ZDNET’s key takeaways
- The 8849 Tank 4 Pro is available now for $759.
- It’s a big, beefy handset with a giant battery and a bright 6.73-inch display.
- Its mid-range CPU is compensated for with lots of RAM.
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Even before the release of the iPhone, it was clear that the smartphone would become a convergence device that took over the function of a whole host of other ones, from the portable MP3 player to the in-car satnav.
But I never thought that I’d see a smartphone packing a projector. Yes, a projector, long with a bewildering array of other cool features. The only drawback — this thing is a tank!
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The Unihertz 8849 Tank 4 Pro — the world’s first rugged smartphone to pack a 720p DLP (Digital Light Processing) projector is a huge smartphone — measuring 174.9 x 87 x 22.5 mm and weighs a massive 530 grams (that’s over a pound). This is built for durability with high levels of shock proofing, and is water and dustproof to IP68 and IP69 standards.
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On the front is a huge 6.73-inch 3K/1440 x 3200 resolution 20:9 aspect ratio AMOLED 120Hz display that delivers silky smooth graphics and is capable of dealing with bright sunlight thanks to its 1,800 nits of brightness.
On the inside is a 3.35GHz octa-core MediaTek Dimensity 8300 chip and a Mali-G615 MP6 GPU that’s running the Android 14 out of the box (mine upgraded to Android 15 with no problems) operating system, a task that it does smoothly.
The back of the Tank 4 Pro is dominated by the camping light.
Adrian Kingsley-Hughes/ZDNET
There are also a bewildering array of cameras. There’s a 50-megapixel main rear camera, a 50-megapixel telephoto camera, a 64-megapixel night vision camera for peering into low-light, and a 32-megapixel front-facing camera for selfies and video calls.
Infrared night vision, anyone?
Adrian Kingsley-Hughes/ZDNET
When it comes to RAM and storage, there are two options — the modest 16GB RAM (plus 16GB memory extension) with 512GB storage, and the all-out 18GB RAM (with an additional 18GB memory extension) with 1TB of storage.
Note that for the model I have for testing and review is the 18GB version.
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On the back of the Tank 4 Pro is a huge 1,200 lumen LED COB camping light that’s insanely bright (not to mention hot), and capable of lighting up a massive area.
The camping light is super bright — and gets quite hot!
Adrian Kingsley-Hughes/ZDNET
The battery is appropriately huge for such a big smartphone. Inside is a 11,600mAh which is more than enough to say that it has all-day battery life. I ran some benchmark tests and got over a day of web browsing from a full charge.
Normally, the downside of a big battery is that it takes ages to charge. Not with the Tank 4 Pro. This can charge at up to 120W, and I found that the supplied charger and cable could take this battery from flat to full in around an hour.
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There’s also that 100 lumens, 1280 x 720 pixel projector with built-in laser autofocus and automatic trapezoidal distortion correction that allows you to transform the screen into a big screen. This is great for people who want to protect a movie onto a blank wall, or put their ideas onto a screen at a meeting.
The projector is useful, and the autofocus and automatic trapezoidal distortion correction makes it easy to use, but it struggles in mild lighting.
Adrian Kingsley-Hughes/ZDNET
The projector works well, and the autofocus is definitely an improvement compared to other smartphone projectors I’ve come across, but one downside is that 100 lumens isn’t enough for the projector to win against bright sunshine.
Ultimately, the Tank 4 Pro is solid when it comes to specs. While the processor is pretty middle-of-the-road, the 36GB of combined physical and virtual RAM does a lot of heavy lifting to keep this device running. It’s not going to win you any bragging power when it comes to benchmarks, but it’s enough to keep it running smoothy.
Oh, and it also features a 3.5 mm headphone jack for those who still use old-school headphones.
ZDNET’s buying advice
The Unihertz 8849 Tank 4 Pro is not a phone for everyone. It’s a massive, ruggedized handset kitted out with night vision, a big camping light, and a projector — a pretty niche wishlist item when it comes to what people want.
However, I’ve heard from enough people to know that there’s a market for this sort of handset. It’s a popular choice for people who go camping and RVing, and I’ve heard from a number of outdoor engineers who find a projector a handy tool.
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The Tank 4 Pro isn’t cheap, the 18GB RAM/1TB ROM version is $770, while the 16GB RAM/512GB ROM version is $690. That said, there’s a lot of tech packed into this one-pound brick of a smartphone.
