Anyone new to the world of Zebra phones is likely to notice one key fact above all others: they typically cost more than consumer equivalents.
Let’s compare some like-for-like models. iPhones are considered among the top consumer options. An iPhone 16 will cost anything from £800 to £1600, depending on whether you choose a Basic, Pro or Pro Max version. Meanwhile, a top-end Zebra TC77 WWAN Touch Computer goes for £2300-£2800.
While there are Zebra phones that deliver rugged at an affordable price – the remarkable new EM45 RFID Enterprise Model, which is in the £650-£900 bracket springs to mind – the overall story is ‘pay more for premium Zebra quality’.
Some will walk away at this point, convincing themselves that there are ‘savings to be made’ by sticking to consumer phones. Perhaps you can encourage your people to be ‘extra careful’, or invest in rugged cases. We’d advise against this. Frankly, warehouse floors are littered with the shattered glass and broken dreams of procurement teams who have crossed their fingers and stuck with consumer-grade devices.
In this post, we’ll reveal why many Zebra phones cost more, what makes them different, and why choosing these leading enterprise-grade devices is a robust and sensible business decision that will save you money in the long run.
Full disclosure: we’re a Zebra reseller and we’ll be focusing on the unique advantages of these enterprise devices, but ‘other models are available’. However, we really do believe Zebra stands apart from the competition, which is why we’re so confident selling its tech to our clients.
The rugged factor
According to research, the annual failure rate for consumer-grade devices in enterprise environments is nearly three times higher than for rugged phones.
This is a pretty stark statistic, but the same source contains more concerning figures regarding consumer versus enterprise phones. Consumer phones suffer more:
- Battery failures – 54 minutes average lost productivity per incident
- IT support time – 64 minutes average per ticket raised
- Hard costs – through buying separate enterprise scanners and software
Zebra devices are built to withstand harsh conditions such as drops, extreme temperatures, dust and moisture.
For instance, the Zebra TC77 will withstand drops of eight feet to a concrete floor, as per MIL-STD 810G, and withstand moisture, dust and dirt according to IP65 and IP68 sealing specifications. (Find out more about the technical details of what makes a phone rugged.)
Yes, these rugged features all add to the cost, but we think they’re worth it. Any IT team picking through the bones of another shattered phone is likely to agree.
If you’re thinking about ‘going rugged by the back door’, by investing in relatively cheap rugged cases for consumer-grade phones, think again. These cases rarely seal a phone to the required standard. Also, where they might help protect from some external damage, they do not protect fragile consumer-models’ interior components from the shock of drops. Find out more about this subject in our post about the failure of rugged phone cases.
Also, there is the ‘cheap consumer rugged’ option. In our experience, while some of these are relatively tough, they typically underperform in terms of features. We know of one customer who purchased unbranded Chinese ‘rugged’ phones at a knockdown price. The result? They could not run business-critical software, because the phones were so slow and lacking in power. Some cheaper models are clearly putting their budget into (relative) durability at the expense of functionality.
As the saying goes, there’s no such thing as a free lunch…
Specialised features and add-ons
Consumer-grade phones can do some pretty cool things, like use AI to edit your photos to perfection. We’re not knocking any of that, but the true beauty of Zebra devices is that they are designed – with a relentless focus – to meet the demands of enterprise environments.
Features such as workstation mode (cradle your device to instantly enjoy a full desktop experience with mouse, keyboard and monitor), hot-swappable batteries and push to talk (PTT) are all built to meet specific use cases. Workers in warehouses, logistics, healthcare, retail and many other sectors use them to work more efficiently.
To give an example from one of our clients, we helped a defence organisation deploy rugged devices that dramatically increased efficiency while scanning an equipment store. Using the device, a single worker took just 30 minutes to complete the task; previously, the job took two workers three hours. In this case, the previous device was an outmoded rugged model – if it had been a consumer device, the difference in performance would have been greater still.
Enterprise-grade support
Recently, a potential client expressed some misgivings about paying for enterprise device updates and security patches, pointing out that consumer phones receive these for free. This perspective, while common, misses crucial differences in enterprise versus consumer-grade support.
