September 2017

With the xTablet T1150, MobileDemand adds a third option to its 10-inch rugged tablet lineup. The T1150 represents the top-of-the-line among the trio (the other two being the low-end Flex 10A and the mid-range T1550), offering additional refinement and performance as well as options not available in the lower-end products. RuggedPCReview.com conducted a full review of the MobileDemand xTablet T1150, and found it a compelling package for anyone who needs Windows on tough jobs, even those that require high-level sealing, high resolution, GPS, and industrial-grade scanning. [See full review of the MobileDemand xTablet T1150]

True Story: How Field Service First Got a Handle on Mobility (Thanks to Hospitals)
Many rugged laptops have attached handles, and carry handles are available for some rugged tablets as accessories. But there are some rugged tablets that have a handle built right into their design. That goes back well over a decade when Intel researchers, ever interested in exploring new markets for their chips, came up with what they called the "Mobile Clinical Assistant" reference platform, or simply MCA. in 2007, Motion Computing was the first to convert the concept into a product, the Motion C5. Others followed, and Motion, now part of Xplore, continues the C5/F5 tablets with integrated handles to this day. The whole story is explained in Bob Ashenbrenner's article True Story: How Field Service First Got a Handle on Mobility (Thanks to Hospitals) on Xplore Technologies' blog. [Read True Story: How Field Service First Got a Handle on Mobility (Thanks to Hospitals)] -- Posted Wednesday, September 27, 2017 by chb

Getac's next gen F110 fully rugged tablet provides maximum performance and multi-layer security in 'right size' form factor
Getac is introducing its 4th generation F110 fully rugged tablet, one of the company's best-selling mobile devices. Designed to help field service professionals meet the demands of extreme working environments, the F110 combines Intel® Kaby Lake processors and new multi-layer security features with a fully rugged design to create the best performing and most secure fully rugged tablet in the market. [See Getac press release and RuggedPCReview's description, analysis and specs of the Getac F110] -- Posted Tuesday, September 26, 2017 by chb

Xplore secures yet another multi-million-dollar Android rugged tablet order from top telecommunications provider's fiber optic division
Xplore Technologies Corp (NASDAQ: XPLR) announced that one of the largest broadband and wireless telecommunications companies in the United States has placed a new $2.6 million follow-on order for Xplore XSLATE D10 tablets to support the ongoing expansion of its Fiber Optic Services Division workforce, which first standardized on the custom-engineered tablet platform in August 2016. It is the only fully rugged Android mobile device that offers full computing capabilities and the HDMI-in port technicians need to conduct high speed network quality tests at the time of install. [See Xplore press release] -- Posted Tuesday, September 19, 2017 by chb

Xplore secures million-dollar rugged tablet order from Latin American law enforcement agency
Xplore Technologies Corp (NASDAQ: XPLR) announced that one of the largest Latin American police forces has placed an order totaling more than $1 million for Xplore XSLATE B10 fully rugged tablets, vehicle docks and accessories. The 10.1" Intel-powered XSLATE B10 was the only rugged tablet solution on the market that could meet the law enforcement agency's strict performance standards and ergonomic requirements. [See Xplore press release] -- Posted Tuesday, September 12, 2017 by chb

Handheld launches blog at ruggedinformer.com
Handheld Group, a leading supplier of rugged mobile computers, announced the launch of its new blog, RUGGEDINFORMER.COM. RuggedInformer.com will serve as a resource for mobility professionals, field technicians, IT managers, and others who are engaged in workforce mobilization. It will be a resource to learn more about rugged computers and stay informed about mobility news and emerging rugged technologies. [See Handheld Group press release] -- Posted Friday, September 8, 2017 by chb

Airline swaps pen and paper for Panasonic Toughpad FZ-G1
European cargo airline West Atlantic is transforming life for aviation crew, who formerly used pen and paper to keep on top of logistics, by equipping them with Panasonic Toughpad FZ-G1 rugged tablets. The result is a better and more efficient working day in the form of saved time, increased user-friendliness and better overview. [See Panasonic Europe press release] -- Posted Tuesday, September 5, 2017 by chb

Review: Kingston IronKey S1000 FIPS 140-2 Level 3 compliant secure flash drive
USB flash drives are being sold by the hundreds of millions every year. They are terrific and everyone loves them. But they are also a major security risk and a primary source of data breaches. The solution is secure, encrypted USB keys compliant with FIPS 140-2 Level 3, which is mandatory for governments at any level and those who are doing business with government. RuggedPCReview is taking a detailed look at the
Kingston IronKey S1000 line of rugged, heavy-duty USB keys that truly protects your data. [See Kingston IronKey S1000 — for when you need a rugged, heavy-duty USB key that truly protects your data] -- Posted Tuesday, September 5, 2017 by chb

Intel's 8th-gen U Series Core processors
On August 21, Intel announced what the company calls their 8th Generation Intel Core processors. For now that's just four chips, the i5-8250U and i5-8350U, and the i7-8550U and i7-8650U (see here). From what we can tell, these remain 15-watt 14nm chips with the same 7th gen Kaby Lake architecture, which already was only a minor advance over 6th gen Skylake. What has changed, though, is that these four chips are all quad-core/eight thread systems, so whatever software takes advantage of that will be significantly faster. But what about battery life with all these extra cores? Intel says it's "uncompromised," and that's likely because the new chips run at a much lower base frequency (albeit higher turbo boost) than the equivalent Kaby Lake processors. So what we'll likely see will be the availability of 8th gen chips as high end options. But, for now, 8th gen doesn't look "must have." -- Posted Tuesday, September 5, 2017 by chb