A rugged tablet is sold on the promise that it does not need wrapping in anything. The housing is sealed and several of our devices carry a drop rating. So the honest starting point is this: most of the accessories on our accessories page are not about protection at all. They are about carrying the device, holding it with one hand, and keeping it off the floor in the first place. A strap or a holster earns its money on most sites. A screen protector is cheap insurance against the one failure a sealed housing does nothing for. A carry case is useful for some people and dead weight for others.
What the Device Already Covers
Every device in our range has an IP rating, which covers dust and water, and some have a drop rating, which covers falls onto a hard surface. Our IP68 vs IP67 guide and our MIL-STD-810H explainer cover what the ratings mean in detail. The short version, model by model, using only what is listed:
- Tuga A6: IP67, rated for 1.5 metre drops, 277g
- Tuga A8: IP67, no drop rating listed
- Tuga A10: IP68, tested to MIL-STD-810H, 680g
- Tuga WH6: IP65, tested to MIL-STD-810H, rated for 1.5 metre drops, 470g
- Tuga W8: IP65, tested to MIL-STD-810G, rated for 1.22 metre drops, 910g
- Tuga W10: IP65, no drop rating listed, 1197g
Two things stand out. The A8 and the W10 list no drop rating, so for those two you are relying on the housing without a published figure behind it. And a drop rating is a test from a set height onto a set surface, not a guarantee that any fall at any angle leaves the device untouched. That is the gap the accessories below are really for.
Screen Protectors: Cheap, and Worth It on Most Sites
Our Tempered Glass Screen Protector is £14 for a pack of two and is listed for all six devices. It is 9H tempered glass, hard enough to shrug off the scratches that keys, screws and grit leave on a bare screen.
This is the one accessory with a clear answer, because the sealed housing does nothing for the glass. A drop rating is about the device still working after a fall. It says nothing about whether the screen picks up a scratch from the gravel it landed on, and a scratch across a 10 inch screen is something you look at every working day for years. The device's own glass is a cut above a consumer tablet (the A8 lists AGC glass, the A10 tempered glass and the W8 a G+G touch panel), but none of that stops a self-tapping screw in the same pocket from leaving a mark.
The second reason to fit one is that it fails first. If the device takes a hit on the face, a cracked protector peels off and the second one in the pack goes on. A cracked screen is a repair. Our guide to how long a rugged tablet should last makes the point that these devices are bought to be kept for years, and the screen is the part you cannot refresh any other way.
When to skip it: if the tablet lives in a vehicle dock or on a desk and only comes out for a signature at the kitchen table, the bare glass will be fine. If you are fussy about touch feel or glare, try the device bare for a week first.
Hand Straps: Protection by Not Dropping It
The best drop protection is not dropping the device, and a hand strap is how you do that on a ladder, in a riser or on a roof. Our Hand Strap is £24, adjusts to fit, rotates through 360 degrees so the tablet can turn from portrait to landscape without letting go, and is listed for the A8, A10, W8 and W10.
Before you buy one, check the box. The A6, A10, W8 and W10 ship with a hand strap included, so for those four the £24 strap is a spare or a replacement. The A8 and the WH6 do not include one. On the A8 that matters: it has no drop rating listed, and it is the size most likely to be held up a ladder with one hand while the other holds a torch. If you are buying an A8 to use on your feet, the hand strap is the first accessory to add. On the WH6 the holster below does the same job in a different way.
A strap also changes how you work. With the tablet on the back of your hand you can write, photograph and point with the hand that would otherwise be gripping the edge. At 910g for the W8 and 1197g for the W10, that is worth more than the protection.
When to skip it: if your device already came with one and you have not worn it out, or if the tablet never leaves a mount or a desk.
Shoulder Straps: For People Who Walk
Our Shoulder Strap is £19, padded, adjustable and fitted with quick release clips, and is listed for the same four tablets: A8, A10, W8 and W10. It is for the person who walks a site or an estate with the tablet in use for part of the time and hanging the rest. Surveyors, site managers and anyone on a long inspection round fit this description, and our guide for surveyors and site managers goes further into that kind of day.
