AGM Glory G1S review - Versatile rugged smartphone with 5G
Possible competitors in comparison
Rating | Date | Model | Weight | Drive | Size | Resolution | Price |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
79.7 % v7 (old) | 08 / 2022 | AGM Glory G1S SD 480, Adreno 619 | 315 g | 128 GB UFS 2.2 Flash | 6.53" | 2340x1080 | |
78.2 % v7 (old) | 10 / 2020 | CAT S62 Pro SD 660, Adreno 512 | 248 g | 128 GB eMMC Flash | 5.70" | 2160x1080 | |
81.1 % v7 (old) | 08 / 2021 | Nokia XR20 SD 480, Adreno 619 | 248 g | 128 GB UFS 2.1 Flash | 6.67" | 2400x1080 | |
81.6 % v7 (old) | 03 / 2021 | Blackview BL6000 Pro Dimensity 800, Mali-G57 MP4 | 273 g | 256 GB UFS 2.1 Flash | 6.36" | 2300x1080 |
Case and equipment - Heavy, bulky and well protected
The AGM Glory G1S is unusual, even for a rugged phone. First of all, it is unusually heavy: at 315 grams, it weighs almost 60 grams more than the similarly sized Nokia XR20. And with 1.84 centimeters in height, the device is not really slim either, with the camera module, in particular, jutting far out of the casing.
Nevertheless, AGM has managed to keep the device from being too top-heavy and it fits well in the hand thanks to the rubberized surface and rounded corners.
Lush bumpers at the corners make a drop less of a problem, and the protruding edge around the screen also contributes to that. A grommet for a wrist strap on the lower right corner is also present. The manufacturer states that the phone can withstand drops from 1.5 meters onto concrete and thanks to IP69K it should even withstand high-pressure water jets, is dust-proof, and can withstand up to 30 minutes in 1.50 meters of water depth.
The equipment is also unusual: 8 GB of RAM and 128 GB of mass storage are not special at first, but the extras that the AGM Glory G1S comes with make it practical for everyday work. First of all, there is a laser pointer that can be used to play catch with pets in addition to presentations. Unfortunately, it can't be used to measure distances.
There is also a thermographic camera that can take thermal images with a resolution of 256 x 192 pixels and even allows videos with up to and 25 fps. It is easy to work with, the operation is foolproof and our test image of a kettle shows that the temperatures are recorded quite accurately. Furthermore, AGM installs a night vision camera with a matching infrared diode, which we will take a closer look at in the camera section.
The USB-C and 3.5 mm audio ports are located behind a rubber cover on the bottom edge. They are embedded so deeply in the casing that not all plugs fit, so special USB-C cable with a longer plug and narrow sheath is needed.
The microSD reader works with typical write and read rates, but you have to give up a SIM slot to use it.
SD Card Reader - average JPG Copy Test (av. of 3 runs) | |
Average of class Smartphone (7.7 - 77, n=77, last 2 years) | |
AGM Glory G1S (Angelbird V60) | |
Nokia XR20 (Angelbird V60) |
Cross Platform Disk Test (CPDT)
Communication, software and operation - Hardly any updates
5G is on board, just as many 4G frequencies, so that the phone can usually be used for mobile Internet abroad without problems. Reception proved to be a bit weaker from time to time in our sample tests, especially indoors, but it never completely drops out. NFC is on board, so you can also use mobile payment services.
The WLAN module supports WiFi 5, and other outdoor phones do not offer more here. However, the AGM Glory G1S only shows very low data rates in the receive test, which cannot be improved even after many iterations with the reference router Asus ROG Rapture AXE11000. The data rates are on a higher level in the transmit test.
AGM installs pure Android 11. This Android version is already 2 years old and seems a bit antiquated now that Android 13 is already in the starting blocks. Also questionable, especially for sensitive corporate customers: the security patches date back to January 2022 at the time of testing and are thus hopelessly outdated. Thus, you should not expect regular updates. At least the manufacturer hardly installs its own apps and especially no third-party advertising apps.
