Samsung Galaxy S7 Active aims to double as business device too
Samsung has launched its Galaxy S7 Active, a device that is up to military specs and designed to take a beating. And oh yeah, the Galaxy S7 Active may also be a business device for key industries.
Chris Briglin, director of product marketing at Samsung Business, didn't have statistics based on how many enterprises are using the Galaxy S6 Active, but there's an audience for sure.
The Galaxy S7 Active has many of the same specs as the Galaxy S7, but does have a larger battery for 14 percent more life than its predecessor. "The key industries in the U.S. for the Galaxy S7 Active are manufacturing, logistics, field services and government," said Briglin.
As noted previously, Samsung is expanding its business footprint. The Galaxy S7 Active, available on AT&T, has a shatter resistant screen that can be dropped from 5 feet on a flat surface. The device also passes the tests to meet the MIL 810G specification.
Tri-State Compressed Air Systems, a distributor of compressors, is a reference customer for the Galaxy S7 Active. The device is primarily being used for service technicians and sales engineers in the field. These companies are also pairing the Galaxy S7 Active with custom enterprise apps built with Android.
According to Briglin, the Galaxy S7 Active is largely competing with durable voice-only feature phones in the field. Like other Samsung devices, the Galaxy S7 Active will reach enterprises primarily through bring your own device plans.
Essential Android smartphones: May 2016
"The majority of our business use is BYOD and that's the same for the Active family," said Briglin, who said the Galaxy S6 Active user base is evenly split between business and consumer.