8849 Tank X: 2-minute review

For those unfamiliar with 8849, this is a sub-brand of Unihertz, and it takes its name from the height of Mount Everest in metres. Well, other than plate tectonics is pushing the mountain up, and rocks and ice fall off, so at the time of writing, it is 8,848.86 metres to be correct.

Oddly, the Tank series on 8849 has styling and functionality similar to the Unihertz Tank series, so perhaps the Unihertz brand will go away at some point.

The target demographic of the Tank X is those who need a go-anywhere design that packs plenty of battery capacity, are probably travelling to remote locations where they will want a camping light and to capture high-quality images and video.

A flagship product from 8849, the Tank X was launched in February 2026 at an early bird price of $549.99, against an RRP of $1,049.99. At that higher price, it will face serious scrutiny, but even at launch pricing, it is one of the more expensive rugged smartphones available.

The justification for that cost is a combination of headline features that most competitors simply cannot match. These include a built-in 1080p DLP projector rated at 220 lumens with laser autofocus, a 64MP night vision camera with four dedicated infrared LEDs, and a 17,600mAh dual-cell battery paired with 120W fast charging.

The MediaTek Dimensity 8200, built on a 4nm process, is a genuine step up from the mid-range chips used in most rugged phones at this price. Combined with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, the Tank X has the hardware to handle demanding tasks.

The downside to the kitchen-sink approach to feature selection seen here is that at 750g, this is one of the heaviest rugged phones around, and not something that anyone travelling on foot would choose to include in their backpacks.

That bulk is a deliberate engineering choice, since a smaller device wouldn’t be able to mount the dedicated FPC connections for the projector, flashlight, camping lamp, sensors, and antenna array. The absence of wireless charging is also intentional, with 8849 prioritising a field lantern over Qi coils.

Durability credentials include IP68 and IP69K waterproofing, along with MIL-STD-810H certification, which covers immersion, high-pressure water jets, shock, vibration, and temperature extremes. The device runs Android 15, which is current but not cutting-edge, and 8849 hasn’t mentioned if it will see an Android 16 upgrade.

The inclusion of features like a projector always takes this device into niche areas, since this isn’t a capability that everyone needs on their Smartphone. And because of that, I won’t be including it in our list of the best rugged phones. But that’s not to say it isn’t perfect for somebody.

8849 Tank X: price and availability

• How much does it cost? $550/£460 (early-bird)
• When is it out? Available now
• Where can you get it? You can get it directly from 8849 or via many online retailers such as Amazon.

Many phone makers like to make the launch of a new phone something special, probably because in the first month or so, it's likely they will see the largest number of sales.

The aggressive pitch of the 8849 Tank X is an early bird price from the makers of $549.99 (£460.46), which is almost half the $1,049.99 RRP. Call me cynical, but I feel it is unlikely the makers will sell any at the RRP, but the early bird price is attractive considering the specification of the Tank X.

The Amazon.com price is $629.99 with a coupon if you want next-day delivery.

To put that in perspective, the last phone I reviewed with a projector was the Ulefone Armor 34 Pro, a phone that cost $550/£519 when launched. It offered a bigger 25500 battery, a 150-lumen projector, and the current official price is $699.

However, Unihertz has the competitively priced Tank 2 Pro that can be bought for $479.99 direct from the maker, but only $412.59 on Amazon.com. And what makes that doubly interesting is that Unihertz is behind the 8849 sub-brand, so it's competing with itself with these products.

The Tank 2 Pro has more battery capacity, only 12GB of RAM, an older Helio G99 SoC, and is only 4G. But if it’s the projector that you want, this is the cheaper way to get that functionality.

There aren’t many phones with projectors, and the one in this design is higher quality than most, so the asking price seems realistic.

• Value score: 4/5

8849 Tank X: Specs

Oukitel WP61 Plus: design

• A blunt instrument
• Odd button arrangement
• No wireless charging

The Tank X is a substantial piece of hardware. At 31.9mm thick, it is approaching the depth of a small portable battery pack, and at 750 grams, it is heavier than many 13-inch laptops. Carrying it in a trouser pocket is impractical; a jacket chest pocket or belt holster is the more realistic option for field use. Personally, I think it's best mounted on a vehicle.

The chassis uses a half-board, double-sided internal layout to house its unusual combination of components. The projector occupies the upper rear section of the body, with a dedicated lens housing visible on the back panel. The 1,200-lumen camping light and emergency warning lights are also rear-mounted, along with the triple camera array.

Where the Tank X goes slightly off the well-worn path, it’s the button layout, which is odd for those who have used many Android phones. The right side has only the power button that doubles as a fingerprint reader, a choice that’s not ideal for left-handed people.

On the left are two tiny volume buttons, and why they’re so small, I’ve no idea, and then two customisable push-to-talk buttons. The SIM tray isn’t on either side; instead, it gets relegated to the top edge alongside the projector and an infrared emitter.