There is a user-assignable button on the casing's left, but the possible options are very limited, as our screenshot shows. The fingerprint sensor is located below the camera module on the back. Both left- and right-handed users can reach it easily, but might have to reach around a bit. It unlocks the smartphone reliably after a short charging pause. Face recognition for unlocking is also possible, but only software-based and thus not as secure.
A glove mode for a more sensitive touchscreen is also available.
Networking | |
iperf3 transmit AX12 | |
Blackview BL6000 Pro | |
Nokia XR20 | |
CAT S62 Pro | |
iperf3 receive AX12 | |
Nokia XR20 | |
Blackview BL6000 Pro | |
AGM Glory G1S | |
CAT S62 Pro | |
iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
AGM Glory G1S |
Cameras - The AGM phone can see in the dark
The main camera has a resolution of 48 megapixels and is based on a Sony IMX582 sensor. HDR pictures are not very good, bright areas are partly overlit. However, the detail reproduction is decent. Large areas quickly look blotchy.
However, the camera has difficulties, especially in low light, where strong artifacts are created and there is no drawing in dark areas anyway.
However, the AGM Glory G1S has a special camera on board for such situations: a rear-view camera with an infrared diode that can take 20-megapixel pictures, but of course only in black and white. In return, the camera can also see in complete darkness. The subject is well visible and also reasonably sharp in our test shots. As an additional feature, the camera can even record videos at 25 fps.
There is no wide-angle camera, but only a 2-megapixel macro lens for extreme close-ups.
The main camera records videos at a maximum of 1080p and 60 fps. Autofocus and automatic exposure work quite reliably and without delays. The picture quality is also decent with good exposure.
Image Comparison
Choose a scene and navigate within the first image. One click changes the position on touchscreens. One click on the zoomed-in image opens the original in a new window. The first image shows the scaled photograph of the test device.
Main cameraMain cameraLow Light

Display - Little luminosity, but no PWM
AGM uses an IPS panel with an expanded Full HD resolution for the display. Unfortunately, the brightness is not convincing in our test with the spectrophotometer and is at a maximum of 390 cd/m², which is more reminiscent of a display from 5 years ago than a current smartphone panel. This is especially critical for a work device like the AMG Glory G1S if the phone is frequently used outdoors and in other bright environments.
The color reproduction is quite inaccurate and shows a clear blue cast. At least we did not measure any PWM on the screen.
|
Brightness Distribution: 91 %
Center on Battery: 390 cd/m²
Contrast: 907:1 (Black: 0.43 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 5.13 | 0.5-29.43 Ø4.89
ΔE Greyscale 5.7 | 0.5-98 Ø5.1
94.7% sRGB (Calman 2D)
Gamma: 2.423
AGM Glory G1S IPS, 2340x1080, 6.5" | CAT S62 Pro LCD, 2160x1080, 5.7" | Nokia XR20 IPS, 2400x1080, 6.7" | Blackview BL6000 Pro IPS, 2300x1080, 6.4" | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Response Times | -36% | -2% | -34% | |
Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 29 ? | 45.6 ? -57% | 36 ? -24% | 40 ? -38% |
Response Time Black / White * | 20 ? | 22.8 ? -14% | 16 ? 20% | 26 ? -30% |
PWM Frequency | 2358 ? | 1163 ? | 544 ? | |
Screen | -6% | 36% | 6% | |
Brightness middle | 390 | 506 30% | 599 54% | 583 49% |
Brightness | 377 | 489 30% | 598 59% | 518 37% |
Brightness Distribution | 91 | 86 -5% | 99 9% | 83 -9% |
Black Level * | 0.43 | 0.41 5% | 0.33 23% | 0.6 -40% |
Contrast | 907 | 1234 36% | 1815 100% | 972 7% |
Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 5.13 | 6.9 -35% | 4.52 12% | 4.78 7% |
Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 7.96 | 12.6 -58% | 7.6 5% | 8.7 -9% |
Greyscale dE 2000 * | 5.7 | 8.5 -49% | 4.2 26% | 5.5 4% |
Gamma | 2.423 91% | 2.4 92% | 2.279 97% | 2.22 99% |
CCT | 7974 82% | 8818 74% | 7309 89% | 6830 95% |
Total Average (Program / Settings) | -21% /
-12% | 17% /
28% | -14% /
-2% |
* ... smaller is better
Display Response Times
↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
---|---|---|
20 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 11 ms rise | |
↘ 9 ms fall | ||
The screen shows good response rates in our tests, but may be too slow for competitive gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 40 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is similar to the average of all tested devices (20.9 ms). | ||
↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
29 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 15 ms rise | |
↘ 14 ms fall | ||
The screen shows relatively slow response rates in our tests and may be too slow for gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.165 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 35 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is better than the average of all tested devices (32.7 ms). |
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
Screen flickering / PWM not detected | |||
In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 8619 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 343500) Hz was measured. |
Performance, emissions and battery life
The SoC is the Snapdragon 480 5G from Qualcomm is used. Nokia also uses it for its rugged phone XR20. Thus, the AGM smartphone achieves sufficient power to maneuver smoothly through apps in simple tasks. However, you should not have too many apps running in the background, because otherwise, the performance will quickly drop to its knees. Thus, the performance reserves are rather low.
The temperature increase of the casing can be quite noticeable. It is even quite high at room temperature with up to 46.7 °C. Although the phone should not have any problems in continuous operation, it could look different in very hot environments.
The mono speaker is located at the back of the phone and is integrated into the bulky camera module. It can get quite loud but is then unpleasantly treble-heavy. A 3.5 mm audio port is available, but it is sunk deep into the casing, so you should check whether the jack plug fits. Sound can also be transmitted to headphones and external speakers via Bluetooth. The modern aptX codecs are also supported here.
The large battery leads to good endurance in the AGM Glory G1S: the phone lasted for almost 16 hours in our WLAN test and should thus also survive 2 workdays with moderate use.
The relatively low charging power of 18 watts together with the amply dimensioned 5,500 mAh battery means that it sometimes takes 3 hours until the phone is full again, depending on the charge status. Alternatively, the device can be charged via the charging station, which is connected via Pogo PINs on the back. However, the charging power is then only 10 watts and it takes even longer until the battery is full again.
Wireless charging is not supported in this model, even though the manufacturer's website contains contradictory information.
PCMark for Android - Work 3.0 (sort by value) | |
AGM Glory G1S | |
Nokia XR20 | |
Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 5G (6928 - 9058, n=7) | |
Average of class Smartphone (4507 - 27169, n=191, last 2 years) |
GFXBench | |
on screen Aztec Ruins Normal Tier Onscreen (sort by value) | |
AGM Glory G1S | |
CAT S62 Pro | |
Nokia XR20 | |
Blackview BL6000 Pro | |
Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 5G (16 - 31, n=9) | |
Average of class Smartphone (5.5 - 166, n=200, last 2 years) | |
1920x1080 Aztec Ruins Normal Tier Offscreen (sort by value) | |
AGM Glory G1S | |
CAT S62 Pro | |
Nokia XR20 | |
Blackview BL6000 Pro | |
Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 5G (17 - 19, n=9) | |
Average of class Smartphone (3.4 - 321, n=200, last 2 years) | |
on screen Aztec Ruins High Tier Onscreen (sort by value) | |
AGM Glory G1S | |
CAT S62 Pro | |
Nokia XR20 | |
Blackview BL6000 Pro | |
Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 5G (9.9 - 19, n=9) | |
Average of class Smartphone (0.85 - 144, n=201, last 2 years) | |
2560x1440 Aztec Ruins High Tier Offscreen (sort by value) | |
AGM Glory G1S | |
CAT S62 Pro | |
Nokia XR20 | |
Blackview BL6000 Pro | |
Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 5G (6.4 - 6.7, n=9) | |
Average of class Smartphone (1.2 - 129, n=200, last 2 years) |
AGM Glory G1S | CAT S62 Pro | Nokia XR20 | Blackview BL6000 Pro | Average 128 GB UFS 2.2 Flash | Average of class Smartphone | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AndroBench 3-5 | -61% | -1% | 15% | 25% | 177% | |
Sequential Read 256KB | 497.9 | 304.2 -39% | 485 -3% | 873 75% | 725 ? 46% | 1941 ? 290% |
Sequential Write 256KB | 484.1 | 185.3 -62% | 452 -7% | 198.5 -59% | 523 ? 8% | 1558 ? 222% |
Random Read 4KB | 168 | 79.4 -53% | 174.8 4% | 190.2 13% | 191.9 ? 14% | 280 ? 67% |
Random Write 4KB | 141 | 12.43 -91% | 146.2 4% | 181.9 29% | 184.1 ? 31% | 320 ? 127% |
Temperature
(±) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 44 °C / 111 F, compared to the average of 35.1 °C / 95 F, ranging from 21.9 to 63.7 °C for the class Smartphone.
