REVIEW | CAT S62 Smartphone – tough and ready for anything

Trustworthy, reliable, tough, and dare I say good looking, the new top of the line phone from CAT the S62 is all this and at a lower price than its predecessor.

CAT has a long history of phones for those that work in a challenging environment, and with the new CAT S62 they have aimed at creating a device that looks good yet can take as much, if not more punishment, than anything else out there.

CAT brand phones are custom-designed for a particular market. These are not super slim all-glass phones but rugged work devices. The CAT phones are not for everyone and are aimed at the artisan builder engineer and any other person that needs a fully-fledged tool that can survive where other phones would not.

The hardware

Building on the last CAT S60 series phone the new S62 still feels substantial, though at 248g it is surprisingly light.

There are no rubber bumpers on the corners, but a metal band that divides the Gorilla Glass front from a fully rubberised rear. Visible countersunk bolt heads add the rugged appeal that speaks to its intended market. It is a device that can be dropped and manhandled in ways that no other smart device can.

The specifications of this phone are a smart combination of very good with some compromises. The eight-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 660, with the Adreno 512 GPU, 6GB of RAM and a whopping 128GB of storage, offers a balance of power and memory.

The screen is not as high resolution as other smartphones available, but the resolution of 1080 x 2160 and IPS technology does make for a bright and well-saturated image even in bright light.

Another compromise is the single rear camera, which at just 12MP isn’t close to the resolution of other manufacturers. Many of the competition devices are using sensors, with resolutions up 64 MP. In use, the sensor chosen on the S62 did a decent job overall and the HDR modes made for some good pictures. Ultimately the images were not the sharpest, but overall, I was not disappointed with the S62’s picture quality.

Battery capacity is 4000mAh, which is not large by rugged phone standards I was able to get around two days of usage but using the infrared sensor and keeping the screen on gave me a day at best.

Overall build quality is good and the rugged rubber rear and lip on the front to protect the screen make this phone capable of withstanding almost anything you can throw at it.

Infrared sensor

The CAT S62 has a new Infrared sensor, the Lepton 3.5 professional-grade camera that can generate 1440 x 1080 HD output with VividIR. Also, the CAT 62 uses an MSX linear overlay from the visible light camera and can differential a thermal scope from -20°C to 400°C. These are technical terms, but the combination of high-resolution thermal images, overlaid with framed outlines from the standard camera, makes for useful infrared images.

This sensor is superior to the FLIR Lepton 2.5 that was previously used on the Cat S61, and other devices. The Lepton 3.5 has four times the number of thermal pixels as the 2.5 sensors, and the technology is further enhanced with the MyFLIR™ Pro app installed and the inclusion of VividIR™ image processing.

In use, you get numeric averages for the scene, or you can pick out specific highlights with a numeric value of that spot. This one feature could be incredibly useful for those working with electronic fault finding, automotive issues or attempting to track leaks in a pipe in walls and ceilings.

The CAT S62 can also track elevated body temperatures associated with COVID-19, I would not replace your digital thermometer with the S62, but this was useful on occasion.

The software

The CAT S62 comes with Android 10 as standard with little or no added overlay. The clean interface is simple to use with all the standard apps.

CAT has also added a curated app store with a range of industry-specific apps that make use of the unique features of the CAT S62. Many of these I could not begin to use as construction, engineering, and other technical diversions are not part of my daily routine. I can see that many would be very useful in specific industries and activities.

CAT has offered the assurance that the S62 Pro will receive Android 11, and further security updates for at least another three years. This level of commitment is unlikely to be seen from other rugged phone makers.

Conclusion

The CAT 62 offers a relatively unique combination of solid build, rugged features as well as up to date technology. The latest Infrared sensor is unique and offers professional-grade sensing in a device that is priced at consumer levels.

Companies in need of these features also need constant communication, and the ability to work remotely and stay connected with a phone that can take any environment is useful.

If your needs exclude any form of standard phone yet the apps and workflows of your job necessitate any form of connection with features offered by the CAT S62, then there are no real competitors available.

The CAT S62 is a smart blend of the latest technology in a good-looking package that deliver the goods no matter where it is used. The fact that the price is lower than its predecessor and is placed firmly in the upper midrange of phones should make the CAT S62 a no brainer if its features are functionally part of your requirements

The CAT S62 sells for a recommended price of R14,999.00 and is available countrywide.

For more information www.catphones.co.za/cat-s62-pro-smartphone/

Steven Ambrose | Techhuman | @ambio | mail me |