Unihertz Atom XL

Unihertz is known for making smaller phones for the smartphone market. While the Atom XL isn’t the smallest phone in their lineup, it is quite possibly the most rugged small smartphone out there. But is it worth using and does it offer enough features to justify the price?

Design

The Unihertz Atom XL is one tough little piece of equipment. It features rounded corners and a mixture of metal and rubber pieces that make exceptionally resistance to the falls, dings, and splashes of an active lifestyle or a busy job site. It’s IP68-rated for water and dust resistance and features an IR sensor, dual SIM support, a walkie talkie feature for direct phone-to-phone communication when outside of typical coverage areas.

Display

The 4-inch screen is bigger than Unihertz’s other phones but still smaller than the average smartphone. The Gorilla Glass screen has an oleophobic treatment to keep fingerprints and smudges away as well.

The size makes it less than compelling for gaming or movie watching, but reviewers found the detail plenty sharp when needed and the color balance was acceptable — especially for the price point.

Performance

While rugged phone’s aren’t known for chart-topping performance, the Atom XL is no slouch. It’s not a gaming phone by any stretch, but reviewers found the phone will play casual games, check email, and perform common daily tasks with no complaints.

Software & Storage

The Unihertz Atom XL ships with Android 10. Reviewers found the added software and features — including a compass and heart monitor — useful. There’s also ample room for your apps and media with 128GB of onboard storage along with microSD support. Just keep in mind that using the microSD card will mean sacrificing the second SIM slot.

Cameras

The 48MP rear camera on the Unihertz Atom XL is one of it’s more advanced features. It also includes an 8MP selfie camera. While the phone won’t keep up with top-tier phones, reviewers found the photo results plenty competitive with similarly priced phones.

Battery Life

Between the software that keeps the background apps at a minimum, mid-tier performance, a smaller 4-inch display, and a larger 4300mAh battery, the Unihertz Atom XL should last a full day with ease.

ZDNet states, “The battery also did very well, lasting me for more than two days with regular usage and hours of screen time.”

Audio

Reviewers didn’t dig in when it came to audio quality, instead opting to check out the walkie talkie features of the phone. However, they found that feature to work great with plenty of volume and clarity. As such, one can likely assume the audio quality would match for videos and calls.

Of course, headphones are always going to outperform tiny phone speakers and with a 3.5mm headphone jack, you should be able to connect your favorite cans with no problems.

Specs at a Glance

• Aluminum chassis
• 4-inch LCD display
• P60 Octa-core 2 GHz MediaTek Helio processor
• 6GB of RAM
• Android 10
• 128GB of storage with microSD option
• 48MP front-facing lens and 8MP selfie lens.
• 4300mAh battery
• Infrared sensor
• DMR antenna

Bottom Line

The Unihertz Atom XL is an outdoor-friendly phone ideal for the adventurer. Its IP68 rating and an anti-scratch and fingerprint-resistant screen layer mean it’s ready to handle the hazards of the great outdoors. Better yet, it’s small enough to fit in your bags or pocket without weighing you down or taking up too much space.

Tech Radar says, “The Unihertz Atom XL is a very enticing proposition if you can wait for a few months; its mainstream performance shouldn’t distract from the fact that it is a well-rounded bargain for a rugged smartphone, especially with the DMR feature.”

The Verge states, “I don’t think this will or should be many people’s primary phone, but I can see it making sense as a backup or a situational device.”