Hotwav has announced a new rugged phone called the Hotwav T7. The Hotwav T7 is one of the lightest rugged phones, it weighs just 292g, a weight that is unusually heavy when compared to normal phones but the T7 is a rugged phone, so if we compare its weight to many rugged phones such as;
- Unihertz Tank 3 Pro – 666g
- Oukitel WP19 – >450g
- Ulefone Power Armor 18T – 409g
Then definitely, it’s a much more lighter rugged phone, the rugged phones listed above are just a few among many rugged devices that are very bulky.
Rugged phones are usually heavier than normal smartphones mainly because they are equipped with ginormous batteries. Some rugged devices pack up to 23,800 mAh battery, another rugged device with a much bigger battery is the Oukitel RT7 Titan, it’s a rugged tablet that is equipped with a 32,000mAh battery.
Getting stressed out mentioning rugged phones with gigantic battery capacity. So to conclude, about 50% of rugged devices released to date weigh over 400g.
Anyway, the Hotwav T7 is not just a light rugged phone, it’s also a rugged phone with decent specs. Although, it doesn’t have much to offer because it’s a budget rugged phone. These are its key features.
Hotwav T7 Details
The Hotwav T7 has a rugged build that comprises of rubber corners, aluminum alloy frame and a tough material used for its rear cover. It also has durability features including IP68 & IP69K for dust, water and high pressure water jets resistance, it’s also MIL-STD-810H certified which means it’s been tested and examined to ensure it’s resistant to environmental conditions.
It’s also drop-proof, according to the brand, it could survive a 1.5m drop above surface.
Further, it features a large 6.52-inch HD+ IPS LCD teardrop-notch display with a resolution of 720×1600 pixels, 269 PPI density, Dragontrail glass protection and 450 nits peak brightness which means the display isn’t bright enough to be used under direct sunlight.
Camera features
At the back of the phone is a circular camera bump that houses dual camera lenses and an LED flash, the rear camera consists of a 21 MP SONY main camera paired with an auxiliary lens while the selfie is 8 MP. The camera has many nice features including Portrait mode, Beauty mode, etc.
The rear main camera could record up to 1080p videos at 30 fps which is okay but the images and videos from this camera is expected to be of average quality. Also the phone doesn’t support underwater camera mode for taking photos and recording videos under water. Although, only few rugged phones supports this feature.
Average performance
Additionally, the Hotwav T7 is powered by the MT8788 (12nm) octa-core processor and it utilizes 4 GB RAM with up to 4 GB virtual RAM expansion and 128 GB internal storage with up to 2 TB expandable storage support. Obviously, the Hotwav T7 is not a gaming device, neither is it a phone that can properly handle tasks as efficient as many other modern low-end phones. This is mainly because of its processor.
The MT8788 is an old 12nm octa-core processor released in 2018, it’s on par with the popular Helio P60 which used to be one of Mediatek’s best 4g mobile processors. Honestly, the brand should have opted for the Helio G99 at least, the Helio G99 is old but it’s still far better than the MT8788.
Big battery but slow charging speed
The device is backed by a large 6,280mAh battery and according to Hotwav, its standby time is up to 50 days which is just pure exaggeration, they probably meant “50 hours”. Disappointingly, it supports just 10W charging. Yup, it’s gonna take over 2 hours to fully charge the device if the battery runs out.
Other features includes Dual SIM, Side Fingerprint, Bluetooth 5.1, NFC, GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, 2.4 & 5GHz Wi-Fi, 4G connectivity and it ships with the Android 13. The device is offered in Ruby Red and Graphite Black color options and is expected to retail for less than $200.
Thoughts
While the Hotwav T7 is equipped with specs that are below the standard of many top rugged phones, it’s fortunate that the device has durability features that is on par with even the most expensive rugged and flagship devices of today, it’s even designed to be more durable than flagship phones.
Finally, the Hotwav T7 is perfect for outdoor use because just like other rugged phones, it’s designed to be able to withstand different environmental conditions.
Source; Aliexpress