It protects the device the same indirect way a hand strap does: a tablet hanging at your side is not a tablet balanced on a scaffold board or tucked under an arm while you open a gate. The quick release clips mean it comes off for a dock without unthreading anything.
When to skip it: if the tablet comes out of the van for one job at a time, a strap swinging against your hip is a nuisance. See our guide to mounting a tablet in a van instead.
Belt Holsters: The Handheld Answer
For the two handhelds, the A6 and the WH6, the equivalent of a strap is a holster. Our Belt Holster is £22, is MOLLE compatible so it also fits a tool belt or a vest with the right webbing, closes with a magnet rather than a press stud, and fits devices up to 6.8 inches, which covers the 6 inch A6 and the 6.5 inch WH6.
A handheld gets taken out and put away dozens of times a day, and every one of those is a chance to put it down on a bonnet or a pallet and walk off. A holster gives it one place to go. Both handhelds carry a 1.5 metre drop rating, so a fall from a belt is within the figure they were tested to, but the holster is really about not losing the thing, which no rating covers. For warehouse work, where the handheld is drawn and scanned constantly, see our guide to handhelds for stocktakes.
When to skip it: if the 277g A6 lives happily in a trouser pocket, a pocket is fine. The 470g WH6 is less comfortable there all day.
Carry Cases: Useful for Some, Dead Weight for Others
Our Rugged Carry Case is £34, padded, with a shoulder strap and a belt loop, pockets for cables, a charger and a stylus, and room for a tablet up to 10.1 inches. It is listed for the A8, A10, W8 and W10.
This is the accessory most likely to be bought on reflex and then left in the van. The tablet is already sealed and, on four of the six models, drop rated. It does not need padding to survive a door pocket. Where the case earns its place is as a bag rather than armour: one place for the tablet, the 12V DC Car Charger (£26), a USB-C cable, the Capacitive Stylus (£14.99) and the USB-C to USB-A OTG Adapter (£8), so the kit moves between vehicles or into a site office as a unit. If you share a device between people or vans, or carry it on public transport, that is a real benefit.
It also covers the tablet when it is not in use. A tablet face down on the passenger seat under a toolbox is not covered by any drop test.
When to skip it: if the tablet lives in a vehicle dock and is used in the van and at the door, you will unzip the case once and never again. A screen protector and a door pocket give you most of the benefit for £14. Buy the case if you want a bag for the kit, not because the tablet needs it.
What the Ratings Do Not Cover
"Rugged" gets read as "indestructible" and it is not. None of the accessories above change the device's IP rating, and none make an IP65 device safe to drop in a bucket. A case does not raise a 1.22 metre drop rating to 2 metres. And our warranties, the included 12 months and the 3-Year Warranty, cover defects, not accidental damage, so outside Total Care a screen cracked by a dropped hammer is yours to pay for whichever accessory it was wearing. A protector that takes the hit is the cheapest way to make that bill smaller.
A Short Shopping List by Device
- A6: screen protector (£14) and the Belt Holster (£22). A hand strap is in the box.
- A8: screen protector (£14) and the Hand Strap (£24), because none is included and no drop rating is listed. Shoulder strap or case only if you walk sites or share the kit.
- A10: screen protector (£14). A hand strap is in the box. Add the Shoulder Strap (£19) for long site walks.
- WH6: screen protector (£14) and the Belt Holster (£22). No hand strap is included.
- W8 and W10: screen protector (£14). A hand strap is in the box, and at 910g and 1197g you will use it. The Carry Case (£34) if the kit moves between vehicles.
Prices are as listed, with no VAT to add, and delivery is free to UK addresses in 7 to 10 working days. If you are kitting out a team and want the same set for every device, the team pricing page covers how the discount works, or ask us which combination fits your model.
Compare head to head: A6 vs A8 · A8 vs A10 · A10 vs WH6
Rugged tablets from £349
IP65 to IP68 sealed, with 1000 nit screens and removable batteries where they matter. Free UK delivery, 30-day returns and a 12-month warranty on every device.
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