I reviewed this AI rugged phone - here’s why it's perfect for taking off-grid

Unihertz 8849 Shark 3: 30-second review

Unihertz is a well-known manufacturer of rugged smartphones, including the Tank 3, a phone I recently reviewed, along with its unique features, such as the small built-in projector that instantly impressed. However, the Shark strips back on these more unique features and instead provides a powerful well, balanced, rugged option.

Reliability and resilience are at the heart of the design, with dual SIM cards supported by robust 5G networking and ample storage options to carry media and files for business or to be used as backup storage for your laptop. It also includes one of the more powerful processor and GPU combos I've seen in a rugged smartphone of this style.

There's more to the Shark 3 than just being rugged, and by rugged, I mean it's fully waterproof, shockproof and dustproof, making it a great option for anyone working in a trade or taking a phone on an off-grid adventure. However, it's the utility of the phone that seems to lead the feature set, the battery, dual SIM, Duel TF / MicroSD and USB-C video output and media playback that really seems to lead the feature set here.

Of course, there are also the cameras, as with every smartphone, and again, these are pretty decent quality, if not headline-making resolution. At 50MP, the main camera produces decent-quality pictures, and the images are handled well with surprisingly good image clarity, although there is a slight tendency to overexpose. The infrared camera for night shots also works well, and with the IR light on the back to illuminate the scene, you can capture some impressive shots.

The real strength of this phone lies in its multimedia potential. While the speakers aren't the greatest, the large internal storage—and support for up to a 2TB TF or microSD card—means you can carry your entire media library with you. The ability to connect to a computer and then use the phone as external storage again boosts the potential use of this phone.

The screen is decent for viewing back video media, although images taken on the camera lack impact. The big output feature here is that Unihertz has added a DP-compatible USB-C connector to the base; this means you can connect directly (with the right cable) to a TV. This allows you to play back all your media from the phone to your TV in surprisingly good quality.

Overall, the Shark 3 is one of the best rugged phones I've tested. It doesn't add extra features you'll rarely use but provides a solid, reliable phone. Most notably, the large internal battery allows the phone to stay on standby for over a month and power hours of media playback on a single charge. It can also reverse-charge other devices or back up your laptop and offers more than most, and then there's that powerful camping light; what more could you want?

The only real downside is that, once again, this is a large and bulky rugged phone. But if you need a powerful, no-frills, rugged phone, the Shark 3 is a solid solution.

Unihertz 849 Shark 3: Price and availability

• How much does it cost? From $499 / £499
• When is it out? Available now
• Where can you get it? Directly from Unihertz or Amazon

The Unihertz 8849 Shark 3 is a rugged smartphone that's widely available for around the $499 / £499 price mark. It can be purchased directly through Unihertz or via many online retailers such as Amazon.

• Value: 4/ 5

Unihertz 8849 Shark 3: Specs

CPU: Dimensity 8300
Graphics: ARM Mali-G615 6-core 1400 MHz
RAM: 32GB (16GB + 16GB expandable)
Storage: 512GB
Ports: USB-C
Connectivity: WiFi 6/BT 5.2
Audio: Jack / USB 3.0
Camera: Front: Rear Camera: 50MP, 64MP Night Vision Camera, 50MP Telephoto Lens Front Camera: 32MP
Size: 174.9 x 87 x 22.5mm
Weight: 470g
OS installed: Android 14

Unihertz 8849 Shark 3: Design

Unihertz has a very distinctive style for their smartphones, and once again, with the 8849 logo printed on the back, the Shark 3 is instantly recognisable as part of Unihertz's rugged smartphone line.

The phone is large and bulky, weighing in at 479g before any micro SIM or TF cards are installed, not that they add much if any, weight. In terms of dimensions, the Shark 3 measures 86 x 173 x 25 mm, so there's no way this could be regarded as small. However, while large, it is slightly slimmer than the Tank series smartphones Unihertz also makes. While it looks very similar and follows many of the same design principles, without the projector and second light panel on the back, it's generally smaller and lighter.