(-) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 46.7 °C / 116 F, compared to the average of 33.9 °C / 93 F
(±) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 33.9 °C / 93 F, compared to the device average of 32.8 °C / 91 F.
Speaker
AGM Glory G1S audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (85.6 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 74.5% lower than median
(+) | bass is linear (0% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(-) | nearly no mids - on average 74.5% lower than median
(+) | mids are linear (0% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(-) | nearly no highs - on average 74.5% lower than median
(+) | highs are linear (0% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(-) | overall sound is not linear (120.4% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 88% of all tested devices in this class were better, 9% similar, 3% worse
» The best had a delta of 12%, average was 36%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 96% of all tested devices were better, 3% similar, 1% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 24%, worst was 134%
Blackview BL6000 Pro audio analysis
(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (81 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 27.8% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (10% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(±) | reduced mids - on average 5.2% lower than median
(+) | mids are linear (4.9% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 4.3% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (2.4% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (23.8% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 51% of all tested devices in this class were better, 9% similar, 40% worse
» The best had a delta of 12%, average was 36%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 69% of all tested devices were better, 7% similar, 25% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 24%, worst was 134%
Battery life
Battery Runtime - WiFi Websurfing | |
Average of class Smartphone (476 - 3244, n=198, last 2 years) | |
AGM Glory G1S | |
Nokia XR20 | |
Blackview BL6000 Pro | |
CAT S62 Pro |
Pros
Cons
Verdict - Well equipped for special situations
The AMG Glory G1S is not a cell phone for everyone because of its weight, the clunky camera module, and the rather high price for the offered performance. It is a special tool that can be extremely useful in some situations: for example, the thermal imaging camera works reliably without needing an accessory. And a night vision camera is hardly available in any other smartphone.
The casing looks sturdy and is shock-, water- and dust-proof, making it well-suited for harsher environments. However, the manufacturer could have installed a brighter screen, since it is sometimes difficult to read the display outdoors. AGM should also make an effort with the software, especially with more up-to-date security patches.
The battery runtimes are on a good level, so the phone does not have to be plugged in all the time. If it does, however, the charging power is quite low and thus the charging process takes its time.
The AGM Glory G1S is a smartphone with special cameras for heat and night vision, which convinces with its stable casing. However, one should know some weak points before buying it.
If you appreciate the smartphone's special cameras, you will hardly find a real competitor: the Cat S62 Pro (for 599 Euros at amazon.de) does bring a thermal imaging camera, but it cannot see in the dark. If you want a brighter screen in your outdoor phone and can do without the special capabilities, you'll get a better price with the Nokia XR20 a much slimmer and lighter rugged phone.
Price and availability
The AGM Glory G1S can be ordered directly from the manufacturer at the time of testing for 779 Euros https://de.agmmobile.com/products/de-agm-glory-g1s directly from the manufacturer. You can use various coupons here to get a discount.
Interestingly, it is immediately much cheaper at amazon.de at 720 Euros, which is also sold by the manufacturer. You also get the charging station for free.
AGM Glory G1S
- 08/11/2022 v7 (old)
Florian Schmitt