Fully rugged high-performance 10-inch tablet offers multi-mode usage via detachable keyboard dock.
(by Conrad H. Blickenstorfer)

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On June 26, 2019, Getac introduced the UX10, a rugged 10-inch tablet designed to meet the challenges faced by emergency service and public safety personnel around the world, but suitable for numerous other demanding applications in utilities, field services, industrial manufacturing and more. Implemented as a "detachable laptop," the UX10 can be used either as a tablet or in conjunction with an optional value-added keyboard dock that allows use as a full-function laptop. The UX10 further shines with an all quad-core 8th generation Intel Core processor lineup of available CPUs.

The UX10, of course, is Getac's answer to the Panasonic Toughbook 20, just like Getac's larger K120 was launched to compete with Panasonic's Toughbook 33. All are hybrid solutions consisting of a self-contained tablet and an optional detachable keyboard that contains considerable additional functionality and connectivity. Panasonic called theirs a detachable laptop whereas Getac bills the UX10 as a rugged tablet with enhanced versatility.

Either way, this type of design allows use as a "real" tablet as well as a "real" laptop. As such, the UX10 will serve two important roles in Getac's lineup. The company now has a direct competitor to Panasonic's Toughbook 20. And it also has another true hybrid, which is important as detachable hybrids are a growing market segment. Finally, and just as importantly, the UX10 also adds a 10-inch class rugged tablet to Getac's offerings, a very good move considering the ongoing popularity of the 10-inch form factor and the 10-inch tablet offerings by pretty much all of the competition.

In its initial press UX10 press release, Getac didn't go into specifics about the keyboard that makes the UX10 into a full-function 2-in-1 hybrid if so desired. So the pictures below are not of the UX10 but of the larger Getac K120. The UX10 plus keyboard will have about the same multi-functionality. Like all hybrid approaches this one is a compromise, neither completely fish nor fowl, but it absolutely addresses the needs of those who really want both. It is a full-function tablet, and with the keyboard dock it is full-function laptop, albeit one that is more complex than a traditional laptop.

Now let's look at the tech specs. Here, the UX10 excels at the processor front, offering a powerful choice of all-quad-core CPUs from Intel's "Kaby Lake R" 8th generation of Core processors. The table below shows processor specs. This chip lineup is actually even newer and more powerful than the quartet offer in the larger K120 2-in-1, with the primary difference in significantly higher maximum turbo speeds. Overall, the four chips are relatively close together, all high-performance, and so the choice may come down to whether or not a customer needs Intel's vPro technology for enhanced security and remote management.

For a more detailed comparison table of these four processors, click here.

The UX10 comes with up to 16GB of fast DDR4 RAM and up to 1 terabyte of AES encrypted solid state storage. The specs do not say if the SSDs are SATA or PCIe based, something that would make a big difference in overall performance.

The UX10 display (likely of the IPS variety, as all recent Getacs) measures 10.1 inches diagonally and offers 1920 x 1200 pixel resolution, making for a sharp 224 pixels per inch. Its 1000 nits luminance is higher than the Panasonic Toughbook 20's 800 nits. There's, of course, 10-point capacitive multi-touch, a hard tip stylus, and an optional active digitizer.

Due to weight and space issues, battery capacity is always a tricky thing with tablets. Here, Getac didn't fall for the recent gimmick of offering devices with two tiny batteries, just to be able to claim a very low starting weight with only one battery installed. Instead, the Getac UX10 comes with a nicely sized 46.6 watt-hour battery, and also offers an optional 100 watt-hour long-lasting battery. Hot-swapping is still possible with an optionally available bridge battery.

Given its intended deployments, the UX10's emphasis is more on functionality and performance than minimum size and weight. The tablet/keyboard combo weighs about 4.6 pounds, the tablet alone 2.7 pounds. This is industrial-strength gear.

As far as connectivity goes, Getac made the UX10 as configurable as possible so it can meet the specialized needs of its intended customers. Basic onboard I/O includes a USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type A port, HDMI, the headphone jack, and the docking connector. Additional I/O functionality can be ordered via an expansion slot that can accommodate a serial port, another USB Type A or Type C port, RJ45 LAN, VGA, or a barcode or HF RFID reader. Note that it's either or here; only one of the above can be installed in that slot.

With many UX10 tablets likely seeing data collection duty, customers can also specify a magnetic stripe reader, fingerprint reader, or Smart Card reader.

With security becoming an ever-growing concern, Getac equipped the UX10 with TPM 2.0 and a physical cable lock slot, made it NIST BIOS compliant, and offers optional optional Absolute DDS software, Smart Card reader, fingerprint reader, or HF RFID reader.

The Getac UX10 is billed as a fully rugged device. That includes IP65 sealing (dustproof, and immune to low pressure water jets from all directions) and a very wide operating temperature range of -20 to 145 degrees Fahrenheit, and the claim to be "certified to MIL-STD 810G." We'd like to see more specifics in the specs. Most customers probably would, too.

With the new UX10, Getac now has a direct competitor to Panasonic's Toughbook 20, and one that, for now, beats the Toughbook on the processor front and in other areas. And with the UX10, Getac is now also represented with a very strong offering in the lucrative 10-inch rugged tablet market. That was needed, and also further expands Getac's increasingly complete lineup of rugged computers for most conceivable applications in harsh, demanding environments. -- Conrad H. Blickenstorfer, June 2019