Interestingly, a close look at the top of the phone shows the same or similar moulds must be used for both ranges, as where you'd usually find the projector and venting, there are indents. The rest of the body also shares many design similarities. On the front is a large 6.73" AMOLED screen that dominates, and at the top is a front-facing camera that's fine for video calls.

Down the left side, there's a volume button, dual SIM/microSD card slot, and two customisable buttons—one can be assigned as an SOS button. The base holds a rubber cover protecting the 3.5mm audio jack and USB 3.0 (DP-enabled), which allows direct connection to a TV or monitor. On the right is the power button with fingerprint recognition.

Flipping the phone over reveals the large camping light and three-camera array.

There's a handy lanyard loop at the base of the phone, enabling you to tether it to a bag or wear it around your neck. It's a heavy phone, but the design is solid, and it's clearly built to withstand impacts and the elements.

• Design: 4 / 5

Unihertz 8849 Shark 3: Features

One thing that instantly strikes you about the Shark 3 is the fact that Unihertz has stripped down many of the unique and slightly out-there features often seen in rugged smartphones. Instead, the focus is on providing a solid and, powerful, rugged smartphone that sticks to the essentials.

First and foremost is durability. It's IP68 certified, so fully waterproof if submerged. It's also resistant to rain, sand, dust, vibration, shock, acceleration, temperature, humidity, altitude and immersion proof, so that should cover most situations. Interestingly, unlike many of Unihertz's other rugged smartphones, they make less of the durability angle here, focusing more on its use as a multimedia storage device as well as a phone. If the Tank 3 is a projector-based rugged smartphone, then the Shark 3 is its multimedia counterpart. It can wirelessly transmit media to a screen if compatible or use a wired USB Type-C to HDMI/USB-C connection if not.

Inside is the 11,600mAh battery unit, which not only powers the smartphone but also allows you to reverse charge other devices. To give a sense of how large this capacity is, with the phone on standby, the battery will last for 935 hours—just over a month. In practical use, you can make calls for over two days without stopping, listen to music for nearly two days, or watch videos for an hour shy of 24 hours before recharging is needed.

Large batteries in rugged phones have traditionally charged slowly, but the Shark 3 addresses this with 120W fast-charging capability. From zero, it only takes 60 minutes to reach approximately 90%—ideal if you're in the field and only have a short time to recharge.

Storage is also a key feature. The Shark 3 includes 512GB of internal storage, expandable with a TF/microSD card up to 2TB using two 1 TB cards. This gives it serious potential as a media device or field backup.

It also supports dual SIM, so if you have two SIMs from different networks, the phone can switch between them to ensure maximum coverage—though, as explained later, this feature isn't fully automated.

The 6.73" AMOLED screen offers a 120Hz refresh rate and 3K resolution (1440 x 3200). At 800 nits, it's one of the brightest rugged smartphone screens, making it viewable in direct sunlight. One standout feature is the USB 3.0 port with DP output, allowing direct connection to a TV or mobile projector.

Powering the phone is a Dimensity 8300 CPU. In testing, it worked well in combination with the Mali-G615 MC6 GPU, offering solid performance.

As with many smartphones, the Shark 3 includes a decent camera setup. It's good to see Unihertz hasn't gone overboard with megapixel counts. On the front is a 32MP camera—perfectly adequate for video calls. On the rear are a 50MP Samsung S5KJN1SP main camera, a 50MP telephoto camera, and a 64MP night vision camera, giving you a variety of options for both leisure and professional use.

In addition to being a rugged smartphone, it can also serve as a power bank and backup storage device. With 512GB built-in and support for up to 2TB expandable storage, you can use it to store files or even back up a laptop or camera in the field.

So while this phone is rugged and can survive harsh conditions, including submersion in water, it's also highly practical for a wide range of uses—from watching media on its screen or a larger monitor to reverse-charging other devices or serving as extra storage.

• Features: 5 / 5

Unihertz 8849 Shark 3: Performance

Getting started with the Shark 3 is extremely straightforward, as it comes with the Android 14 operating system. Once you've signed in using your Google account, you instantly have access to the usual array of Google apps and the Google Play Store to download whatever other applications you want. The phone also comes with its own toolset of Apps, including the camping light option.