Consumer security updates are indeed ‘free’, but they're designed for general use. Data protection and compliance concerns mean most businesses are going to want something a bit more robust. Look at it this way: a residential home might make do with a front door deadbolt for security; a business would be wise to opt for reinforced doors, an alarm systems and possibly 24/7 surveillance.
LifeGuard is Zebra's security-focused software solution that provides extended security updates and support for Zebra's Android devices. This includes critical security patches, protection against emerging threats and a level of updates above and beyond that supplied by Android. If you care about security – and you definitely should – enterprise level protection is a must. (Download our free guide to cyber security for mobile devices.)
Meanwhile, you must consider fit-for-purpose support. In an environment where (down) time is money, organisations can’t rely on consumer-grade phone repair and support. Here’s an instructive post from the Apple discussion community:
‘I have been without my iPhone for 10 of my business days. I'm a business man who works heavily on my iPhone and I work all week long! I have now had to push MY clients back and am losing reputation and credibility!’
Sleepless nights, no doubt, ensued. And imagine rolling out that failed-phone scenario at scale… By contrast, Zebra OneCare is a comprehensive service plan designed to keep Zebra devices operational and optimised via repairs, technical support and proactive management tools. This can include a 24/7 help desk and an impressive – and anxiety reducing – three-day turn around on repairs.
We can’t crunch the exact numbers for you, but this service alone is likely to amount to a significant reduction in the total cost of ownership compared to consumer models.
Device management
Very small organisations can look away now. But if you have a few or many employees, you’re going to need some kind of platform for managing your mobile devices. And, yes, this can be a tricky business.
Zebra DNA is an ecosystem of tools and software that makes it easier to manage fleets of Zebra devices throughout their lifecycle. We’ve written a series of posts about this device management software, which are well worth a read. The key takeaway is that this platform is precisely engineered for Zebra devices. Here are a few bullets to give you a (by no means comprehensive) idea of how it can help you get the best from Zebra machines’ functionality:
- Diagnose a device’s problem at the push of a button
- Maintain complete control over app use, prohibiting or ‘white-listing’ applications
- Remotely launch new apps across a whole estate of devices
- Roll out bespoke keyboard features to increase productivity
- Find lost devices even if they’re powered down
- Wipe data from missing phones
This suite of tools far surpasses Google’s Android Device Manager or Apple’s Find My iPhone – both of those are great for solopreneurs, but will come up short for larger organisations.
Also, some good news. While we’ve talked about the justifiably increased costs of Zebra phones, many Zebra DNA features are completely free.
Sustainability
The tech industry has a sustainability problem. Each year, individuals and businesses throw away as much as 50m tonnes of electrical and electronic waste. The fact that under one-quarter of global e-waste produced in 2022 was known to be recycled is worrying. One of the advantages of enterprise-grade phones is that they last much longer than consumer devices and will be replaced less often.
Also, Zebra’s Circular Economy Program is a solid plan for promoting circular technology best practice and sustainable IT. It includes initiatives to refurbish devices, buy back devices and recycle devices responsibly.
While sustainability may not be the first thing on your mind when purchasing devices, it’s definitely on the mind of your customers. Using phones that last the distance from a responsible supplier is something to shout about in your own communications.
In conclusion
A few years back, we published a story about total cost of ownership in mobile devices that made points similar to some of those in this article. Cheaper devices, it concluded, are a false economy in the long run; and, conversely, high-grade enterprise devices are value for money and a wise investment.
In our view, Zebra devices are a very wise investment. Durability, a strong focus on business-friendly features, and an eco-system of security, support and add-ons put them ahead of consumer devices and rugged competitors.
A final thought. Several years back, a director of a major U.S. retailer making the transition from a consumer device to an enterprise solution summed it up perfectly: “Last time I picked a device. This time I’m picking a partner.”
Wise words. We’d recommend you do the same.
Nuffield Technologies stocks a wide range of Zebra products. We can help you choose the right rugged devices for your organisation and offer preferential rates on Zebra hardware. Contact us to find out how we can help.