July 2017

Our tribute to GammaTech's 30 year Anniversary
GammaTech Computer Corporation is celebrating its 30th anniversary this month, July 2017. That's amazing longevity in an industry where big names come and go. And it marks GammaTech as one of the pioneers in an industry and technology that truly changed the world. So congratulations, GammaTech, on your 30th anniversary, and for contributing so much to making computers durable, tough and rugged enough to hold up out there on the job and in the field. And for keeping them affordable. Best of luck for the future. You have much going for yourselves. [Read GammaTech celebrates its 30th anniversary] -- Posted Monday, July 31, 2017

Rugged mobile computer maverick GammaTech celebrates 30th anniversary
GammaTech Computer Corporation is celebrating its 30th anniversary this month. Founded in 1987, GammaTech is the North American branch of Twinhead International Corporation. Best known for its DURABOOK brand of rugged laptops, tablets, and all-in-one computers, the company has a long history in the U.S. mobile device market. "The devices our customer's purchase are critical to the success of their missions," said Tom Wang, President, GammaTech. "When it comes to government, law enforcement and the support of critical infrastructure, businesses want to partner with a company that has extensive market expertise and delivers on reliability and performance, but also one that will be around if you need assistance. With 30 years in the mobility space and a focus on rugged computing solutions designed to operate in environments where failure is not an option, GammaTech is a company our customers and partners can trust. We look forward to the next 30 years of partnership, and innovation." [See GammaTech press release] -- Posted Wednesday, July 26, 2017

Full review: RuggON PM-311B 7-inch rugged tablet
Small rugged tablets are increasingly used in all sorts of field-based data collection and data verification deployments. With their Blaxtone PM-311B, RuggON offers a tough and exceptionally versatile rugged tablet platform that has uses in numerous public safety, government, military, industrial and commercial applications. With a footprint no bigger than that of an iPad, the PM-311B fits almost anywhere, yet offers full Windows 10 IoT Enterprise features, performance and capabilities. RuggedPCReview examined the PM-311B in detail and found it an exceptionally versatile tool of impeccable quality. [See full review of the RuggON PM-311B] -- Posted Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Dell Rugged to face extreme test in Clipper Round the World yacht race
Clipper Round the World announced that Dell Rugged laptops and tablets will equip this year contestants in Clipper 2017-18 Round the World Yacht Race, one of the toughest endurance races through the most inhospitable corners of the globe. Dell’s Latitude Rugged devices will be fitted to each of the Clipper Race’s twelve 70-foot ocean racing yachts. Crew members will rely on the machines for navigation, communicating to home base, and recording their journey. A special feature is how the devices are specially equipped to handle the extreme heat, cold condensation, shock, and salt water erosion they will experience in their 11 month race. [See Clipper Round the World press release] -- Posted Friday, July 21, 2017

Switch to PCIe SSDs helps updated Xplore R12 rugged tablet shatter benchmark performance records
Xplore Technologies' rugged 12.5-inch XSLATE R12 tablet was already among the fastest devices RuggedPCReview has ever tested. Now Xplore raised the ante once again by switching to an even faster Kaby Lake processor and, most importantly, switch from SATA to PCIe solid state disks. The result is absolutely blazing PassMark benchmark performance. The updated XSLATE R12 is half again as fast as the predecessor model, and the overall fastest device we have tested in the RuggedPCReview lab. [See Xplore press release and Hot-rodding the rugged tablet — Xplore Technologies presents super-high performance version of its sleek, lightweight 12.5-inch R12 Kaby Lake Windows tablet] -- Posted Tuesday, July 18, 2017

Panasonic works with Volkswagen to deliver a next generation production line mobile testing solution for the automotive manufacturer
Volkswagen and Panasonic have collaborated to create a new rugged and versatile Automotive Mobile Test Solution (AMTS). Christoph Lach, Project Manager, at Volkswagen AG explained: "The AMTS is based on the Panasonic Toughpad FZ-M1 tablet and it meets our production requirements. We use the hardware for commissioning the control units in the vehicle. We have the option of connecting to an external vehicle communication interface, which enables us to communicate with the vehicle, but we can also load the UPS-Client from the vehicle. The steering wheel holder meets all the requirements we had here in the group, which means it's compatible with every steering wheel." [See Panasonic press release] -- Posted Thursday, July 13, 2017

Xplore collaborates with Microsoft to accelerate Internet of Things solutions
Xplore Technologies Corp announced it has joined Microsoft Azure Certified for Internet of Things (IoT), ensuring customers get IoT solutions up and running quickly with hardware and software that has been pre-tested and verified to work with Microsoft Azure IoT services. Microsoft Azure Certified for IoT allows businesses to reach customers where they are, working with an ecosystem of devices and platforms, allowing for faster time to production. [See Xplore media release -- Posted Wednesday, July 12, 2017

Juniper’s “Mapping Blitz” helps Bear River Land Conservancy maintain important habitat
In its latest blog entry, Juniper Systems relates how Juniper staff worked with members of the Bear River Land Conservancy to aid in the conservation of important habitat along the Bear River. Using the Geode Sub-meter GPS Receiver, the Mesa 2 Rugged Tablet, and the Allegro 2, a handful of our rugged handheld enthusiasts mapped updates and information on important plants, large debris, fence lines, and more while getting additional hands-on experience using Juniper’s data collection solutions. [See Juniper’s “Mapping Blitz” Helps Bear River Land Conservancy Maintain Important Habitat] -- Posted Tuesday, July 11, 2017

IOGEAR KeySlate Ultra-Slim Bluetooth 4.0 Keyboard
Tablets have changed the world, and 2-in-1 designs are broadening their appeal even more. But often the usefulness of both tablets and 2-in-1s comes down to having a good keyboard. That's what (among lots of other cool stuff) the folks at IOGEAR provide, great keyboards for tablets. We tested their iOS version and loved it (they offer versions for Android and Windows as well) . [See review of the IOGEAR KeySlate Ultra-Slim Bluetooth 4.0 Keyboard, with some contemplations about keyboards in general] -- Posted Saturday, July 8, 2017

Updated: Dell Latitude 14 Rugged
Dell is known for quickly and nimbly making available the very latest technology to its customers around the globe. Dell Rugged, however, knows that consistency, continuity and compatibility is what matters most to their markets. So instead of frequently replacing their rugged and semi-rugged laptops and tablets with new ones, Dell Rugged quietly keeps their true and tested lineup up-to-date. No wonder their market share in the rugged space has been growing. [See updated description, analysis and specs of Dell's full-size Latitude 14 Rugged] -- Posted Saturday, July 8, 2017

Getac sees June revenue increase
According to DigiTimes, Getac Technology reported revenues of US$59.5 million for June 2017, up 11.27% on year. Year-to-date revenues totaled US$336 billion, up 13.26% on year. Since demand for double biometric security functions such as face and iris identification, has been increasing, Getac Technology chairman Ming-han Huang expects the company's ruggedized product sales to benefit from the trend. Huang expects the company's revenues in the second half to grow between 5-15% from the second half of 2016 -- Posted Friday, July 7, 2017

Habey's fully adaptable touch screen controls
Habey USA is promoting what the company calls "fully adaptable touch screen devices". These look like standard consumer tablets from the front, have 7 to 12.1-inch screens, come with ARM and Intel chips, resistive or capacitive touch, and use a variety of operating systems. From the back, they look more like small Panel PCs, offering plenty of configurable, customizable connectivity. As such, these devices can serve as friendly user interfaces for any number of embedded systems and devices. [See Habey media release] -- Posted Thursday, July 6, 2017