Telecoms

Taking it to the extreme

October 31, 2009 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines - The talk of floods has become the subject of almost every conversation I have heard recently.

Matter of fact, because of the damage caused by “Ondoy” and “Pepeng,” it seems that Pinoys have become paranoid of any announcement that there may be a weather disturbance coming.

Can’t blame us, right?

And because of the articles I have written on cellphones, it is inevitable that people ask me what is a good cellphone to own in case (heaven forbid) they are caught in a floody situation.

Well, for starters there is the Samsung Xplorer B2100.

The phone seems to have been built with rugged adventure in mind.

“Kite boarding at the beach, trekking up a mountain or just lounging in the pool, the B2100 is built for that active lifestyle,” says the information kit that comes with the phone.

We are bound to believe that this may be true; after all the Xplorer B2100 is wrapped in a sturdy rubber casing, which gives it the feel of being a stylish candy-bar cellphone. I have been told that the Xplorer is strong enough to withstand tumbles in the dirt, falling to the ground, rain splashes and even being submerged for a few seconds in water.

Not one to take the info kit to heart, I took the B2100 to the test.

Test now

The perfect setting for the test was a trip I recently took to the beach in Batangas. Xplorer handy I made my way to get a little sun and lots of sand.

I took a walk to the pool because I felt that dipping the Xplorer in the pool would be loads easier and there would be no chance of me or the phone getting pulled away by strong currents.

OK, so I only dipped the B2100 in the water for three second. Yes, I counted.

I held my breath and pulled the Xplorer out of the water. I got a towel and did some wiping.

Perfect. The phone was working and it did not skip any function even if it was still a bit damp.

Next test.

The rough and tumble text. It’s good that the resort I visited had a large play area for kids. Off to the playground I went.

It is funny how I find it very hard to just drop a gadget on purpose.

So, I did some running with a few of my nieces and nephews — and let one of them run with the Xplorer tucked in his pocket.

Test passed.

Yes, rough and tumble and fall — the Xplorer survived perfectly well.

And lest you begin to think that this cellphone is some lightweight when it comes to specs, let me just give you a lowdown of all that it is loaded with.

The B2100 comes with a 1.77-inch screen with a resolution of 120 x 160 pixels and cool display of 256k colors. The info kit also says that the phone can survive –20 to +60 degrees Centigrade. It was a hot day, perhaps, 30ºC — the phone stayed cool. (About freezing weather, well, I might have to try to make it to the North Pole for that.)

It has a good enough phonebook, which can store at least 1,000 contacts, much more that I will ever need. But, then again, I do know lots of people who have over 1,000 folks on their phonebooks.

Love that rubber

Great casing is one of the most important features in a cellphone for me. I really like it when the casing of a cellphone is rubber — because this means that if it falls, it will bounce. Or at least I hope that it will.

The Xplorer came in a black and red casing — and yes, when I dropped it, it did not break under dropping pressure. Believe me sometimes when I am in a rush the first thing that falls out of my bag is my handy cellphone.

Of course, the rubber casing makes it so much easier to get a good grip on the cellphone. Perfect.

Did I mention the cool flashlight which lit my way through the dark parking lot in Makati? Wonderful.

The other cool techie specs are the 7MB internal memory and the 8GB micro SD. The cellphone also has the now standard GPRS and EDGE connectivity. So, Internet anywhere is a breeze.

There is the 1.3-megapixel camera, which can also capture videos, and the easy-to use- Bluetooth v2.0 for connecting and sharing data with other devices.

Time to simplify

When I meet new people I prefer to deal with them if they are simple.

The same goes for cellphones. The simpler it is to use, the better.

I guess that is what makes the Samsung Xplorer such a great find.

There is so much more under a very simple and rugged exterior. The phone is what I like to call a straightforward phone when it comes to the looks department. And the really good thing is that it doesn’t try to hide behind any fancy exterior.

If it were zen, I would say, it just is. I must say that the Korean manufacturer Samsung has done a really good job with the Xplorer B2100. It is a cellphone that is not flashy, therefore does not attract prying eyes. Yet, it is a great looker so chances are people will take a second look when they do see it.

Time to head outdoors — and yes, I have a cellphone ready for any eventuality that may come my way.

The Xplorer at a glance

• Waterproof and dust-resistant;

• Complies with the IP57 (Ingress Protection) standard;

• Submersible up to one meter for 30 minutes;

• Rated to withstand blowing rain, dust, shock, fog, humidity, water immersion, solar radiation, vibration, and extreme temperature;

• Extremely loud external speakers;

• Noise-cancellation feature optimized for noisy conditions;

• Incandescent embedded flashlight;

• 1.3-MP camera with video recording;

• Music player with stereo Bluetooth support;

• Slimmest submersible phone;