Rugged Smartphone

London, UK – 12 February 2019 – Conker, a British producer of business-rugged tablets, touch screens,s, and mobile devices, extends its ST range of devices by announcing the availability of the ST50 smartphone.

This 5.5” business-rugged smartphone has been designed to offer organizations a fit-for-purpose and durable alternative to the expensive consumer devices that, over time, are ineffective within the challenging environments of the construction, engineering, hospitality, manufacturing, and warehouse and logistics sectors.

The 4G enabled, ST50 smartphone features an Octa-core processor and front and rear camera. This ensures that it is powerful enough to form the hardware backbone for any enterprise mobility and digital transformation strategy that requires a hard-wearing mobile device. It has been built to improve business processes, enhance workflow efficiencies and drive business productivity.

James Summers, founder, and CEO of Conker says: “Today, many organisations are equipping their mobile workforces with consumer orientated devices that are proving incapable of thriving in the most-trying business environments.  Over time, replacing these devices when they fail or break, creates a false economy, for as well as being expensive to replace and repair, device, and team downtime is frustrating mobile workers, increasing the total cost of ownership and harming productivity.

He continues, “Our business rugged ST50 smartphone aims to help organisations solve these challenges.  We believe that building the right enterprise mobile strategy, combined with these fit-for-purpose devices, will in time reduce the total IT cost to the business and better enable successful digital transformation projects.”

Rob Bamforth, an independent analyst said: “When organisations explore the use of mobile devices, within challenging or hard-wearing environments, as part of their digital transformation or enterprise mobility strategies, many take the wrong approach. They often base their device procurement strategies in these scenarios purely on the cheapest consumer devices available. This strategy is expensive in the long-term, because the devices that are used are generally not fit for purpose and break, which becomes costly to replace over time. A more strategic and cost effective approach involves considering fit-for-purpose devices that are business rugged.”

Bamforth adds, “Beyond selecting a device that is truly fit-for-purpose, it is crucial to select a producer that offers strong warranty, repair and payment options. This is because even though devices are business rugged, they will likely also break, due to the limits that they are pushed to. So, it’s important to assess these options and that they are covered in SLAs. Ultimately, if and when a device breaks, you don’t want to compromise your workforce’s productivity with poor device maintenance and replacement options if it can be avoided; which means it is also critical to ensure that your supplier’s customer service team is truly responsive and supportive.

To further reduce the total cost of ownership, Conker is planning to roll out an alternative procurement approach for organisations. The ST50, for example, is available to buy out right, along with competitive pricing and service warranties. In addition, Conker is also offering a compelling monthly financial subsidised subscription model that aims to provide a more cost-effective payment mechanism. This aims to further reassure organisations of the value of device procurement for organisations that are regularly sourcing, buying, servicing, and replacing devices.

The Conker ST50 is available immediately and can be ordered from £399. Pricing and payment options are dependent on specific customer needs. Conker offers up-front consultancy to determine the most appropriate mobile device strategy.

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Additional key specifications of the ST50 include:

  • Android: 8.1.0
  • Camera: 16.0 MP rear camera 5.0 MP front camera
  • Dimensions: 164.9 x 83.5 x 13mm /198g
  • Battery: 4000 mAh; user swappable; QC3.0 compatible
  • IP Rating: IP67
  • Drop test: 1.2 meters
  • CPU: Qualcomm MSM8940 1.4GHz Octa-core CPU + Adreno 505 GPU
  • Wireless connectivity: WiFi; Bluetooth; 3G/4G; GPS; tethering and casting
  • NFC: NXP PN548 chipset
  • Memory: 3GB memory and 32GB storage
  • Audio: Waterproof, built-in microphone and speaker
  • Display: 5.5” IPS; resolution 1280 x 720
  • Touch: capacitive Multi-touch with toughened glass
  • Ports: USB: USB-C (quick charge capabilities); micro SD: up to 128GB
  • SIM: Dual SIM capable, either nano+nano or nano+micro SD

About Conker

Founded in 2008, Conker is a British producer of business-rugged tablets, touch screens, and Mobile devices, providing durable and reliable systems for successful digital transformation. The firm’s consultative approach delivers fit-for-purpose solutions that improve productivity and streamline business processes, supported by its easy-to-deal with UK-based service team. Customers include Eastern Forklift Trucks and the food waste company, Winnow Solutions. Conker has a partnership with Pay360 by Capita and intends to expand its technology partnerships. Led by founder and CEO, James Summers,

Conker’s collaborative approach now empowers mobile workers to measurably improve productivity and make their lives easier by automating the mundane and streamlining business processes. The business has received recognition within The Financial Times’ FT 1000: Europe’s Fastest-Growing Companies (2018) and Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500 (2017).  The company legally trades as Tablet Technologies Ltd.  For more information visit: https://www.weareconker.com