Meet the world's first smartphone with Sapphire Shield display (no, it's not an iPhone)

Apple’s iPhone 6 is expected to sport a sapphire display, likely being the first widely available smartphone to offer such a screen - which, as we saw not long ago, is extremely durable (though not indestructible). But Apple won’t be the first to officially launch a smartphone with a sapphire screen in the US, because Kyocera and Verizon today released the Brigadier, an Android handset that features a Sapphire Shield display.

According to Verizon and Kyocera, sapphire “is virtually scratchproof and protects from a screen-first drop onto rocks, where tests show it less likely to break than strengthened touch-panel glass.” The screen of the Brigadier is a 4.5-inch one with 720 x 1280 pixels, and can be operated with gloves and wet fingers.

As we told you earlier this week, the Brigadier is a rugged device - that’s why it looks the way it does (see the slideshow below). The handset meets the US Department of Defense Military Standard 810G, being protected against shock, vibration, low pressure, solar radiation, temperature extremes, blowing rain, salt fog, dust, humidity and water immersion (IP68-certified).

Ruggedness aside, Kyocera Brigadier features Android 4.4 KitKat, LTE, NFC, an 8 MP rear camera, 2 MP front-facing camera, quad-core 1.4 GHz Snapdragon 400 processor, 2 GB of RAM, and 16 GB of expandable internal memory. The smartphone comes with a 3100 mAh non-removable battery that supports wireless charging.

If you think the Kyocera Brigadier is a handset for you, you can get it at Verizon for $99.99 with a 2-yr contract agreement, or for $399.99 outright.


source: Verizon