# CAT Phone: one smartphone to rule them all **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 27, 2016, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-phone-one-smartphone-to-rule-them-all/769822 "2016-10-27T01:45:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2016, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-phone-one-smartphone-to-rule-them-all/769822/1 "2016-10-27T01:45:35Z")
I want it, but can’t justify the purchase, so I thought I’d infect someone here with the urge to buy [this Android phone bearing the Caterpillar brand](http://www.catphones.com/en-us/phones/s60-smartphone). Besides being waterproof and rugged, it has fricking FLIR thermal vision from both cameras! Did I mention it costs about the same as an iThingy? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2016, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-phone-one-smartphone-to-rule-them-all/769822/2 "2016-10-27T01:51:45Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > Besides being waterproof and rugged, it has fricking FLIR thermal vision from both cameras! I can finally give something a CAT scan. (I know, I know. Let me have my moment. :D) ---
**Author:** ![RadicalPi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/radicalpi/32/9806_2.png) [@RadicalPi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RadicalPi)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2016, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-phone-one-smartphone-to-rule-them-all/769822/3 "2016-10-27T06:04:27Z")
What’s up with that extra tab on the top? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2016, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-phone-one-smartphone-to-rule-them-all/769822/4 "2016-10-27T06:09:38Z")
> [@RadicalPi](#): > > What’s up with that extra tab on the top? That’s a hump to accommodate the additional (thermal) camera. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2016, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-phone-one-smartphone-to-rule-them-all/769822/5 "2016-10-27T07:31:06Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > That’s a hump to accommodate the additional (thermal) camera. Yeah, apparently I was wrong about the thermal being available on both cameras - it’s just the main/rear camera that has it. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2016, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-phone-one-smartphone-to-rule-them-all/769822/6 "2016-10-27T07:52:48Z")
BTW, anyone buying one after reading this is required to post back here and let me geek vicariously through them. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2016, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-phone-one-smartphone-to-rule-them-all/769822/7 "2016-10-27T13:35:10Z")
If the main appeal is the FLIR sensor, you can get that as an add-on for an Android or iPhone. But this phone is obviously useful for more than that. The waterproofing alone would appeal to a lot of people. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2016, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-phone-one-smartphone-to-rule-them-all/769822/8 "2016-10-27T16:40:36Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > If the main appeal is the FLIR sensor, you can get that as an add-on for an Android or iPhone. But this phone is obviously useful for more than that. The waterproofing alone would appeal to a lot of people. Yeah, I undersold the waterproofing - it can be used as an underwater camera! ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2016, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-phone-one-smartphone-to-rule-them-all/769822/9 "2016-10-27T17:31:30Z")
I was seriously considering this phone. [ul] [li]Rugged/ dropable[/li][li]Bigger/thicker (phones w/of a case are _too_ thin IMO)[/li][li]FLIR - I’ve played with an add-on one to a friend’s ipad before. That one is a joint with the camera, giving the details of a regular photo with the added heat colorization of the IR; very cool![/li][/ul] However it’s priced like a premium phone @ $600 & depending upon your phone you can get this add-on [FLIR](http://www.flir.com/flirone/android/) & still save money. I was waiting for the Pixel but don’t think it’s all that at that price. I’m probably getting a Nexus 5X but this is my second choice as of right now. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2016, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-phone-one-smartphone-to-rule-them-all/769822/10 "2016-10-27T17:40:51Z")
One thing to note is that the FLIR camera has a resolution of something like 160 x 120. They do some clever blending with a regular camera image to produce something recognizable. It’s still pretty useful, but it’s not exactly HD quality. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2016, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-phone-one-smartphone-to-rule-them-all/769822/11 "2016-10-27T20:38:40Z")
I have a FLIR for my iPhone. I find it a useful diagnostic tool, but if I use it once every two months, it’s a lot.