JCB's TOUGHPHONE is the only GSM phone certified (IP-54) to withstand damage from water and dirt/dust. No matter what other phones' advertising copy may promise -- if it's not certified, it's not really ruggedized.

Additionally, the JCB TOUGHPHONE can be dropped from 1.5m without damage and can be used in very cold (-30 C) and very hot temperatures (+70 C).

The phone is also larger than the average mobile phone. And all of its buttons - keypad and push-to-talk are set further apart than on the average phone so people who are wearing gloves can easily dial and don't have to fumble with the phone to talk or listen. Plus we've added a long life battery, put in two speakers versus the standard one speaker so people can communicate even in the nosiest environments, and added extra protection (glare and impact) to the LCD screen.

We don't skimp on engineering the guts and case of the phone - it is built to last. The seams and input ports are protected by rubber which shields the phone from moisture and dirt/dust and absorbs impact if it is dropped or exposed to vibrations. Additionally we use a process called underfill which glues to solders to the board (this process was standard for awhile in all mobile phones but manufacturers stopped doing it years ago since it's an expensive process). Even the screw holders on the JCB TOUGHPHONE's case are reinforced. That's why the JCB TOUGHPHONE is the only IP-54 certified phone on the market.

The IP Code - or "International Protection Rating" -- is a global standard that specifies the level of protection that a specific electrical appliance provides against the intrusion of solid objects such as dust, falls and vibration, and water.

The numerals that follow the letters IP in a product's code (such as the JCB TOUGHPHONE's IP-54 rating) define the level of protection a device has been certified to provide. The first numeral indicates resistance to dust and dirt (solids) the second resistance to liquids. If a device's IP rating is not specified, you can safely assume it is not resistant to dust and moisture.

For more information, please see The International Electrotechnical Commission's website. The IEC is organisation that develops and publishes international standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies.

An independent laboratory tests the product to establish or verify its IP rating. If in doubt, you can ask to see the lab's approval certification number or a copy of the product's test report to ensure it has been properly certified.

Mil-Spec means military specification, and is a series of standards developed by the U.S. Department of Defence to ensure that products work as expected/advertised. Among the criteria included in Mil-Spec standards is interoperability with other devices, ruggedized engineering, reliability and cost. Any device that meets Mil-Spec requirements is widely considered to be best of breed, as the military obviously will be deploying these devices in critical life-or-death situations and does not want devices that do not consistently perform to top standard.

Yes. We believe that open standards provide real benefits for both consumers and the entire mobile communications industry. The JCB™ Tough Phone is fully compliant with the recently ratified Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) GSM standard specification. We are fully in compliance with 3GPP/3GPP2/IETF/OMA Pock 1.0 standards and work across GPRS/EDGE/WCDMA, CDMA/CDMA 2000 networks.

The Open Mobile Alliance's (OMA) push-to-talk over cellular (PoC) specification ensures interoperability between push-to-talk services provided by different network operators, as well as other important features. You can find out more at The Open Mobile Alliance.

By building phones that are constructed to last, we hope we are helping to ensure that fewer phones end up in landfills. We also comply with all applicable technology waste and recycling legislation.

The JCB TOUGHPHONE comes with 3 year no quibble warranty that allows for the consumer to return it to the shop and get a new phone immediately, no questions asked, no down time for his/her phone. The JCB TOUGHPHONE also comes with a limited lifetime guarantee for the phone housing such that if the phone casing every breaks JCB will replace the phone, again, no questions asked.

The JCB TOUGHPHONE's three-year warranty allows the consumer to return a broken or damaged phone and get a new phone immediately in-store, with no questions asked and no down time for his/her phone. The JCB TOUGHPHONE also comes with a limited lifetime guarantee for the phone housing. If the phone casing ever breaks JCB will replace the phone, again, no questions asked. Please consult your user's manual or the warranty section of this site for more information.

Tests have indicated that the JCB TOUGHPHONE provides up to 240 minutes of talk time, and up to 200 hours on standby.

The JCB TOUGHPHONE is not yet certified fully for use with Parrot. Sonim have done basic GSM call testing with the Parrot CK 3100 for call handling and audio using BT with their R4.0.1 device software. The address book viewing and scrolling is on the roadmap but not planned for implementation until late second quarter 2008 in another software release.

The JCB TOUGHPHONE will work with all BT car kits at a call handling and audio control level as per the Bluetooth defined services for these functions. Device specific services such as address book browsing will be implemented in the coming months.