Well isn’t this witty: Motorola just announced a rugged touchscreen Android device for T-Mobile called the DEFY.  Get it, as in Defy all conditions.

It sports a scratch resistant 3.7-inch WVGA touchscreen, Flashlite enabled web browser, Moto BLUR, a 5 megapixel camera with LED flash and auto focus, and Motorola’s CrystalTalk PLUS tech which uses two microphones to cancel out background noise. We guess this thing is to be used on construction sites or just really loud and rough places.

Right now we don’t know the launch date of the handset, but Moto says you can expect it before the Holidays.

Read

You can expect it this May for $150.

Read

Pentax’s latest rugged camera, the W90 is all but ready for store shelves.  In addition to taking the usually beating, as indicated by the above pic. the W90 will sport a ring of LEDs around its lens that is said to help with close-up shots.  Has any other camera rocked this feature to date?  It will also include a 5 megapixel sensor, HD movie mode (probably 720p) and a 12 megapixel sensor.

Read

For the hard hat wearing construction worker whose gone through countless stereos and boomboxes due to falling beams and toppling port-o-potties comes the Ryobi Tek4 Allplay Music Player.  Built for the most rugged of job site scenarios the 2GB MP3 player is water, dust, and impact resistant.

Found in home improvement stores across the heartland for $70, the Tek4 has large buttons for use with gloves on, and easily attaches to a work belt or armband.  Battery life should last around 72 hours per charge.  Now all you’ll need is some heavy duty Dewalt speakers.

Read

Lacie updated their Rugged hard drive today.   Aesthetically it stays the same as previous versions, but now includes an eSATA/USB port, which means increased transfer speeds of up to 90mb/s.  You can grab the 500GB version for $160.

Read

Today, Casio trotted out what they’re calling the thinnest ruggedized digital camera, the EX-G1.  And at .78-inches I might have to agree, although I didn’t really do any comparison, but it does sound thin for being shock-resistant, freezeproof, dustproof and waterproof.  And as you’ve probably noticed the styling bites off of their G-Shock line of phones.

Spec wise were talking a 12.1 megapixel sensor, 848×480 movide mode, microSD card slot, 3x optical zoom, 2.5-inch LCD and Advanced Dynamic Photo function.  There’s a bit more details on just how rugged the EX-G1 is after the ‘leap’.

You can expect the EX-G1 to arrive sometime December for $299.99 – it will also come in black.

Capture Life’s Elements on EXILIM Digital Cameras from Casio

CASIO RELEASES WORLD’S SLIMMEST*1 SHOCK-RESISTANT DIGITAL CAMERA
EXILIM G – Waterproof and Dustproof, in a .78-inch,*2 Smart Design

DOVER, NJ, November 18, 2009 – Casio America, Inc. and its parent company, Casio Computer Co., Ltd., announced today the release of the EX-G1 shock-resistant, waterproof, dustproof digital camera-the first in the company’s new EXILIM® G brand of digital cameras. With its smart design featuring functional beauty, the EX-G1 embodies Casio’s endurance-minded features and specifications in a sleek 0.78-inch*2 low-profile camera.

Casio first introduced the shock-resistant G-SHOCK® timepiece to the world in 1983. The
G-SHOCK brand remains extremely popular among consumers and adventure enthusiasts around the globe thanks to its distinctive, unique design, rugged toughness and practicality, even under severe environmental conditions. In 2000, Casio launched the G’zOne™, a durable, water-resistant mobile phone.

Casio is positioning the EXILIM G brand in an “endurance” category, which demonstrates its determination to create digital cameras suitable for top athletes and adventurers. The endurance category caters to those who never quit challenging both extreme conditions and their own limits. The new model was developed to embody this brand concept, using Casio’s years of experience creating technologies for shock resistance, waterproofing and slim-line design.

