The most rugged Android I’ve tested is currently $100 off for Amazon Prime Day

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• The Doogee V Max Plus is offered now on Amazon for $629, however there is a $100 off coupon obtainable, bringing the worth right down to $529. 
• It is an exceptionally rugged telephone with a powerful case that protects it from out of doors extremes, with a battery that lasts longer than you would possibly suppose attainable. 
• The V Max Plus forgoes the standard Android App Drawer, the cameras are merely serviceable, and efficiency is on par with mid-range Android gadgets.

Do you spend time in rougher terrain? Possibly you are an avid hiker or climber, or possibly your job requires you to work in off-the-grid places that are not precisely an air-conditioned workplace. If that’s the case, you perceive the necessity for a telephone that may not solely stand as much as the weather but in addition has sufficient battery energy to go the space. 

You definitely do not need to be caught in a scenario the place it is advisable contact somebody, solely to search out out your battery is just too low or useless. I have been there. It is not enjoyable.

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If that appears like a realistically believable scenario, the Doogee V Max Plus may be the telephone for you. The corporate is understood for producing gadgets that may take a beating and carry on ticking, and the V Max Plus is not any exception. 

View at Amazon

Let’s state the plain: this telephone is massive and heavy. Put this in your pants pocket and also you would possibly discover it is heavy sufficient to pull your trousers down. Yeah, it is that heavy. The explanation for that is the ultra-beefy case and the large battery. It is so huge that it’s a little off-putting at first, till you notice simply how lengthy this factor lasts.

Doogee V Max Plus tech specs

• CPU: Dimensity 7050 / Octa-core / 5G
• RAM: 16GB + 20GB Digital
• Storage: 512 GB DDR5
• Show: 6.58″ FHD+ 120 Hz IPS with 480 nits, 16.7 million colours, 1500:1 distinction, and Gorilla Glass Victus
• Rear cameras: 200MP + 20MP + 8MP
• Entrance digital camera: Sony 32MP
• Battery: 22,000 mAh with 33 W charging
• OS: Android 14
• Value: $629 on Amazon ($529 with the coupon) or presently $599 on the Doogee web site.

My expertise

Each time I open a Doogee telephone, I can not assist however snort at how massive and heavy they’re. Once you’re accustomed to carrying round a extra conventional Pixel 8 Professional, the scale and weight distinction is appreciable. On the similar time, I perceive why these telephones are designed as such. 

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If it weren’t apparent by now, it must be clear that the Doogee V Max Plus is not geared toward your conventional person. These telephones are extra at residence in rugged terrain, the place dropping a daily telephone would nearly definitely result in catastrophe. So for anybody who spends an excellent period of time round rocks, water, mud, and different less-than-idyllic environments, this telephone is for you. 

You possibly can drop it and it will snort at you. You possibly can sandblast a wall and it will carry on keepin’ on. It is powerful, and it means enterprise.  

However probably the most spectacular characteristic of the V Max Plus is the battery. We’re speaking hours right here that few telephones can match:

• 1,540 Standby hours
• 156 calling hours
• 142 music taking part in hours
• 45 video-watching hours
• 18 internet looking hours

After preliminary setup, I made a decision to shelf the telephone and see what occurs when it is simply left on. After every week, the battery had barely budged. Perceive, throughout that point, I did not use the telephone and I hadn’t put in any third-party apps that will run within the background. Even so, that is severely spectacular. If I attempted that with my Pixel 8 Professional, I might be fortunate to get two or three days out of it. That is what occurs whenever you set up a 22,000 mAh battery in a telephone: it lasts for seemingly perpetually. 

So far as the efficiency of the telephone goes (exterior of the battery), it is definitely not going to outdo Google’s or Samsung’s flagship gadgets, however it holds its personal within the midrange area. Animations had been easy, apps opened shortly, and navigation had little or no lag. I’ll say that the fingerprint scanner is not fairly as much as par, nevertheless. It is on the ability button and a bit gradual to acknowledge fingerprints. The face unlock additionally generally is a bit hit or miss; generally it was sooner to only sort in my PIN.

If I needed to knock the telephone for one thing, it will be the truth that it does not its Android UI does not include the App Drawer. Due to that, each app you put in will add a launcher on the house display. For many who choose a minimal interface, you may have to put in a third-party residence display launcher (comparable to my favourite, Nova Launcher).

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For photograph hounds, the cameras are serviceable. With sufficient gentle, you’ll be able to take some good images. When the lighting will get a bit dim, ensure you have a really regular hand, in any other case all your images will prove blurry. Talking of blur, the principle digital camera does do a reasonably good job with background blur, so in case you like taking extra inventive photographs, you’ll be able to.

ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation

The Doogee V Max Plus is focused at a selected viewers: those that want a telephone that may take a beating and barely run out of battery. If that sounds such as you, this telephone won’t disappoint. It is a stable entry within the midrange area, and its sturdiness and battery life make it stand out. However in case you choose your telephones extra petite, you must shrink back from this beast.