Galaxy Xcover 2 is Samsung's first shot at rugged telephony for the year, as the Android handset sports water-, shock- and dust-proof certifications . The Xcover 2 upgrades the specs of its predecessor, and throws in some neat features, like a dedicated shutter key and an Aqua mode in the camera...

Rugged yet ergonomic waterproof handset; Good picture and video quality

Outdoor screen visibility could be better; No ambient light sensor; No second mic for noise-cancellation is a challenge outdoors

Modern smartphones are essential tools for urbanites, but they are usually left behind on a trip to the great outdoors. Not the Samsung Galaxy Xcover 2 though, it will gladly join in the adventure and isn't afraid of a few knocks or a dive.

Quad-band GSM and dual-band 3G support; 14.4 Mbps HSDPA and 5.76 Mbps HSUPA support; 4" 16M-color LCD capacitive touchscreen of WVGA (480 x 800 pixel) resolution; Android OS 4.1.2 Jelly Bean with Nature UX; 1 GHz dual-core Cortex-A9 CPU; Mali-400MP GPU; 1GB of RAM; 5 MP autofocus camera with LED

Big and heavy; even for a water resistant phone; Reflective screen with poor color rendition; Battery could have been bigger

Samsung likes to have a phone for any niche it can think of. The latest addition to the Samsung Galaxy smartphone range is the rough and ready Samsung Galaxy Xcover 2. We've been able to get some time with the device at MWC 2013 , so here's out Samsung Galaxy Xcover 2 hands-on review.

Samsung has always enjoyed dabbling with the rugged crowd: be it the original Xcover or the Beam range, it's enjoyed offering up more robust phones. The Samsung Galaxy Xcover 2 brings with it a whole new gamut of features and functionality and really shows straight away that it's not a phone to be...

Rugged; Camera button; Impressive screen

Small battery; Slightly thicker than necessary

Samsung has always enjoyed dabbling with the rugged crowd: be it the original Xcover or the Beam range, it's enjoyed offering up more robust phones. The Samsung Galaxy Xcover 2 brings with it a whole new gamut of features and functionality and really shows straight away that it's not a phone to be...

Due to its weak GPU , the same verdict goes for the Samsung Xcover 2 as was true of the Galaxy S3 Mini : There is not much there.

I ordered the samsung xcover 2 from mobile fun because they were quite simply the cheapest place on the net which had good reviews. There were one or two places cheaper, however the review of their services were dreadful and weren't worth being stingy over twenty quid to run the risk of having some...

When you have a job that doesn't put you or your devices through very much physical wear and tear, it's easy to pick a phone. Which one has the features you want at a price you're comfortable with? Boom, there you go.

So. Smart phones has for quite some while been associated to a degree of almost being synonymous with touch phones, and I've resisted buying one for quite some time, as they have certain flaws compared to smart phones with keys.

Huge screen; sturdy design; sound quality

Battery life; must - look - at - screen - while - typing

The Xcover 2 upgrades the specs of its predecessor, and throws in some neat features, like a dedicated shutter...

Good manufacturing; Fit for outdoor use; Bright display; High contrast; Quick internal...

Relatively heavy; Only 4 GB internal memory; Poor quality front camera; Outdoor screen visibility could be...