The latest unveiling from Samsung is the new Galaxy S4 Active; a phone designed for a more active user featuring outdoor capabilities and a rugged appeal. But is it exclusively just for those active types, or can everyone benefit from Samsung’s macho approach to a Smartphone? We look at the best of its features to see:

Design

The S4 Active features a few minor aesthetic changes from the original, one of which is the visible screws on the back. Although a small design feature, it gives the phone a wholly more rugged and industrial feel, perfect for its aim to be an outdoor, action-proof phone. It also makes it look and feel a little more substantial; immediately giving the impression of a phone that’s built to withstand the elements, and daily wear and tear, more than the standard sleek and smooth look of other Smartphones.

To continue its active theme, the S4 Active is expected to be available in a range of rugged colors, including; urban grey, dive blue and orange flare.

Waterproof

Smartphones are getting considerable more expensive – not that that’s any surprise, as they’re also becoming considerably more indispensable in our everyday lives. Every day, most of us carry around our internet access, valuable photos, entertainment, contacts, important messages, and for some of us, our portable office on one device. Such an important piece of tech needs to be protected. However, a waterproof feature is just one aspect of the S4 Active’s features which really sets it apart. It doesn’t portray an image of being perfectly functional under the sea, yet you can be a little casual with using it in or near water. Whilst you shouldn’t consider dropping it in the bath, you can be confident whilst using it in heavy rain, near the beach or whilst doing water based sports. It does, however, boast that it does hold out for 30 minutes in up to 3 feet of water.

Fully sealed design

Samsung have described Active as having a fully sealed design, which means it will be tougher for dust, dirt and debris to get into the vital parts of the phone. Such a design feature is useful for many situations; being at the beach, camping or hiking, working in dusty environments or simply having it sat around the bottom of your bag with whatever else is living down there. It’s a simple, yet extremely clever feature which makes the S4 Active tougher than other models.

Dust and debris often easily find their way under the back of your phone, and ultimately sits around the hardware and battery. By simply ensuring the phone is perfectly sealed all around should help common issues such as screen damage, cracked cases and battery damage.

Glove Touch

This is much more of an everyday feature, which although will be introduced by the new Samsung, will hopefully be rolled out across all technology. The new S4 will be fully functional even with gloves on, a massive breakthrough for those of us who are unfortunate to experience winter. Touch screen gloves have made their way onto the market to combat the irritation of having a state of the art phone which is useless as soon as your fingers are covered, yet this feature is set to put an end to the hit and miss gloves. It’s great for those who are often outdoors and active, but also a great feature for those who use gloves whilst at work or just like to keep their hands warm and answer calls.

Asides from Glove Touch, the S4 Active has physical buttons on the front of the phone, making it wonderfully simple to interact with in an instant – no matter where you are or what you’re doing.

Aqua Mode

Aqua Mode has been utilized for taking photographs under water, but more than just Aqua Mode, the designers have made the camera feature as outdoor-friendly as possible. Most of us are familiar with rummaging around for your camera, finding the App, only for the moment to have gone. The S4 Active’s camera can be opened quickly and works using the volume buttons (physical buttons, so gloved hands can get snap-happy). It also features an LED backlight to record in low-lighting; perfect for explorers, adventurers and those that often find themselves on late-night, dingy dance floors.

It also features a 2mp camera for recording great quality, no matter where you are.

Les Yates is a technology fanatic and contributes to a number of tech blogs. Les is Marketing Manager at The Snugg – check out their cool Galaxy S4 cases online at Amazon.