While rugged phones like Cat’s S48C and Samsung’s Galaxy S8 Active are great smartphone choices for those in construction and the trades, the vast majority of workers and operators on jobsites around the country are using iPhones and Android phones that require a bit of protection in order to make it through the rigors of the job in once piece.
As we do each year, we’ve rounded up our top picks in smartphone protection. The roundup includes battery cases, thin cases and waterproof cases. Check them out below.
Before we get into the actual cases, if your phone will be frequenting a jobsite each day, it’s probably a good idea to install a tempered glass screen protector over the display.
These screen protectors protect your display from scratches but also do a pretty good job of preventing the screen from cracking in the event of a drop. And because they’re glass they don’t have that awful sticky/plasticky feel of the old film protectors.
My personal favorite brand is amFilm. These can be found on Amazon for a wide variety of phones and devices and usually include two screen protectors for under $10. (Best Buy and most carriers charge upwards of $30 for these screen protectors.) In fact, amFilm’s iPhone X/XS screen protector pack comes with three of these shields for just $8 and they come with a nice plastic frame that serves as a guide for easy drop-in installation. (amFilm also offers shields for the new iPhone XR.) And all of these amFilm packs include plenty of stickers so you can use the hinge method of applying your screen protector.
