The new Cat S75 is a rugged phone with integrated two-way satellite messaging

As promised, the Bullitt Group unveiled the first phone with two-way satellite messaging. Well, two phones, actually, the Cat S75 and the Motorola Defy 2. We’ll cover the Motorola in a separate article.

Before we dive into the specifications of the Cat S75, we need to explain the direct satellite communication feature as it is a unique selling point. Unlike Apple’s solution that only serves to contact emergency services, this one lets you message friends and family from faraway places, whether in the desert or in the middle of the ocean.

Cat S75

You will be able to text any cell phone user. They will receive it in the form of a simple SMS, no special equipment or software is needed. If they want to respond to you, they will need to use a free app (available for iOS and Android).

The phone comes with a 3 month free trial of Bullitt Satellite Messenger Essentials, this plan includes up to 30 satellite direct messages per month. Once the trials are over, you can sign up for one of several plans – the cheapest of which is €5 per month. There will also be flexible and heavy-duty plans, depending on your needs.

The Cat S75 can send and receive messages via satellite

The phone can also be used in an emergency, of course. As a subscriber, you will also receive 12 months of free 24/7 access to emergency response centers operated by FocusPoint International.

This is all made possible by the NTN (Non-Terrestrial Networks) chip from MediaTek, the chipset designer also provided the Dimensity 930. The phone is equipped with 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage, easily expandable via a card microSD.

Bullitt cares about the longevity of its devices, both in hardware and software. For the latter, he promises two OS updates – the phone starts with Android 12, so it will be updated to 13 and 14 – plus 5 years of security patches (i.e. 3 years of quarterly patches and 2 years of emergency SMR).

As for the former, the phone is rated IP69K, which extends the usual IP68 rating with protection against powerful high-temperature water jets. The phone is waterproof and can survive dives up to 5m (16ft) underwater for 35 minutes. Additionally, it has been drop tested on steel plates up to 6 feet (1.8 m) and has passed MIL-SPEC-810H testing for extreme temperatures (-30°C/-22° F to 75°C/167°F) for up to 24 hours. It is also resistant to high humidity, salt spray and vibration.

Cat S75: withstands drops on steel plates up to 1.8 m • Can survive up to 5 m underwater for up to 35 minutes

The Cat S75 is probably pretty dirty on the outside, but it’s easy to clean. You can wash it with soap and water or use alcohol wipes. The exterior is also coated with Bullitt’s Hygiene+, a special coating that contains antimicrobial silver ions.

The screen is protected by Gorilla Glass Victus. This screen measures 6.6 inches diagonally, has a resolution of 1080 x 2400 pixels and operates at a refresh rate of 120Hz. There is also an 8MP selfie camera on the front.

The rear cameras include a 50MP (f/1.8) main module, an 8MP ultra-wide camera, and a 2MP macro camera. There’s also an underwater mode, Bullitt is so confident in its waterproofness. It is even stated that the phone remains under warranty even if it is dropped 5m under water.

The phone is powered by a 5000mAh non-removable battery. It supports 15W wired charging as well as Qi wireless charging.

The Cat S75 is available for pre-order starting today, available from select carriers and from select retailers in the EMEA region. The price is €600/£550 and includes the aforementioned 3-month track of the satellite messaging plan.

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