Samsung Galaxy XCover Pro 64 GB: Details, Features, and More

About the Samsung Galaxy XCover Pro

The new Samsung Galaxy XCover Pro is an upgraded version of the popular XCover, a durable phone for mobile workers that’s been a best seller for Samsung in the German market since 2015. The company announced this new phone at the MWC show in Barcelona in February, and then began taking orders in the Netherlands, and other markets over the last couple of months. You get an upgraded 3,600 mAh battery, waterproof (IP68 rating) and dustproof (IP65), Samsung Knox security features, and USB Type C ports, all for about $330. The phone has Android 7.0 Nougat and a quad-core processor, so it will be running fast. Samsung Galaxy XCover Pro has been one of my favorite phone for about two years now, so I was very excited to see the new version announced and to use it for a couple of weeks.

Design

Overall, this is a smart looking phone with metal and glass construction. On the front, there’s a nice Samsung logo, which doubles as a fingerprint scanner. On the right side you’ll find the volume rocker, power button, and dedicated camera button. On the bottom, you’ll find a microUSB port and headphone jack. On the back, you’ll find a 16-megapixel camera, with LED flash, and fingerprint scanner. There’s a Samsung logo next to the camera, and we’re guessing that’s where you’d find the Bixby button. In short, this is not a looker, but it is a classy looking device. Display It’s a 6-inch Super AMOLED panel with a 1920 x 1080 resolution. This is a 1080p panel, rather than a 1440p one, which is great news for battery life.

Hardware Overview

Galaxy Xcover Pro Design Samsung Galaxy Xcover Pro Specs The following information is based on a Samsung representative’s unconfirmed information, who, during my review, claimed that the XCover Pro may not have the newest chipset in the X-series, but will run on top of an Exynos 7420 chip. What does that mean? It means it’ll run the latest iteration of Samsung’s TouchWiz user interface. It’ll be highly optimized and will probably perform slightly better than an Exynos 7420-powered Galaxy S6. Galaxy Xcover Pro Hardware The Galaxy Xcover Pro, along with most other devices in the X-series, offers a 7.5-inch screen and a 5-megapixel rear camera. It also has a 2,600 mAh battery. Samsung loaded the device with an AP-150 Dual-core SoC, also known as the Exynos 5 Octa 7420.

Camera

Top of the line cameras are now available in every phone in 2017 and the latest Samsung flagship devices, such as the Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8 Plus, and Galaxy Note 8 are great examples of that. With the exception of the Note 8, they all sport an impressive camera with great performance, although some have a performance advantage. Read More The Galaxy S8 is Samsung’s biggest gamble in years. I’ve been testing the phone over the past several weeks and it’s so good, I can’t wait to tell you more about it. Camera Samples Photos Additional Photos Sample Photos Additional Photos Samsung introduced its new camera hardware with the Galaxy S6 last year and, frankly, it wasn’t anything amazing. The Galaxy S7 was a bit better, and the Galaxy S8 was a bit better.

Software

The final decision on whether to use Android or Windows 10 Mobile is down to the operating system. I have a huge list of reasons to stick with Android, but many people love Windows Phone. It’s the second most popular OS around the world after Android, so why would you not want to use it? It’s one of the most innovative operating systems out there. The US is the biggest market for Windows phones and carriers such as AT&T have heavily promoted the platform. When it comes to Android vs Windows Phone, I believe it comes down to the user experience. There are lots of reasons to choose Android, but Windows Phone is not dead. In fact, Windows 10 Mobile is as popular as ever. In January, Samsung released a new Galaxy S7 variant for the enterprise, which will be known as the Galaxy S7 Active.

Conclusion

The XCover Pro is a rugged version of the Samsung Galaxy S7 Active (and S7 Edge and S6 Active and S6 Edge) with lots of extra features. It’s one of the only rugged smartphones that has a permanently attached fingerprint scanner. It’s waterproof (but not for swimming) and the S7 Active has a “nose cam” for taking selfies and video. I’ve been spending a lot of time with it, trying it out, and think it’s one of the best rugged phones I’ve tested so far.