The EX-G1 is designed with shock-resistant elements throughout the camera, both inside and out, creating a smart look in a slim-line camera with functional beauty. In addition to capturing

*1. As of November 18, 2009, based on a Casio survey of shock resistant digital cameras (excluding protruding parts).
*2. Camera & Imaging Products Association (CIPA) standards.

high-resolution 12.1 effective megapixel images, the EX-G1 also features modes such as interval shooting and multi-image capture which utilize the camera’s endurance qualities. The interval shooting function can automatically take still photos or movies at fixed intervals, enabling users to capture great shots while engaged in active sports such as snowboarding or cycling*3.

“Whether it is the lifestyle that you have chosen or your career path that requires you to carry a camera tough enough to endure life’s elements, the EXILIM G EX-G1 offers an endurance level that will withstand the demands of your daily routine,” says Toshi Iguchi, senior general manager of Casio’s Digital Imaging Division. “The EX-G1, Casio’s toughest camera to date, is a prime example of Casio’s constant devotion to creating cameras to accommodate all levels of photographers.”

Through rigorous testing, the EX-G1 has been designed and created with a shock-resistant shell which passes drop tests including multiple falls from seven feet.*4 Featuring a two-layer construction with a stainless steel outer-casing, the EX-G1 inner body withstands shock and water damage. The camera’s intelligent design is constructed with a resin cover to protect the body side near the shutter and a resin lens ring to protect the lens.

The technologically-advanced design features waterproof performance and corresponds to IEC/JIS Protection Class 8 (IPX8) waterproofing. The EX-G1 can be used at depths at 10 feet for 60 continuous minutes*5. Water will not penetrate the camera even when directly sprayed with jets of water from every direction corresponding to Protection Class 6 (IPX6). Capable of withstanding temperatures as low as 14°F*6, Casio’s EX-G1 boldly captures images where any adventurer goes.

The EX-G1 will hit shelves in December 2009 with an MSRP of $299.99 and will be available in black and red.

*3. A commercially available mount is required to support the camera.
*4. In accordance with Casio’s own standard with reference to the US MIL-STD-810F Method 516.5-Shock, the camera passed a test in which it was dropped from a height of 2.13 meters (7 feet) onto lauan plywood at 26 different angles. However, the camera is not guaranteed to withstand all shocks in terms of damage, malfunction and performance. Moreover, camera shock may result in inability to retain waterproof performance.
*5. Based on testing conditions established by Casio.
*6. Battery life will be shorter than under normal temperature conditions.

EXILIM G EX-G1
Shock-Resistant, Waterproof, Dustproof, Slim-line Digital Camera

Slim-line Design with Toughness Construction
Shock Resistance
The EXILIM G EX-G1 offers the world’s thinnest profile*1 of .78 inch (excluding protruding parts) in a shock-resistant digital camera. The camera passed multiple drop tests of seven feet based on Casio’s own standard*2.

Waterproof/Dustproof
The EX-G1 offers waterproof performance corresponding to IEC/JIS Protection Class 8 (IPX8) waterproofing, and can be used for 60 continuous minutes at a water depth of 10 feet*3. It also withstands water jets corresponding to IEC/JIS Protection Class 6 “IPX6″ waterproofing, and can be directly rinsed under running water. The EX-G1 is also impervious to dust, with performance corresponding to IEC/JIS Protection Class 6 “IP6X” dustproofing.

Freezeproof
Withstanding ever the coldest of temperatures, the EX-G1 endures through temperatures as low as 14 °F*4.

Shock resistant/waterproof construction and design
Exterior
The outer body of the EX-G1 is made from stainless steel to withstand external shocks while a polycarbonate cover absorbs shocks to the body side near the shutter. The camera’s wrist-strap holder is made of die-cast zinc to withstand drops while a rotating lock secures the external memory slot cover. For additional protection, the EX-G1 comes with two types of detachable protectors to absorb shocks.

Internal construction
The waterproof inner body of the camera is made from polycarbonate reinforced with fiberglass while a buckle-lock construction is added to absorb impact, using fewer screws to secure the inner body. Additionally, the camera’s frame comes equipped with speaker and microphone filters to prevent water from penetrating the camera.

