We heard that Samsung was working on a Galaxy S5 Active this year, but we hadn’t received any confirmation of it until now. We’re getting that confirmation today, as the Galaxy S5 Active for AT&T has passed through the FCC on its way to that carrier. A few months back, we heard that the S5 Active would be model number SM-G780x, and could be available on Sprint, AT&T and other carriers. This new variant we are seeing on the Federal Communication Commission’s website is the SM-G870A. It’s been approved by the FCC and is ready to be announced anytime.
The S4 Active and the Galaxy S4 are different in that the Active is dust- and water-resistant. It’s designed for people who need a phone that can take a beating. The difference with the S5 and the S5 Active will be less obvious, as the S5 is already IP67 certified water- and dust-resistant. What will the S5 Active offer that consumers can’t already get with the Galaxy S5? Will the device be ruggedized? It could be IP68 certified, which means that it would be able to survive in 1.5 meters of water for up to 30 minutes. We don’t know yet, but we do know a few things from the FCC filing
The Galaxy S5 Active, at least the SM-870A variant, is 143mm tall and 73.42mm wide. That puts it just a little bigger than the Galaxy S5 at 142mm tall and 72.5mm wide. It has NFC and dual-band Wi-Fi. The device supports AT&T compatible LTE bands 2, 4, and 17, so know it will work with AT&T’s 4G network. It looks like the battery is the same size as the Galaxy S5’s 2800 mAh battery, too.
Samsung likes to flood the market with every device that consumers might find useful, and the Galaxy S5 Active will probably fill a niche for someone. The interesting part about this device will be how it’s different from the existing, water-resistant Galaxy S5. The S4 Active brought something extra to the table, but how much different can the S5 Active be? We’ll find out soon.