In June 2022, Samsung announced its rugged Galaxy XCover6 Pro phone. It was a 5G phone with a removable battery and came with all the ruggedness, such as a MIL-STD-810H certified design, IP68 rating, Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+ screen protection, and more. This year, the company launched the Galaxy XCover7; however, the “Pro” model was missing.
It seems like the company has plans to launch the true successor to the Samsung Galaxy XCover6 Pro next year in the form of the Galaxy XCover8 Pro. According to a report by GalaxyClub.nl, Samsung is already working on a couple of devices under the XCover branding. One of the devices’ model numbers suggests that it could be the successor to the XCover6 Pro.
While the report doesn’t mention anything related to specs, it shares the device’s model number, SM-G766B. Notably, the Xcover 6 Pro has model number SM-G736B, and the Xcover 7 has model number SM-G556B. Based on the model number progression, this device is speculated to be marketed as Galaxy XCover8 Pro.
For now, the model number is the only thing that is known about the alleged Galaxy XCover8 Pro. However, it is tipped that the phone could launch in mid-2025. Interestingly, there is also a Galaxy “rugged” tablet in the works. Reportedly, Samsung could introduce a new model in the rugged Galaxy Tab Active tablet series.
The report suggests that the upcoming rugged tablet will be a “Pro” version of the Galaxy Tab Active5, which was launched alongside the XCover7 earlier this year. Unfortunately, the publication wasn’t able to dig out the model number of this rugged tablet, but it could launch alongside the Galaxy XCover8 Pro next year. That’s all the information currently available for the upcoming rugged smartphone and tablet. It is unclear what hardware upgrades we will see in the upcoming Samsung products.