DOOGEE has sent the team another crazy rugged phone. What makes it so interesting? I can summarize its features in one sentence: it’s a power bank that can glow on the back and also make calls. Yes, the DOOGEE V Max S is a rugged phone designed for camping. It helps you reduce the weight and space of your backpack. Making your camping trip lighter is the ultimate mission of the V Max S.
Unboxing
Let’s start with the unboxing. The V Max S doesn’t come with many accessories. Aside from the usual items like the manual, charger, and charging cable, there’s also a spare screen protector. The charger also has a USB-C port and supports up to 33W PPS fast charging, so you don’t need to bring an extra USB-A cable with you. These have always been DOOGEE’s traditional strengths, and I’m glad the V Max S has kept these advantages.
Camping Light
The most eye-catching feature of the V Max S—and the one you’re most curious about—must be these two huge glowing panels on the back, right? While this isn’t the first time we’ve reviewed a rugged phone with LED lights on the back, it is the first time we’ve seen a phone with two LED panels.
To ensure campers have clear visibility at night, the V Max S delivers an impressive 1,200 lumens of brightness, making it the brightest phone we’ve ever tested. Numbers alone might not do it justice, so let’s do a quick comparison.
With these two images, you can clearly see how strong 1200 lumens is.
Of course, if you don’t need that much brightness, there are five adjustable levels to choose from, plus three lighting modes, so you can customize it for any use case. In short, if you don’t want to carry a camping lamp or flashlight, the V Max S can easily replace them.
And if you don’t even want to bring a **power bank**? Well, the V Max S might just handle that too.
Battery MAX
Just by looking at the thickness of this device, you can probably guess it packs a massive battery. And you’re right—to prevent those ultra-bright LEDs from draining your phone dry, the V Max S comes with a 22,000mAh battery, supporting charging speeds of up to 33W.
According to DOOGEE’s lab tests, this battery enables nearly a week of continuous calls and over two months of standby time. Light users can go a full week without charging, while heavy users will still get three to four days of runtime.
If your V Max S has a spare battery, you can even use it to charge other devices. It tops out at around 7W—handy for emergencies.
Other Features
Let’s take a look at the other functions of the V Max S. As a rugged phone, it comes with rubberized edges and waterproof port designs—classic rugged phone styling. Another signature rugged phone feature is the customizable side button that can be programmed for various functions.
Then there’s the SIM card tray, which supports hot-swapping without a pin tool, and can accommodate either dual SIM cards or one SIM plus one TF card simultaneously. Of course, the V Max S also comes with all the standard water and dropproof certifications. It works up to 60 degrees Celsius and down to -20 degrees Celsius.
The V Max S has perfectly positioned speakers—both fire directly toward your face, with balanced left/right channel volume.
The phone sports a 6.58-inch LCD display with a 120Hz refresh rate. One thing to note: The V Max S ships with its display set to 60Hz by default—don’t forget to manually switch it to 120Hz in the settings for smoother visuals.
Under the hood, it’s powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 7050 chipset paired with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. While its raw performance isn’t groundbreaking, this makes sense—the V Max series has always prioritized extreme battery life over sheer power. And let’s be honest, who’d want to game on a phone this thick anyway? This processor is more than capable of web browsing or light gaming—no complaints about the price.
Camera
The V Max S features a triple-camera setup: a 108MP main camera, a macro camera, and a night vision camera. These are all familiar components, performing just as well as those on other flagship rugged phones. Here’s a pro tip: If you’re not photographing animals, turning on the LED camp lamp while shooting with the main camera actually delivers better image quality.
Verdict
The V Max S has a clear target: campers who hate carrying extra gear. They need a camping light, a power bank, and a tough, reliable communication device—and the V Max S delivers all three in one. This phone was made for them. Yet it’s priced affordably, delivering a flagship rugged phone experience in its price range—a key selling point of the V Max series. And this “S” model is the best value-for-money variant in the lineup. “Flagship experience, starter price”— that’s what V Max S delivers.
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