The MD501 is Dewalt’s first venture into the world of rugged smartphones, having previously focused exclusively on manufacturing power tools and accessories.

At first glance, the phone appears to share more DNA with a drill than an iPhone or HTC device.

The robust MD501 smartphone from Dewalt can be operated by a person wearing gloves

The MD501 is Dewalt’s first venture into the world of rugged smartphones, having previously focused exclusively on manufacturing power tools and accessories.

At first glance, the phone appears to share more DNA with a drill than an iPhone or HTC device.

Donning Dewalt’s trademark black and yellow colour scheme, the MD501 looks and feels like a working man’s gadget.

The MD501 boasts a long battery life compared with other smartphones

With its rubbery, riveted casing and hefty weight, the phone appears both rugged and robust and can even be operated by gloved hands.

See also: Smartphone covers for use on the farm

Boasting (literally – it’s engraved across the back of the phone) a dust and water resistance rating of IP68, the device is completely dust-tight and can be totally submerged in water beyond 1m in depth.

During testing the MD501 appeared utterly unfazed by the merciless crashing of the English tide as it stood half submerged in sand with the screen still defiantly lit.

Our only fear was the prospect of a hefty bill (£449.99 including VAT) from the trusting manufacturer who lent us the device.

Battery life

The MD501’s battery life is very good; with heavy usage you’ll get a full day (about 18 hours) out of it, and maybe a bit more.

With minimal usage we were able to get a good three days out of it, which is better than many run-of-the-mill smartphones that often struggle to last a day.

Aside from all the features you’d expect from a modern smartphone – such as a high spec 13-megapixel HD camera with lenses on both sides, 4G (though no guarantee of service when out tagging sheep on the moors) and Bluetooth – the MD501 has a handful of features which farmers may find particularly useful.

Take, for example, its capacity for dual sims.

This allows farmers to have just the one phone, containing two separate sim cards, meaning fewer pesky devices to keep track of and more chance of maintaining decent phone signal away from the beaten track.

Tool Connect app

Additionally, there’s Dewalt’s Tool Connect app which comes preloaded on the MD501 – this allows users to monitor the battery life of their various Dewalt devices and tools.

The app can also be used to limit the amount of power a tool can access from its own battery supply – useful if you want to lend a drill or sander out for a short period of time but don’t want to be greeted by a drained battery upon return.

How applicable this would be in real life is up for debate, but it’s an interesting feature nonetheless.

Dewalt MD501 runs Android 5.1

Other notable applications include RugGear Assistant which houses a feature called Man Down Detection.

It can be set up to allow workers with the app installed to send out a distress call by pressing a pre-set panic button and would help provide peace of mind for farmers working alone.

One real downside is the operating system.

The Dewalt MD501 runs Android 5.1 (Lollipop) which frankly feels pretty clunky and outdated these days.

However, the phone is now apparently Android 6 ready, so we assume that upgrading will be fairly painless.

Also, connecting the phone to a computer proved impossible as the drivers could not be located but, to be fair to Dewalt, this may well be an isolated issue.