One of the best rugged Android phones I’ve tested is also one of the cheapest

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• The Oukitel WP35 is out there now from Amazon for $329. 
• It gives a powerful battery life, a case that protects the telephone from the weather, and efficiency that belies it is sub-$300 price ticket.
• The telephone is heavy and requires a little bit of tweaking to get a conventional Android expertise.

I’ve reviewed numerous finances Android telephones. Most of them fall into one in every of three classes:

1. Handsome however underpowered
2. Ugly however performs nicely
3. Good wanting and performs higher than anticipated

I am all the time stunned at what number of fall underneath the third class, particularly as the value vary drops underneath $300. One such telephone is the Oukitel WP35 5G. In step with Oukitel’s custom, this can be a large, rugged telephone with a large battery.

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Oukitel has been cranking out a lot of these units for some time now, and so far as the market is anxious, it is the clear chief by far. The WP35 is not fairly as beefy as, say, the Doogee V Max Plus, but it surely’s definitely shut. At half the price of the Doogee, the Oukitel makes for a powerful system.

View at Amazon

Oukitel WP35 5G tech specs

• CPU: MediaTek Dimensity 6100+ 5G chipset
• Storage: 256GB (expandable to 2TB)
• RAM: 8GB + 16GB digital prolonged
• Cameras: a 64MP foremost digital camera (Sony @IMX682) with a 1/1.73″ sensor, an 8MP night time imaginative and prescient digital camera, and a 2MP macro digital camera
• Battery: 11,000 mAh for 60 days of standby, 75 hours of calling, 60 hours music, 15 hours video, and 12 hours gaming
• Show: 6.6″ 2.4K at 1080 X 2408 decision with 400 PPI Pixel Density and Corning Gorilla Glass 5
• Sturdiness: Navy-grade drop resistance and IP68 & IP69K waterproof ranking
• Biometrics: Fingerprint and face unlock
• OS: Android 14
• Twin Nano SIM assist
• Value: $329 on Amazon or $299 on Oukitel’s site

My expertise

What stunned me essentially the most in regards to the WP35 is its dimension. Regardless that the telephone consists of an 11,000 mAh battery, it isn’t practically as thick as different telephones with the identical huge energy supply. The WP35 is simply 14.9 mm thick, whereas related telephones (with similarly-sized batteries) could be over 20 mm thick.

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The subsequent factor that caught my consideration was the telephone’s UI. Oukitel has completed a wonderful job with the aesthetics of the interface, giving it an nearly iPhone-like look. Pull down the notification shade, and you will get a pleasant blurred background with elegant icons and notifications, and the animations total are easy and well-integrated, with nearly no lag.

The facial unlock is sort of instantaneous, and the fingerprint scanner (situated on the aspect of the system) does not really feel like an inexpensive afterthought prefer it does on similarly-priced telephones. In reality, the whole lot in regards to the WP35 is rock stable. 

In fact, the large draw to this system is the battery, and boy does it overachieve. You’ll not discover a telephone from the foremost gamers (Google, Samsung, Nothing, OnePlus, Apple, and so forth.) that may compete with the battery life of those Godzilla-sized telephones. If you’d like a tool with a battery that can final and final, that is the one for you (particularly should you’re not serious about paying flagship costs).

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When it comes to performance, I’ve no complaints. Apps set up and open shortly, the show is greater than brilliant sufficient, and there are some fairly fascinating options you will not discover on different units (such because the underwater mode for the digital camera that makes it potential so that you can faucet the display screen and take a photograph whereas submerged in water).

In case you’re in search of a telephone that may take a beating, final days between fees, performs nicely, and will not break the financial institution, the Oukitel WP35 is a superb choice. It isn’t with out its misses, although.

First off, like most Oukitel telephones, the UI does not embrace an App Drawer by default, which bothers me to no finish. I desire a minimal dwelling display screen, however with this system, all apps set up their launchers to the house display screen (à la iOS), which implies it is unattainable to sport a minimal UI.

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Thankfully, that is simply the default configuration. In case you go to open Dwelling Settings (long-press the homescreen and faucet the Settings icon), after which faucet Launcher Type, you possibly can allow the App Drawer. After enabling the App Drawer, you possibly can then configure Android to not set up new apps to the homescreen, and also you’re good to go.

One other nit to select is the sound. It is surprisingly quiet. Even maxed out, YouTube movies aren’t actually loud sufficient to get pleasure from. In fact, to get round that, join a pair of headphones and you will be simply high quality. 

ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation

The Oukitel WP35 is an excellent discount that can serve anybody who does not thoughts carrying a telephone of their pocket that checks the energy and integrity of their belt. The WP35 weighs about as a lot as my Pixel 7 Professional and Pixel 8 Professional mixed (455 grams), so sure, it is heavy, but it surely’s because of the protecting chassis and battery. For the way nicely it is made, it is price each gram.