Lens
To prevent damage to the camera’s lens, a resin ring as been added around the glass casing to ease shocks to the lens area. With the addition of a reinforced, glass lens cover, the EX-G1 is tooled with a multi coating that is water-repellent and prevents light reflection from ruining pictures. To further protect the camera from impact, high-performance damping material has been added to protect the lens unit from external shocks.

LCD panel
The acrylic plate to protect the LCD from water pressure and shocks is 1.5 times thicker than conventional point-and-shoot cameras. The LCD panel features a resin mount to ease shocks to the LCD panel area.

BEST SHOT® functions befitting a waterproof, shock-resistant camera
Interval shooting
The interval shooting function allows users to automatically take still photos or movies at fixed intervals while engaged in action sports such as cycling, snowboarding, and wind surfing*5. With the EX-G1, users can take powerful photos from inside the action, the kind which are usually almost impossible to capture. The shooting interval can be set at 10 seconds, 30 seconds, 1 minute, or 3 minutes, and the capture time for movies may be set at 3, 10, 20, or 30 minutes.

Great for a variety of outdoor photography scenes
The BEST SHOT function enables users to take beautiful photos just by selecting the desired subject scene. The EX-G1 includes additional BEST SHOT settings suitable for various outdoor situations, such as “snow” and “beach” scene settings, which automatically adjust to prevent subject underexposure due to the brightness of snow or sun. There is also an “underwater” setting to control the tendency of underwater photos to come out looking too blue.

12.1 effective megapixels
This thin stylish model features a large 2.5-inch monitor with 230,400 dots of high resolution and a non-extending 3X zoom lens ranging from 38-114mm (35 mm film camera equivalent).

Intelligent AF
When the camera is pointed at a desired shot, the Intelligent AF function automatically detects the photo subject even if it is not a human face and determines the focus and exposure area accordingly.

Advanced Dynamic Photo function
Casio’s original Dynamic Photo function, which creates composite moving images using the camera’s own high-speed image processing technology, now does even more. When a moving subject is cut out of a number of images and combined with a different still shot that forms the background, the size of the subject can be changed to suit the background image. Additionally, the Dynamic Photo video can easily be converted in-camera into a motion JPEG movie file. Moving graphics such as hearts and bouquets of flowers are included so that users can have fun decorating their still images using the Dynamic Photo function. Casio not only allows users to have fun taking and viewing photos, but also provides innovative new ways for them to create original images, right on the camera.

Wide Screen Movies
The camera also features a wide format (16:9) Movie function. Just press the dedicated Movie button to take beautiful movies at 848×480 pixels.

I’m not sure if Lacie is actually making a better product or just trying to be the first to market with their latest LaCinema Rugged multimedia hard drive, the LaCinema Rugged HD.  Yup, this little blackbox of rubbery goodness can not only survive the odd ding, drop or bump, but can output its content in all the full HD glory you’ve come to expect from your LCD TV.  It includes a little remote control, HDMI output (composite video as well), is compatible with a shit load of video codecs and can upscale your non-HD videos, which is just about the last nail in the coffin for me to be convinced of its multimedia capabilities – it plays photos too.  Adding additional content to its hard drive (250GB, 320GB and 500GB) just means jacking it into your computer’s USB port and a power adapter is included for when your not.  The LaCinema Rugged HD drive looks to be available now and costs $169.99, $199.99 and $229.99 respectively.

Read

It hard to believe that its taken this long for the world’s number one phone manufacturer to build an IP-54 certified cell phone, the 3720 classic.  IP-54 you ask?  That’s the International Protection Rating and the first number means that it’s protected against dust intrusion, while the second indicates it can survive splashing water.  Okay, so Nokia has built an almost tough as bricks phone in their classic style, but what about the features?  This Series 40 phone includes a 2 megapixel camera with LED flash that can double as a flashlight, a 1GB microSD card, Bluetooth 2.1 and a 2.2-inch QVGA screen.  The 3720 will go on sale sometime this summer and cost about $175.

Check the below video and you’ll see that the 3720 has been through quite the rigors of life.

I just wonder if it can take a bullet?

Read