Consumer Smartphones vs Rugged Handhelds — How can providers of rugged handhelds prevail against the competition from inexpensive consumer tech?

by conradb212

What is the difference between consumer smartphones and handheld computers that have specifically been designed to be rugged and capable of withstanding a variety of handling and environmental challenges? That is a question that’s been asked ever since the advent of modern smartphones, which is generally since the Apple iPhone was introduced in 2007.

Opportunity or challenge?

The question comes up because the massive global (and initially unanticipated) success of smartphones has been both a big opportunity for the rugged handheld industry, as well as a frustrating challenge.

It was an opportunity because the increasingly universal use of and ensuing familiarity with smartphones opened new markets for handheld computers. Many of these were markets where automation was not previously considered or considered feasible. Many rugged handheld manufacturers and resellers saw the possibility of vastly increased sales.

The challenge, however, turned out to be many customers’ decision to go with consumer smartphones in protective cases. A good number of national chains decided to go this way, purchasing large numbers of smartphones in a case. If they broke, they would simply be replaced. As a result, rugged handheld manufacturers did not see the anticipated growth in sales.

This has been a much debated issue in the industry. It all, of course, comes down to total cost of ownership. For years, makers of rugged computing gear have claimed that the total cost of ownership of rugged gear is lower than that of using consumer tech in a case.

Pros and cons

As for commentary and discussion, on the surface one would think that consumer smartphones, almost invariably wafer-thin, would be ill-suited for use on the job. It is indeed unclear why consumer smartphones must be as slender and fragile as they are. There seems no other reason other than fashion and marketing. As is, there’s the paradox that people buy millions of sleek colorful phones because they look so good, but they can’t even be used (or even held because they are so slippery) without immediately being put in a case.

Cost is always an issue. When the rugged vs consumer tech in a case discussion started over a decade ago, the iPhone cost $499 whereas most rugged handhelds cost several times that amount. Today, you CAN still buy an iPhone SE for $399, but you can also spend $1300 for an iPhone 12 Pro Max. At the same time, many rugged handhelds have come down in price. Overall, the trend is that rugged gear becomes less expensive when consumer tech in the same or similar firm factor and functionality becomes commercially successful. Consumer tech, on the other hand, may become more and more expensive with worldwide success.

The rugged computer market, while fairly sizable, has never been large enough for consumer tech giants to take an interest in it and offer fully ruggedized versions of their products. Apple never has, Samsung and other Android vendors have to some extent, but nothing truly “rugged.” There have been examples of traditional rugged vendors embedding consumer tech in dedicated, fully rugged cases. An example is Two Technologies that’s been building such hybrids for years. Another example is MobileDemand that’s been offering dedicated rugged cases for both iPads and Microsoft Surface tablets that go well beyond the typical “protective case.”

The arguments for rugged

Most makers of rugged systems are critical of consumer tech in a case. They argue that in order for a device to truly hold up in daily use on the job, it must be designed and built “rugged from the ground up” and/or “rugged inside out.” Having disassembled and documented hundreds of rugged handhelds as well as consumer devices, I found the difference to be indeed very large. Consumer tech is generally minimized to the max, fragile, and often impossible to service or repair.

Rugged tech remains more modular, it uses tougher materials, it’s easier to service and repair, and it is more configurable, customizable and adaptable. In addition, rugged handhelds are almost always subjected to numerous MIL-STD testing procedures and certified for having passed them.

That said, consumer tech has made some progress in durability and protection, most notably in shatter and scratch-resistant screens and in waterproofing. Some iPhones can now handle full immersion to depths of almost 20 feet, something rugged devices with all their ports and interfaces cannot do. Likewise, even a modest protective case makes many modern smartphones capable of surviving drops from higher than the four or five feet that is standard in ruggedness testing.

Rugged handheld manufacturers point towards their experience with rugged devices and the markets they serve, with their expertise and service, their understanding of specific needs and special requirements of numerous markets, something that consumer tech makers cannot offer and are not interested in.

Drawbacks to inherently rugged handhelds is that they are generally a bit behind the state-of-the art. Consumer tech is reinvented and changed every year. Rugged tech has a much longer life cycle, and is often behind. On the other hand, with consumer tech everything changes from year to year. Broken units may not be able to be replaced with the same product. New product will inevitably mean new and different cases, chargers, batteries, procedures, peripherals, etc., etc.

No easy answers

Is there be a recipe for making a rugged handheld device that would make the decision between rugged and consumer tech easy? There is no general answer to that. Almost every single rugged handheld is designed for a purpose. Some for scanning, some for outdoor use, some for extreme ruggedness, some for use in the cold, some for long battery life, some for lowest possible size and weight, some to be expandable, some for lowest cost. That’s different from consumer tech where what matters is style, performance, and having the latest in tech and fashion.

Does that mean the market for rugged handhelds is doomed to remain a niche, or may even go away as consumer smartphones become better protected and better suited for enterprise applications?

I think the market for rugged devices will hold its own and see slow but steady and maybe even significant growth. Most rugged vendors do not need massive sales and constant growth to appeal to those customers that appreciate inherent ruggedness and the kind of service and customization they get from rugged vendors. Also important: any application that centers around data collection relies on technologies that are simply not available in consumer tech, nor will they ever be available in consumer tech. For example, consumers don’t do thousands of laser scans a day, so dedicated scanner modules are not necessary in consumer tech.

What could the rugged handheld industry do to increase its chances to succeed?

One thing is widening the advantage in service and support. Consumer tech is primarily interested in sales. Catering to specific customer needs, understanding their markets, or customizing products for certain markets isn’t something that fits into the mass production model.

Another is trusted brands. The term “brand” has become somewhat relative in our global economy. Virtually all “brand name” notebook computers are actually made by Taiwanese and Chinese OEMs. Likewise, a large number of rugged handhelds are made by Taiwanese, Chinese, Korean or even Hong Kong OEMs. There are today the proverbial “50 shades of gray” in the relationships between who makes and who sells a product. There are still manufacturers that tried sourcing hardware from Asian OEMs, but reverted to a more “designer” Made in USA approach.

Should providers of rugged handhelds concentrate on just hardware or also include suitable software to make their products and services as attractive as possible?

It depends. True ruggedness matters. Suitability for the job matters. Service and support matters. Expertise and knowledge of target markets matter. Availability of market-specific software matters. Quality and price matter. Design remains important (today’s handhelds must look good as well as be tough and rugged, which isn’t easy).

A great opportunity for makers of rugged handhelds is the Android migration, i.e. serving all the many enterprises that traditionally had Windows CE/Mobile/Embedded Handheld devices and must now find modern alternatives. Android itself has its challenges — version fragmentation, lack of upgradeability, endless tinkering with the user interface, and Google’s increasing commercialization of Android while making the non-commercial AOSP version less and less attractive or even usable.

In the end, despite the many challenges I still see the worldwide universal adoption of smartphones as an opportunity for the makers of rugged handheld computers. Within realistic expectations there is great potential for growth. But to realize those opportunities requires a careful combination of merging the best of user tech (style, ease of use, familiarity) with the best of rugged market expertise and experience (quality, service, customer relations, solutions, value-added). Pricing matters, as does credible presentation of real-world benefits of rugged tech. Those includes total cost of ownership, tangible tech benefits, productivity gains, and being there for the customers, no matter what happens.

Comments |6|

Category: Editor