Samsung GALAXY S4 Active – 10 things you need to know

6. Headphones rejoice

Samsung GALAXY S4 Active

Unlike most weatherproof phones, the Samsung GALAXY S4 Active's audio jack is exposed, hardened to the elements and free from those fiddly rubber flaps that are always a pain to open and close in a hurry.

Of course, in active moments you don't always want to be tethered to your phone, so it's great that the GALAXY S4 Active is also loaded up with Bluetooth, complete with support for stereo audio.

This means that you and your music can go wireless in moments, keeping you tangle free. All you need to do is get your hands on a Bluetooth headset like the Samsung HF HS6000 (£124 on Amazon.co.uk) for some serious over-ear sound, or the Samsung HS3000 (£27.46 on Amazon.co.uk) for in-ear action.

7. Dirty hands? Just wave.

Samsung GALAXY S4 Active

Trying to control your phone with muddy or wet hands isn't our idea of a good time. Sure, the Samsung GALAXY S4 Active won't get damaged, but it will get dirty.

Fortunately, the Samsung GALAXY S4 Active features Air Gesture. Originally seen on the Samsung GALAXY S4, Air Gesture transforms a simple glide above the phone's screen into a command.

So whether it's flicking through browser tabs, or wafting through your gallery images, Air Gesture saves having to touch your phone until you've had a chance to wash up.

8. Finger, pen, glove – it all works

Samsung GALAXY S4 Active

If that's how you deal with dirty hands, how do you deal with gloves? After all, the GALAXY S4 Active is the perfect phone for rough and ready, glove heavy sports.

The long and short of it is that there isn't anything to deal with – in fact, the phone doesn't even bat an eyelid. Both the Samsung GALAXY S4 and GALAXY S4 Active feature Samsung Glove Touch – supersensitive touch screens that allow you to use gloved hands to interact with them just as you would if you were using your bare finger. Additionally, the S4 Active features physical control keys instead of the capacitive touch-sensitive ones on the GALAXY S4, which means it's notably easier to control with freezing cold fingers, gloved or ungloved!

9. More memory, less problems

Samsung GALAXY S4 Active

If the Samsung GALAXY S4 Active is made to keep up with your hectic schedule, the last thing you need is a lack of storage slowing you down.

Fortunately, on top of coming with 16GB of internal storage, the Samsung GALAXY S4 Active, like the entire GALAXY S4 range, is easily expandable with a microSD card.

This means you can easily add up to an additional 64GB of space, which gives plenty of room for anything you might wish to store on your phone.

In fact, the grand total of 80GB you could potentially have at your fingertips is enough for you to carry around 57,142 8-megapixel photos, 20,480 songs, 115 standard definition movies or 57 720p movies.

That's more than enough to keep you entertained, whether you're training for a marathon and powering through a library of audiobooks, or relaxing in the bath while watching the latest blockbuster.

10. Accessories ahoy

Samsung GALAXY S4 Active

One of the downsides of getting a specialised phone can be that accessories are often relatively limited.

Fortunately, anyone investing in the Samsung GALAXY S4 Active needn't worry, as for the most part the hardy handset uses the same accessories as the Samsung GALAXY S4.

While form-fitting accessories like cases won't work across the two models, due to the S4 Active's more rugged exterior, when it comes to spare batteries, AllShare Cast Wireless Hubs and MHL adapters, you're in luck.