'ZDNET Recommends': What exactly does it mean?
ZDNET's recommendations are based on many hours of testing, research, and comparison shopping. We gather data from the best available sources, including vendor and retailer listings as well as other relevant and independent reviews sites. And we pore over customer reviews to find out what matters to real people who already own and use the products and services we’re assessing.
When you click through from our site to a retailer and buy a product or service, we may earn affiliate commissions. This helps support our work, but does not affect what we cover or how, and it does not affect the price you pay. Neither ZDNET nor the author are compensated for these independent reviews. Indeed, we follow strict guidelines that ensure our editorial content is never influenced by advertisers.
ZDNET's editorial team writes on behalf of you, our reader. Our goal is to deliver the most accurate information and the most knowledgeable advice possible in order to help you make smarter buying decisions on tech gear and a wide array of products and services. Our editors thoroughly review and fact-check every article to ensure that our content meets the highest standards. If we have made an error or published misleading information, we will correct or clarify the article. If you see inaccuracies in our content, please report the mistake via this form.
Doogee S96 Pro: Does things your iPhone can't do
I'm a fan of ruggedized Android smartphones. Many can do things and go places that my iPhone can't. And the new Doogee S96 Pro has a super useful feature that no flagship smartphone has -- built-in IR night vision capability, a world's first for a ruggedized smartphone.
Externally, the S96 Pro looks like many of the other ruggedized smartphones I've looked at over the past couple of years. It's a huge display clad in rubber and metal and sealed ports.
Also: Best rugged phones in 2021
But on the rear of this smartphone, as part of the camera module, is an IR camera, complete with IR emitter. And that's what's special about the S96Pro.
Doogee S96Pro: Android 10 + night vision
- Screen size: 6.2-inch
- Resolution: 1520x720 pixel
- CPU: Helio G90T octa-core processor -- 2x Cortex A76 2.0GHz + 6x Cortex A55 2.0GHz
- GPU: Arm Mali-G76 quad-core GPU
- RAM: 8GB DDR4
- Storage: 128GB Samsung UFS
- Weight: 308g
- Dimensions: 167x81x155mm
- Rear camera: 48MP+20MP+8MP+2MP
- Front camera: 16MP
- OS: Android 10
- Battery: 6.35Ah
- Charging: 24W
- SIM tray: Dual SIM + microSD
- Satellite navigation: GPS, Galileo, Glonass, Beidou
- Protection rating: IP68 / IP69K, MIL-STD-810G
As a smartphone S96 Pro is fast, lag-free, and nice to use. The fast octa-core processor helps to keep things moving along. I've used it for a couple of weeks and not had any issues or causes for complaint.
But it's the IR night vision that sets this above the rest.
While the main camera is a 48-megapixel Samsung S5KGM1SP03-FGX9, it is the Sony IMX350 20-megapixel camera sensor that is used as a night vision sensor in the smartphone.
Night vision differs from thermal imaging in a specific way. While thermal imaging reads infrared emitted by objects, night vision uses an infrared floodlight to illuminate the darkness, and the camera uses this to see in the dark.
There are some limitations -- the emitter has a range of about 10 meters, and it can only capture grayscale still photos. Also, the infrared emitter is partially visible to the naked eye as a dull red.
But it's interesting for sure.
I've been out in complete darkness both indoors and outdoors with the S96Pro, and I was able to not only take photos, but I could use the night vision camera as a way to see and navigate in the dark.
Creepy basement!
Kitty!
It works really well. Much better than I'd expected it to work.
For the price -- currently the Doogee S96 Pro is available for $220 -- it represents an excellent package. Even if you don't want or need the night vision, it's a solid, reliable, rugged and very usable smartphone. The display is easy on the eye, the camera takes nice photos, and it has everything that you'd expect a smartphone to have.
For people who spend time outdoors, especially at night, having a rugged smartphone with built-in night vision capability gives them features that not even a $1,000 iPhone or Android smartphone can offer.