Samsung Readies Galaxy XCover6 Pro Rugged Android Phone with 5G Support

Samsung will bring its second-generation, rugged Android phone for frontline workers, the Galaxy XCover6 Pro, to the U.S. next month. The upgraded smartphone is slightly larger than the original XCoverPro. It has a faster processor, and improved connectivity with 5G and Wi-Fi 6 network support.

While Samsung launched the Galaxy XCover6Pro in other markets earlier this year, it’ll arrive in the U.S. on October 20. Samsung has upgraded its rugged tablet with the introduction of the Galaxy Tab Active4 Pro tablet, which is available now. Samsung, for several years, has signaled its intention to market its Galaxy phones and tablets to frontline workers.

Samsung’s Saurabh Shah

Samsung senior B2B product manager Saurabh Shah told media and analysts that the company is bullish about the rugged market. Shah said the rugged device market will reach $6 billion by 2025 at a compounded annual growth rate of 6.7%. Shah argued that Samsung offers a viable alternative to more expensive devices.

“There are consumer-grade devices which are rugged, but only with the case on,” Shah said. “On the other hand, you have more traditional rugged devices which are many times heavier [and] over-engineered. Because of that, they are expensive. We think we are in a unique position.”

Samsung’s Jiin Park

Samsung senior B2B product marketing manager Jiin Park indicated that its partners had played an important role in the company’s entry into the rugged market. “Our partner ecosystem is a huge benefit to businesses,” she said. “Using our partner ecosystem, businesses can integrate apps specific to their industry specs and requirements. And there is the flexibility to customize the solution to meet these unique business needs.”

Samsung introduced its first rugged phone, the Galaxy XCoverPro, in January 2020, just before the pandemic. Officials at the time said Samsung’s inaugural rugged phone is like its consumer Galaxy phones. But Samsung designed the XCoverPro to withstand being dropped or getting wet and added a push-to-talk walkie-talkie feature. Samsung and Microsoft also partnered to integrate Teams with the device’s push-to-talk option.

XCoverPro 6 Specs

Samsung’s Galaxy XCover6 Pro rugged phone

Unlike Samsung’s consumer phones, the company also introduced a replaceable battery in the upgraded XCoverPro 6. The new device is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 778G processor and comes with more memory, 6GB instead of 4GB. Samsung doubled the internal storage to 128GB (and support for a 1 TB micro-SD Card, versus 512GB). Samsung also boosted the size from 6.3-inches to 6.6-inches. It is IP68, MIL-STD-810H rated.

Samsung also said it would support the phone through four full-version updates of the Android operating system. It will come with Android 12, meaning Samsung will support the device with up to Android 16. Samsung is also offering its Knox mobile device management tool free for the first year.

The Galaxy XCoverPro 6 also now supports Samsung DeX, as does the Galaxy Tab Active4 Pro. Samsung DeX lets users connect their devices to an external display, keyboard and mouse. Samsung also has enabled the new devices to mount into an mPOS docking station for point-of-sale environments.

Samsung hasn’t disclosed pricing, but when the company launched the XCoverPro in 2020, the starting price was $499.

Tab Active4 Pro Tablet

Samsung’s Galaxy Tab Active4 Pro tablet

The Galaxy Tab Active4 Pro supports Sub6 5G and Wi-Fi 6 and has optional Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) private network capability. Samsung said it offers improved near-field communications (NFC) and the company’s mobile Knox Platform for POS for retail point-of-sale use. That includes Knox Capture for scanning bar codes.

Samsung will support the Tab Active4 Pro through three operating system versions, meaning it will stay in support through Android 15. Powered by a Qualcomm SM73255 CPU and Octa Core processor, the Tab Active4 Pro is MIL-STD 810H rated and can withstand drops of 3 feet. It supports Wireless DeX, compared with the XCoverPro 6, which requires a wired connection. Samsung is also offering five years of security maintenance releases.

It is available now in Wi-Fi only and 5G capable configurations, with a starting price of $699. Versions with 5G support are now available via T-Mobile and Verizon. Samsung said AT&T support would come later this year.