Why this phone ended up with such a non-standard button layout seems inexplicable, given how big it is and the large amounts of unused space on the sides.

Build quality is reinforced throughout with corner protection and a textured rear panel. IP68 and IP69K ratings mean the device tolerates water immersion to the 1,8M depth for up to 30 minutes and high-pressure wash conditions. MIL-STD-810H certification covers a broad set of environmental tests, making the Tank X suitable for deployment in demanding field environments ranging from construction sites to remote expeditions.

Although, and this is something I’ve not seen before, owners are not recommended to operate the buttons underwater. And, you are warned that “In daily use, exposure to seawater, swimming pool water, soapy water, hot water, or other liquids may reduce protective performance”.

The absence of wireless charging is worth noting for buyers accustomed to Qi pads. It is an intentional trade-off: 8849 replaced the Qi coil with the field lantern hardware, reasoning that users in the environments this device targets are more likely to have a USB-C cable than a charging mat.

The USB port is 2.0 spec, which means that getting files off the Tank X is substantially quicker over Wi-Fi than with a cable.

One aspect of the design I admired more was that the 6.78-inch LCD Punch-Hole Display is both bright, at up to 750 nits, and the colours are well saturated. This panel also has a small border to the physical front edge of the phone, which makes it seem even bigger than it is.

As a design, the priority for those making the Tank X was to stuff all the technology inside and protect it from the environment, which they achieved. However, there is almost nothing about this phone that is elegant or refined; it's more like a brick that’s had its sharpest edges filed down.

Design score: 3.5/5

8849 Tank X: hardware

• MediaTek Dimensity 8200
• 17,600 mAh battery
• 1080p 220 Lumen Projector

The last phone I reviewed that used the MediaTek MT6896 (Dimensity 8200) was the Oukitel WP210 (read it here), and then I remarked that this SoC is a solid choice for those seeking a capable and efficient SoC in the mid-range smartphone market.

Built around an octa-core CPU, combining high-performance Cortex-A78 cores with energy-efficient Cortex-A55 cores, and a Mali-G610 MP6 GPU for enhanced graphics capabilities.

What’s great about this SoC is that it's extremely well-balanced in terms of processing power and graphics capabilities, and it supports high-end camera sensors and 5G comms.

There are more powerful chips available, like some of the Samsung options, and the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon designs, but you don’t typically see them in rugged phones.

In this context, the Dimensity 8200 has 16GB of LPDDR5 memory to work with, and 512GB of UFS 3.1 storage, along with up to 2TB on an optional TF card. That’s plenty of RAM and space for most use cases.

Before we get to the headline feature, it’s worth talking about the battery in this phone, and how it seems slightly smaller than I’d have expected. While 17600 mAh isn’t a small battery, a phone that weighs 750g or more, like the Ulefone Armour 33 Pro, for example, would normally have 20000 mAh or more battery capacity.

In fact, the Ulefone Armor 33 Pro has 25500 mAh, or 7,900 mAh more than the Tank X. And that phone isn’t special, the Blackview Oscal Tank 1 has 20000 mAh of capacity, but is only 640g.

But as we’ll discover in the performance section, thanks to the power efficiency of the Dimensity 8200, the Tank X can make its reduced capacity go as far as, or farther than, phones with larger batteries.

Clearly, the culprit in making this phone 750g and reducing the space for extra battery capacity is the built-in projector.

The DLP projector is the defining feature of the Tank X and the one most likely to determine whether this device is relevant to any individual buyer. It can output at 1920 x 1080 with a claimed brightness of 220 lumens and uses laser autofocus for rapid alignment.

The throw range is approximately 0.5 to 3 metres (1.6 to 10 feet), allowing image sizes from small desk-surface projections to something approaching a practical portable screen.

I’ve seen other phone makers put projectors in their devices and claim all sorts of things, but this is the first one I’ve seen that could practically deliver most of what was claimed.

I should say that a home or office use projector might be rated at three times as bright, but then that’s physically much larger and requires mains power. But it should not be compared to a standalone projector with an equivalent lumen rating; the lens size and thermal constraints of a phone-integrated DLP mean the effective perceived brightness will be lower than that of a dedicated unit.

For a phone, however, it is the most capable projection system currently available in a handheld device, beating the 720p, 100-lumen units found in earlier 8849 and competing products. The 220 lumens offered here is genuinely usable in a darkened tent or unlit room, something I found quite shocking.

The one-touch projection feature allows rapid deployment without navigating menus, which is important for professional presentations and field briefings. 8849 claims the projector operates without excessive battery drain, but that’s something I’ll talk about in the performance section.

• Hardware score: 4/5

Oukitel WP61 Plus: cameras

• 50MP, 64MP and 8MP on the rear
• 50MP on the front
• Four cameras in total

The 8849 Tank X has four cameras:

Rear camera: 50 MP Sony IMX766, 64MP Omnivision OV64B1B Sensor (Night Vision), 8 MP HiSilicon HI847 Telephoto with 3x optical zoom and AF
Front camera: 50MP Hi5022Q Fixed Focus

The camera layout of the Tank X is unusual, and probably a little bit ground-breaking.

