Aspera's goal with the R8 is to combine the resilience of basic rugged handsets like the Aspera R25t with the advanced capabilities of a modern smartphone. To this end, the R8 follows the familiar smartphone design of pairing a large touch screen with three capacitive (non-physical) buttons for navigation. The IPS screen measures in at 4.5 inches and displays at a resolution of 854 x 480 pixels. Importantly, that screen is recessed 2mm below the phone's frame to minimise the chance of damage in the event of a fall. In case it does take a hit, the screen is made from Gorilla Glass 3 which offers resistance to scratch and contact damage.
Moving away from the screen, the R8's entire body is covered with shock-absorbent rubber and coloured black and yellow to make it easier to spot should you drop it. The phone's frame is further reinforced with 14 screws to prevent warping or breaking on impact.
Rain and dust pose little threat to the Aspera R8 thanks to its IP68 fluid and particle resistance rating. That IP68 rating certifies that the R8 is completely dust-tight and good for submersion in depths of up to 1m of water for 30 minutes. If you've ever accidentally knocked your phone into the sink or spilled your drink onto it, you'll know how much of a lifesaver that feature could be.
For as fortified as the Aspera R8 is, it isn't lacking features. 16GB of internal storage provides a decent chunk of space for loading up music and videos, plus you can always expand it by adding a microSD card – so long as that card is no bigger than 32GB. When playing back music, videos or the built-in FM radio, you can plug in a standard set of headphones via the 3.5mm audio jack or connect a wireless pair over Bluetooth 4.0.
On the software side, the Aspera R8 comes loaded with Android 6.0 aka Android "Marshmallow". In addition to providing access to millions of apps via the Google Play Store, Android 6.0 heralded a number of noteworthy improvements to the Android operating system including better battery management, finer control over the permissions you give individual apps and faster performance when multi-tasking. Just bear in mind that Aspera does not offer updates to later versions of Android with the R8.
Unlike many other rugged phones, the Aspera R8 supports modern networking standards like 4G and Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n as well as the ability to share its Internet connection with other devices via USB tethering or by acting as a Wi-Fi hotspot.