What's notable about the Shark 3 is the speed at which those apps run. There's a definite uptick in performance compared with many other rugged smartphones, which have traditionally been tough but underpowered. Here, running the Google suite of office applications was quick and easy, with the relatively large screen making it comfortable to read documents and edit them if needed. Connections to the 4G or 5G networks seemed robust, and it was easy to check emails and respond.

The touchscreen, throughout the test, proved to be very responsive.

One of the other performance enhancements is that, while the phone is quite large and relatively heavy, it's still comfortable to hold—more so than some of its larger competitors. It's by no means slim and lightweight like an iPhone or premium smartphone, but it will still fit into a jacket pocket reasonably well.

Filming some video using the built-in camera and editing it in CapCut was all relatively easy, and the phone seemed to handle the editing without issue. The graphics capabilities of the Mali GPU seem to be a significant improvement over previous versions, making video editing or adjusting images in Lightroom perfectly possible. The Shark 3 is clearly a more powerful, rugged smartphone than many others I've seen in the past.

Switching over to gaming to test graphics performance, I was again impressed. I tried a couple of driving games and found the graphics to be smooth—by no means cutting edge, but suitable for light to mid-weight gaming.

When it comes to overall app performance, there's no doubt that the Shark 3 is a step ahead of most rugged smartphones. It coped with every app I used. While I didn't push its potential too far, for most business users, this smartphone will meet the majority of your needs, as long as you're not expecting to play high-end games or edit large volumes of video.

For the Network performance, I tested both EE and Vodafone SIM cards. Knowing that Vodafone drops out in some local areas, I checked whether auto-switching between SIMs was possible. In one instance, when the Vodafone signal dropped to zero and EE still had three bars, the phone did not automatically switch. You have to manually prioritise which SIM is in use. Adjusting the priority in the settings is easy enough, although it needs your manual intervention.

In a normal network setting, in Salisbury town centre, I used Vodafone as the primary SIM and EE as the secondary. Vodafone worked on the 5G network while EE sat in the background. If someone calls or texts either number, it comes through without issue. It's a handy system, and in the Shark 3, it works well despite needing to manually switch if you want to make calls from the secondary SIM.

The final performance test was with the cameras. While it doesn't boast headline-grabbing resolution, the 50MP Samsung sensor does an excellent job and produces decent, high-quality images. The detail and tonal graduation were particularly good. One oddity, however, was that the camera had a tendency to overexpose, meaning that all pictures you see in this review have been shot with the use of exposure compensation. The other point is that while general media playback looks good on the screen, images taken with the phone look mediocre; however, once transferred. Once on the computer, they generally look great and are full of tone and detail.

The telephoto camera also produced good results, and you can switch between the two using the touch buttons on-screen, from 1x to 3.4x. While neither is cutting-edge, the quality is again a step up from many other rugged smartphones I've tested.

• Performance: 4 / 5

Unihertz 8849 Shark 3: Final verdict

If you need a rugged smartphone for work or adventure, then the Shark 3 is a great option—although, once again, the size and weight, even as a rugged phone, make it larger than some of the competition. The design and build quality are solid, and if you need a phone that can withstand more than the usual knocks and bashes phones are subjected to, along with harsh environments and even being fully submerged in water, then it's a great option.

Where this rugged smartphone stands out is in how it refines many of the features that are common with rugged smartphones. While it's tough, it also adds processing power, plenty of storage with expansion options, and a decent set of cameras into the mix.

However, the main focus for this smartphone has to be the added extras: the backup battery that allows you to reverse charge other devices; the dual SIM support for broader network coverage; the optional storage expansion via TF/microSD up to 2TB; and the ability to connect the phone via wired or wireless connections to larger screens for video and media playback.

While there's nothing here that is particularly new, the upgraded CPU and GPU help make this one of the best-balanced rugged phones currently available.

Should I buy the Unihertz 8849 Shark 3?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

For more robust mobile devices, we've tested out the best rugged tablets and the best rugged laptops.