Although it doesn’t have a Samsung 108MP sensor, this is easily one of the most capable camera setups I’ve found on any rugged phone tested to date. The primary rear sensor is a 50MP Sony IMX766, the same component used in several mainstream flagship handsets from the past two years. It is a strong choice for a device targeting serious outdoor photography and documentation work.

But ironically, it isn’t the sensor with the most elements. That’s the 64MP Omnivision OV64B1B, a night vision camera that is supported by four infrared LEDs and, crucially, retains autofocus capability in IR mode.

Fixed-focus night vision cameras, which are common on competing rugged phones, struggle with anything but stationary subjects at predictable distances. The Tank X's AF capability in infrared mode is a meaningful operational advantage for field surveillance, wildlife observation, and low-light navigation.

And rounding out what is already an impressive rear camera cluster is an 8MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom and autofocus. The dual-LED flash system uses two colour-temperature LEDs at 1.5A maximum output, supplementing the IR LEDs for mixed-lighting situations. The front camera is a 50MP sensor, which is exceptionally high resolution for video calls and documentation selfies.

When I first ran the camera app, I was disappointed that it presented me with 1X and 3.4X options, but you can easily slide all the way from 1X to 20X, although it gets rather grainy over 10X. Being able to frame images without having to move is great, and the results, especially from the Sony IMX766 and Omnivision OV64B1B, are generally excellent.

If there is a weakness here, it's how bare the screen is for special modes.

It offers you Timelapse, QR-code, Mono, Super resolution and an editing mode. There is a PRO control set, but what happened to sports mode, or Panoramic?

Thankfully, there is no dumb AI mode where it puts hats or animal features on people, but a more fleshed-out photo application would be ideal.

One of the best things about this phone is the restraint of the Android 15 installation, as it leaves the AI to Gemini, and avoids all the cash-grab chatbots that other brands (Blackview, looking at you) have smeared onto their devices.

Overall, it could have more features in the photo app, but the camera offering here is exceptionally strong for a rugged phone.

8849 Tank X Camera samples

• Camera score: 4/5

8849 Tank X: performance

• Modern and efficient SoC
• GPU issues with OpenGL 3.1 and Vulkan 1.3
• Great battery life

If it wasn’t for the projector, this phone would probably weigh around 650g, and have at least 20000 mAh of battery, so I thought it best to compare it with one that has almost exactly that spec. I should also mention that the typical price of the Blackview Oscal Tank 1 is only $285, although it doesn’t have a projector and has less memory and storage.

What these numbers are a good representation of is how much better the newer MediaTek 4nm SoCs are over their older 6nm models.

This gives the Tank X more processing power, more GPU performance, and it's singularly more power efficient. In fact, the CPU-GPU combination is so potent that it maxed out most 3DMark tests, except for Wildlife and Steel Nomad Lite.

One note about the battery consumption is that while it didn’t last as long by roughly an hour, the Tank X has roughly 88% of the capacity, and the test stopped with 20% of the battery capacity left. Had it used that final fifth of the battery, it would have exceeded Tank 1 by at least three to four hours, I estimate.

If given the choice between these two phones, it comes down to how much eight is too much and whether your budget goes far enough to have the superior features of the Tank X.

I almost forgot to mention the projector, which has both good and bad aspects. The bad first is that the fan needed to keep it cool is loud, and you will need to turn up the volume to be able to hear whatever content you are watching. I estimated that it was in the 55-60 dB range, which isn’t something easily ignored.

To see the impact on battery performance, I ran a YouTube video for 30 minutes and recorded the battery consumption before and after. Projecting 30 minutes of video used up 11% of the available battery, suggesting you might get through the first Lord of the Rings movie, The Fellowship of the Ring, but I suspect not the extended edition.

Therefore, you can watch a whole movie with a fully charged battery, as long as you choose the right one.

• Performance score: 4/5

8849 Tank X: Final verdict

Putting all the good things that 8849 put into the Tank X to one side for a moment, the elephant in this room is disguised as a phone or the monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey, depending on taste.

This isn’t a phone anyone would carry casually, unless they’re related to the late Andre the Giant.

That said, if you can put up with something as big and heavy that it could be mistaken for a useful part of house construction, then there is plenty to like here.

The screen on the Tank X is bright and large, with an excellent colour gamut. The camera cluster goes way beyond what most rugged phones offer, and you can take exceptional photos and video with it. This device also has the first truly practical 1080p projector I’ve seen on a phone, and that’s an exclusive feature.

As for price, the early-bird pricing is good, but I couldn’t see many of these being sold at a price greater than $1000 RRP.

It’s time to create a feature matrix and see how many boxes it ticks, because the Tank X might not be for everyone, but it could be for you.

Should I buy a 8849 Tank X?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

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