x sim slot (or eSIM + SIM slot) is a must
- dedicated microSD card slot is a plus
- integrated call recording is a plus
- at least some sw support ( even through 3rd party OS) for at least 3-5 years
- gpay/nfc is a must
- full gsuite support (so no huawei etc )
- as stock android as possible

- used to root all my phones, but nowadays its not that needed i think ...
- i do not game on phone at all,
- i do not care about 90hz display etc.

budget is around 600-800 eur, but if its an excellent phone i can go higher

Thanks.

I would honestly just get a newer mid tier phone with an Otterbox case. Some surround the whole phone with a sacrificial plastic screen, the rest at least fully enclose the device. Probably something small, maybe even an iPhone SE.

 

Problem with non-mainstream phones is they dont get the support/repairability you're asking for and no mainstream manufacturer has a factory ruggedized phone that I'm aware of. In that case, you'd be looking for the smallest newer phone with a decently well designed Otterbox case.

[Dulus]

Just now, Agall said:

I would honestly just get a newer mid tier phone with an Otterbox case. Some surround the whole phone with a sacrificial plastic screen, the rest at least fully enclose the device. Probably something small, maybe even an iPhone SE.

 

Problem with non-mainstream phones is they dont get the support/repairability you're asking for and no mainstream manufacturer has a factory ruggedized phone that I'm aware of. In that case, you'd be looking for the smallest newer phone with a decently well designed Otterbox case.

i was actually also looking at asus zenfone 10, and pairing it with some very good case as you mentioned, but i am open to any other suggestions.

[jaslion]

2 minutes ago, Dulus said:

i was actually also looking at asus zenfone 10, and pairing it with some very good case as you mentioned, but i am open to any other suggestions.

The durable phones have been tested and most lose to a 5$ amazon rando case and 10$ 3 packs glass screen protector

[Agall]

6 minutes ago, Dulus said:

i was actually also looking at asus zenfone 10, and pairing it with some very good case as you mentioned, but i am open to any other suggestions.

On the repairability front, at least in the US, the leader is Apple. Samsung sort of drags because the ASP program isn't as widespread. Otherwise, I'd stick to one of those two for repairability.

 

I don't suggest an iPhone lightly, as someone who's used both over the years, unless there's a specific feature that doesn't work on it that you use, its simply a better overall experience.

[AndreiArgeanu]

Samsung makes still makes some rugged phones if you're interested in that. The XCover 7 just released this January, but it's nothing to write home about given it's only a 350£ phone with a replaceable 4050mah battery. It's a shame they don't have they stopped the Galaxy Active line with the S8.

[Agall]

2 minutes ago, AndreiArgeanu said:

Samsung makes still makes some rugged phones if you're interested in that. The XCover 7 just released this January, but it's nothing to write home about given it's only a 350£ phone with a replaceable 4050mah battery. It's a shame they don't have they stopped the Galaxy Active line with the S8.

As interesting as that phone is, it does provide a perfect example of a 'rugged' phone that likely isn't as durable as a mainstream phone in a rugged case, unfortunately.

[Ripred]

I find OnePlus to be quite reliable, currently daily drive the OnePlus 11, if your dead set not to have rounded edges, the 10 is basically the same, excellent battery, I only plug the charger when going to bed, otherwise its all day regardless of my use(charger left home), by the time i plug it in at night the average i see is still 65%, speed, well it loads the same apps and pages faster than my wife's 14 ProMax soo, lol, for the best experience just order directly from the OnePlus website

[Dulus]

2 hours ago, jaslion said:

The durable phones have been tested and most lose to a 5$ amazon rando case and 10$ 3 packs glass screen protector

the s98pro i have took a real beating a few times and it still works. The screen shattered once, but it was falling down about 20 concrete stairs and then about 1.5m (5ft) drop on rocks. It actually still worked but the glass was cracked. 
Comparing to previous phones i had in "armor" full cases, those shattered or broke much sooner. 

if the sw would be polished it would be a perfect phone for me right now. the thermal camera + night vision is a perfect combo for my needs. Although the main normal camera is shitty.

 

[Dulus]

2 hours ago, Ripred said:

I find OnePlus to be quite reliable, currently daily drive the OnePlus 11, if your dead set not to have rounded edges, the 10 is basically the same, excellent battery, I only plug the charger when going to bed, otherwise its all day regardless of my use(charger left home), by the time i plug it in at night the average i see is still 65%, speed, well it loads the same apps and pages faster than my wife's 14 ProMax soo, lol, for the best experience just order directly from the OnePlus website

one plus is also for me one of the contenders, a few family members have those and seems to be very satisfied, although probably does not use the phone in such settings as me.

[Dulus]

2 hours ago, Agall said:

On the repairability front, at least in the US, the leader is Apple. Samsung sort of drags because the ASP program isn't as widespread. Otherwise, I'd stick to one of those two for repairability.

 

I don't suggest an iPhone lightly, as someone who's used both over the years, unless there's a specific feature that doesn't work on it that you use, its simply a better overall experience.

few people recommended the iPhone, but i am not sure if i am mentally prepared for the switch from android (also i do need to sideload a few apps that we have internally developed) , also the price is quite steep.

[jaslion]

21 minutes ago, Dulus said:

the s98pro i have took a real beating a few times and it still works. The screen shattered once, but it was falling down about 20 concrete stairs and then about 1.5m (5ft) drop on rocks. It actually still worked but the glass was cracked. 
Comparing to previous phones i had in "armor" full cases, those shattered or broke much sooner. 

if the sw would be polished it would be a perfect phone for me right now. the thermal camera + night vision is a perfect combo for my needs. Although the main normal camera is shitty.

 

We currently are using the samsung xcover series at work the 6 pro and 7 right now are common. THe 6pro is a pretty good phone and the 7 is ok. Both still in a case + screen protector since well even if they are rugged added protection doesn't hurt

[Dulus]

15 hours ago, jaslion said:

We currently are using the samsung xcover series at work the 6 pro and 7 right now are common. THe 6pro is a pretty good phone and the 7 is ok. Both still in a case + screen protector since well even if they are rugged added protection doesn't hurt

i was looking at XCover 7, but to me looks like mid-low end phone put into ruggedized case, the only upside is removable battery and dedicated sd slot. There is no additional features or anything else for it to be a good pick. it doesnt even have fingerprint sensor looks like.