Kyocera DuraForce is AT&T's new Bear Grylls-approved Android smartphone

AT&T announced the upcoming availability of a new and rugged Android smartphone: the Kyocera DuraForce. The handset meets the Military Standard 810G specifications, and is IP68-certified, thus being dust- and water-resistant.

Specs-wise, the DuraForce appears to be very much similar to the Kyocera Brigadier that was released several months back by Verizon Wireless. The handset runs Android 4.4 KitKat, and offers: a 4.5-inch 720p display, quad-core 1.4 GHz Snapdragon 400 processor, 16 GB of internal memory, microSD card support, and a 3100 mAh battery. The device also supports AT&T’s Enhanced Push-to-Talk (EPTT) service. Unlike Verizon’s Brigadier, AT&T’s Kyocera DuraForce doesn’t seem to sport a sapphire display (since AT&T doesn't mention this). 

AT&T will sell the Kyocera DuraForce online starting November 7, and in stores beginning November 14. Customers will be able to get the durable smartphone for $49.99 on contract, $389.99 with no commitment, or for $0 down with an AT&T Next plan ($19.95 per month on Next 12, or $16.63 per month on Next 18). You can check out the DuraForce in action in the video embedded below - which stars “adventure-survivalist” Bear Grylls.

As a reminder, November 7 is also the day when AT&T will release the HTC Desire EYE, HTC One (M8) for Windows, Nokia Lumia 830, and the Motorola Moto 360. Quite a busy day for the carrier, isn’t it?


source: AT&T