You've seen plenty of torture tests of the most popular phones, like the iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy S4, but what about a smartphone that was actually designed to take such abuse? I'm looking for your help in crowdsourcing a torturous regime to impose on a device that, in my estimation, is just asking for it.
I've got my hands on a Kyocera Torque, which is a $100 Android phone on Sprint's 4G network -- it's been endorsed by TV survivalist Bear Grylls for its rugged design, which meets military standards for dust, shock, extreme temperatures, and even something called "salt fog," among other specs.
I'm looking for your suggestions on methods of abuse I can subject the Torque to, to push it to its breaking point. Keep in mind that I'm based in the southern Rockies with access to high alpine and also desert climates. For the humidity test, we're likely limited to local saunas and greenhouses. If you've got a recipe for producing "salt fog," that would also be great. Oh, I've also got a five-year-old here who's been known to torture a tech gadget or two in her day (R.I.P. my Nexus 7).
The 800-foot-deep Rio Grande Gorge is also about 10 miles from here. I haven't asked it yet, but this phone seems like the kind of device that wouldn't mind being tossed off the rim of just such a geological marvel to go for a swim in the Big River. The key is doing such a test in a way that's legal, safe for kayakers below, and allows for retrieval of the phone. Anyone have any experience dropping anything from the likes of an AR.Drone or something similar?
I think you see the direction I'd like to go with this.
Please share any and all suggestions for hard-core testing in the comments below, tweet them at @ericcmack , or leave them on my Google+ page. For some inspiration, please check out the details on what the Torque is designed to withstand on Sprint's landing page and watch Bear Grylls in action below: