On September 29, 2014, GoPro announced the GoPro Hero 4 and also a new basic GoPro camera. This is relevant for anyone dealing with ruggedized computing gear and using technology in the field for a number of reasons. But first, what exactly is GoPro and why do their products matter? GoPro makes tiny little action cameras that, somehow, captured the public’s imagination and are now found seemingly everywhere. You could almost say they’ve become a cultural phenomenon. GoPros […] →Read more
It’s a mad, mad, mad world as far as the screen size of mobile devices goes. Witness… For smartphones, 4.7 inches or so now seems the least customers will accept, and 5.5 inches or larger is better. When Apple introduced its iPhone 6 (4.7 inch) and iPhone 6+ (5.5 inch), the demand was such that both Apple’s and AT&T’s websites couldn’t keep up. The AT&T website, in particular, was so messed up from all the pre-orders of giant […] →Read more
Why OneNote for Android with handwriting is important
A few days ago, the Office 365 and OneNote blogs at Microsoft announced OneNote for Android or the addition of handwriting and inking support for OneNote for Android, it wasn’t quite clear (see here). While Microsoft OneNote isn’t nearly as popular as Word and Excel, it’s available as part of Microsoft Office, and supposedly over a billion people use Office. So there may be tens or even hundreds of million who use OneNote. What is OneNote? It’s sort […] →Read more
Though Android dominates the smartphone market and has a very strong position in tablets, until now Google’s OS platform was not available for desktops and conventional notebooks (the Chromebook with its limited offline functionality doesn’t really count). That has now changed with the new HP SlateBook, a full-function, quad-core Tegra 4-powered notebook with a 14-inch 1920 x 1080 pixel 10-point multi-touch screen, and running Android 4.3. The Slatebook weighs 3.7 pounds, offers up to 9 hours of battery […] →Read more
Advances in capacitive touch and passive capacitive pens
RuggedPCReview.com just finished reviewing the Panasonic Toughpad FZ-M1, and we ended up calling it a “milestone product” because of its novel and unique passive capacitive stylus that can greatly increase productivity because it allows for far greater precision when using the Windows desktop than touch alone or earlier capacitive pens. This article describes the past and current situation of touch in rugged tablet computers, and why the technology employed by Panasonic in the FZ-M1 is so relevant. Until […] →Read more
Advances in capacitive touch and passive capacitive pens
RuggedPCReview.com just finished reviewing the Panasonic Toughpad FZ-M1, and we ended up calling it a “milestone product” because of its novel and unique passive capacitive stylus that can greatly increase productivity because it allows for far greater precision when using the Windows desktop than touch alone or earlier capacitive pens. This article describes the past and current situation of touch in rugged tablet computers, and why the technology employed by Panasonic in the FZ-M1 is so relevant. Until […] →Read more
As editors of RuggedPCReview.com, we’re probably better equipped than most to report anytime, anywhere, and under any conditions. After all, we not only have access to the latest and greatest mobile computing and communications gear, but much of that gear is designed to go just about anywhere. The reality is a bit different, as we learned the hard way on a stretch of several weeks on the road and high sea. Testing underwater still and video camera equipment […] →Read more
So we get this box from Xplore Technologies, and it’s pretty heavy. And it’s a bit grimy. We figured we better open it outside. This is what happened: Yes, Xplore sent us the brand-spaking new iX104 XC6 to make a point. Sod: It can handle grime and dirt. Sunglasses: You can use it in bright sunshine. Measuring tape: You can drop it from seven feet. Ice cube tray: it’s freeze-proof. Inflatable pool ring: it can handle full immersion. […] →Read more
There are things in life where the outrage and pain just never seems to go away. For me that includes the infamous game 6 in the 2002 basketball playoffs where the NBA stole the championship from my Sacramento Kings, the forced demise of the Newton, a relationship issue or two, and then there is the way General Dynamics took over that intrepid small town Itronix computer company up in Spokane, Washington, just to then ruin it and shut […] →Read more
Getac’s latest rugged convertible replaces the V8 with a turbo-4
I love cars and often use automotive analogies to describe situations. One came to mind recently as we evaluated a particularly interesting new rugged mobile computer. So here goes: With gas mileage becoming ever more important in cars and trucks, the automotive industry has been pulling all stops to come up with more fuel efficient vehicles. One way to boost fuel efficiency is to reduce the weight of the vehicle. Another is to use smaller turbocharged motors to […] →Read more
On February 24, 2014, Samsung showed their new flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S5. It’s relevant because it’ll sell by the many millions, and it’ll be the primary opponent to Apple’s current 5s and whatever Apple comes up with next. But the Galaxy S5 is also relevant because the technology it includes and provides will become the new norm. It’ll be what people expect in a handheld. And that affects the rugged industrial and vertical markets, because what the […] →Read more
Just a brief entry here…. Up to Android “Jelly Bean,” i.e. versions 4.1.x through versions 4.3.x, one of the cool things about Android was the (relative) ease with which one could do screen grabs. Those, of course, are essential to product reviewers. And so it was good to know that all one had to do was connect the Android device to a PC or Mac, fire up the Android SDK, click Applications > Development > USB debugging on, […] →Read more
All of a sudden, everyone is talking about 4k video. Also known as Ultra-HD video, four times the resolution of the 1920 x 1080 pixel 1080p standard, 4k was everywhere at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Now, obviously, 4k video isn’t the most important thing on rugged mobile computer manufacturers’ minds, but 4k video is nonetheless a sign of changing times. And with some consumer smartphones already offering full 1080p resolution on their small screens, and […] →Read more
There was a time in the very distant computing past where, when buying a computer, the sole decision you needed to make was whether to use the Intel 386/33 or save a few bucks and get the slightly slower 386/25. Today, if you use Intel’s handy ARK app that lists every product available from Intel, there’s a staggering 1,874 different processors listed. That includes processors targeted at desktop, server, mobile and embedded computers, but even if you leave […] →Read more
Michael Dell’s keynote at Dell World 2013: reaching for the cloud
One big problem with being a public company is that every three months it’s imperative not to disappoint analysts and investors. Dell won’t have to worry about that anymore because it returned to being a private company. That means Dell can now take the longer look, pursue the bigger picture, and no longer suffer from the infliction of short term thinking, as Michael Dell so eloquently put it in his keynote address at the 2013 Dell World conference […] →Read more
The resolution of computer displays is an interesting thing. There are now handhelds with the same number of pixels as large flatscreen TVs, Apple claims its “retina” displays are so sharp that the human eye can no longer see individual pixels, and the very term “high definition” is in the process of being redefined. Let’s see what happened with display resolution and where things are headed, both in handhelds and in larger systems, and what 4k2k is all […] →Read more
One of the big differentiating factors in ruggedized mobile computers is how well the display is suited for work outdoors in bright daylight and in direct sunlight. This can make the difference between a device being useful and productivity-enhancing, or frustrating and nearly useless. Why is this such a big issue? Aren’t today’s displays so good that the only thing that matters is how large a display you want, and perhaps what resolution it should have? For indoor […] →Read more
Today I am going to rant a bit about two trends that simply make no sense to me. The first is “skeuromorphism.” It’s the new fashion word-du-jour, what with Apple and Microsoft demonising it as if it were some sort of evil plague. As is, Wiki defines skeuromorph as “a derivative object that retains ornamental design cues from structures that were necessary in the original.” That includes, of course, many elements of graphical user interfaces. The desktop metaphor, […] →Read more
Rugged Android device comparison table, and contemplations over Android in the rugged market
On October 18, 2013, RuggedPCReview.com launched a rugged Android device comparison table. The table allows interested parties to view full specifications of all rugged handhelds and rugged tablets we’re aware of. Given the absolutely massive number of Android devices activated worldwide — about a billion — it’s amazing how few rugged Android devices are available. As we recently reported, both Honeywell/Intermec and Motorola Solutions have launched initiatives to make rugged Android devices available to industrial and enterprise markets, […] →Read more
October 1, 2013 — the day Moto Solutions and Honeywell/Intermec became serious about Android
This has been quite the day for Android in the rugged handheld space. Intermec, now part of Honeywell Scanning & Mobility, announced the CN51 rugged mobile computer. It is an updated version of Intermec’s successful CN50, but has a larger, higher resolution screen (4.0-inch, 800 x 480) that now uses resistive multi-touch, updated WiFi, WAN, Bluetooth, camera, and scanners, and it’s now based on the dual-core 1.5GHz TI OMAP 4 processor, which means Intermec can offer the CN51 […] →Read more
Optimizing the legacy Windows interface for touch and tablets
Tablet computers have been around for a quarter of a century, but it wasn’t until the iPad’s introduction that the tablet form factor took off. That’s in part because the technology wasn’t quite ready for tablets, and, in a much larger part, because Windows just didn’t work well with tablets. Tablet historians will remember that both the first generation of tablets (circa 1992) and the second one (circa 2001) primarily used Wacom active digitizer pens. Those pens were […] →Read more
Logic Supply’s logical approach to engineering their own systems
When it comes to rugged computing gear, most people interested in this industry know the big players that dominate the market and get all the media coverage. But that’s not everything there is. Unbeknownst to many outside of the circle of customers and prospects, a surprising number of smaller companies are designing and manufacturing rugged computing systems of one type or another. At times we come across them by chance. Other times they find us. And so it […] →Read more
Why the JTG Daugherty NASCAR racing team chose rugged Dells
The Christmas tree began its count-down. Yellow, yellow, yellow, GREEN! For an anxious moment, the racing slicks of my supercharged Acura fought for traction, then bit. 8,000, 8,500, 8,800 rpm, shift. Shift. Shift. Shift, and the 1/4-mile at Sacramento Raceway was over. The car slowed and I reached over to stop data logging on the laptop securely sitting on its mount, just having recorded tens of thousands of data points as the car shot down the track. The […] →Read more
I’ve been working on setting up our new rugged notebook comparison tool over the past few days. So far, the tool, where users can compare the full specs of up to three rugged notebooks side-by-side and also quickly link to our analysis of the machines, has far fewer entries than our comparison tools for rugged handhelds and rugged tablets. As I asked myself why there were only relatively few products out there, I thought about the overall rugged […] →Read more
How Motorola Solutions made two mobile computers condensation- and freezer-proof
Good phone conversation today with the PR folks from Motorola Solutions. The occasion was the introduction of two interesting new products, the Omni XT15f industrial handheld, and the Psion VH10f vehicle-mount computer. The key here is the “f” in both of the names. It stands for “freezer” and that’s what the two new devices are all about. Big deal? Actually, yes. At least for workers who use their computers in and around freezers. That includes storage of perishable […] →Read more
I had a chance yesterday to meet over dinner with Sofia Löfblad, Marketing Director at Handheld Group AB, and Amy Urban who is the Director of Marketing at Handheld US. I hadn’t seen them since I presented at the Handheld Business Partner Conference in Stockholm three years ago, and it was a pleasure catching up in person. The Handheld Group (not to be confused with Hand Held Products, which is now part of Honeywell) is a remarkable rugged […] →Read more
Last week, as I came to a stop at a red light, a police car stopped in the lane next to me. What immediately caught my eye was an expertly mounted rugged notebook computer, angled towards the driver. It was a GD-Itronix rugged notebook, probably a GD6000 or GD8200, with an elegant matte-silver powder-coated insert on top of the magnesium alloy computer case that prominently featured the “General Dynamics” brand name. The officer perused the screen, then looked […] →Read more
Xplore adds Common Access Card reader-equipped rugged tablet for military and government
This morning, March 27, 2013, Xplore Technologies introduced a new version of their ultra-rugged tablet computer, the iX104C5-M2. In essence, this is a specialized model for military and government personnel that require additional hardware security on top of the various security hardware, software and firmware measures already inherent in modern computing technology. What the new M2 model adds is an integrated common access card (CAC) reader. With the reader, in order to get access to critical data, a […] →Read more
When the fire chief wants iPads instead of rugged gear
The other day I was engaged in a conversation at a party. Turns out my conservation partner was the fire chief of an affluent community of about 120,000. We talked about our respective jobs and soon found we had something incommon: rugged computing equipment. They use Panasonic Toughbooks, but the fire chief said something that has been on my mind for a while now. He said they liked the Toughbooks just fine, but he considered them much too […] →Read more
In my last blog article I wrote about the needless demise of netbooks, and how that demise was due more to the fact that people loved the rock-bottom price of netbooks but then found them too small and lacking in performance, so they asked for more size and performance. The industry complied with larger, more powerful netbooks, but that meant they cost more and netbooks weren’t netbooks anymore. So people stopped buying them. I also wrote how, in […] →Read more
Three or so years ago, netbooks sold by the millions. Today, they’re gone, replaced by tablets and larger, more powerful notebooks. What happened? I mean, it’s not as if tens of millions of people wanted a netbook a few years ago, and today no one wants one. What’s not to like about a small and handy notebook computer that runs full Windows and costs a whole lot less than even inexpensive larger notebooks? So much less that the […] →Read more
Well, on the Microsoft side of things, a couple of areas are becoming a bit clearer. Not much, but a bit. At the National Retail Federation (NRF) Annual Convention & Expo in New York, Microsoft issued a press release entitled “Microsoft Delivers Windows Embedded 8 Handheld for Enterprise Handheld Devices.” That title is a bit misleading as those handhelds, prototypes of which were shown by Motorola Solutions, are not available yet, and Microsoft won’t even release the Windows […] →Read more
Eagle-eyed RuggedPCReview readers may have noticed something missing from the front page of our site: the General Dynamics Itronix logo in the site sponsor column. Yes, for the first time since the launch of RuggedPCReview, Itronix is not among our sponsors anymore. That’s sad as Itronix was our first sponsor, and prior to that we had covered all those rugged Itronix GoBooks and other rugged mobile devices in Pen Computing Magazine since the mid-1990s. What happened? We’re not […] →Read more
Surface with Windows 8 Pro pricing contemplations — an opportunity for traditional vendors of rugged tablets?
On November 29, 2012, Microsoft revealed, on its Official Microsoft Blog (see here), pricing for its Surface with Windows 8 Pro tablets. The 64GB version will cost US$899 and the 128GB version runs US$999. That includes a pen but neither the touch or the type cover. They cost extra. So what do we make of that? Based on my experience with the Surface with Windows RT tablet, I have no doubt that the hardware will be excellent. With […] →Read more
Windows RT: how suitable is it for vertical markets? (Part II)
I had planned a quick follow-up on my first impressions of the Microsoft Surface RT tablet and Windows RT in general. But now it’s almost a month later, so why the hesitation? It’s not because of Microsoft’s hardware. I am as impressed with the Surface RT tablet as I was when I first took it out of its box. It’s a truly terrific device. If after a month of use about the only gripe is that you still […] →Read more
Windows RT: how suitable is it for vertical markets? (Part I)
Though as of this writing, October 27, 2012, Windows 8 and RT were just officially unveiled a couple of days ago, reams have already been written on Windows 8 and to a much lesser extent, Windows RT. We got our Surface RT tablet on October 26 with the intent on reporting on the Surface hardware and RT software in some detail. However, our emphasis will be on their suitability for vertical and industrial markets. So what about Windows […] →Read more
Now this should be interesting. On October 16, 2012, Microsoft announced more detail on its upcoming Windows Surface tablets. And though labeled as a “pre-order” with limited amounts, customers could actually order the Windows Surface RT tablet of their choice from the Surface page on Microsoft’s online store. For delivery on or before October 26th, i.e. within ten days. So the pricing of the Microsoft Windows RT tablets is no longer a secret. The basic 32GB tablet without […] →Read more
Motorola Solutions’ acquisition of Psion: Good, bad, or ugly?
Well, it’s done. Psion is now part of Motorola Solutions. On October 12th, 2012, Ron Caines and Frederic Bismuth of Psion and Mark Moon of Motorola Solutions sent out the following note to their customers: Dear Psion Customer: We are writing to let you know that today Motorola Solutions completed the acquisition of Psion PLC. Motorola Solutions is a leading provider of mission-critical communication systems and a pioneer in enterprise mobility solutions. The company has always been focused […] →Read more
In the olden days, getting news meant going to trade shows or being sent press releases, via the US Postal service. Not anymore. At any given day, I wade through several hundred press releases from numerous sources. That’s time consuming. I can’t blame marketing and PR folks for trying to get the word out because it’s all about getting noticed and making the sale. But not all PR activities are as productive as they should and could be. […] →Read more
“The Windows Marketplace for Mobile for windows mobile 6.x devices is closing”
“The Windows Marketplace for Mobile for windows mobile 6.x devices is closing” — that was the title of a March 8, 2012 entry at answers.microsoft.com. In it, it said among other things, “Beginning May 9, 2012, the Windows Mobile 6.x Marketplace service will no longer be available. Starting on this date, you will no longer be able to browse, buy or download applications directly on your Windows Mobile 6.x phone using the Windows Mobile 6.x Marketplace application and […] →Read more
As I am writing this, the London Olympic games are coming to an end. What two weeks of intense competition proved again is that winning means meticulous preparation, at times a bit of luck, and always the ability to perform under pressure. The latter made me think because rugged computers are all about the ability of a piece of equipment to perform under pressure. Pressure as in heat, cold, dust, rain, sun, and whatever else may keep a […] →Read more
Microsoft’s entry into tablet hardware a result of partner failure?
Ever since Microsoft provided a glimpse at a couple of “Surface” tablet hardware prototypes, some in the media are describing Microsoft’s apparent entry into the hardware market as a result of Microsoft hardware partner failure. As if, somehow, the combined might of the world’s computer manufacturers failed to come up with tablet hardware good enough to do Windows justice. Nothing could be farther from the truth. The reason why Windows-based tablets never were a major commercial success lies […] →Read more
Sometimes I wish I could be a fly on the wall to listen in when Microsoft’s mobile folks make their decisions. I mean, a few years ago they found themselves in a position where, against all odds, their erstwhile omnipotent foe Palm collapsed and left Windows Mobile as the heir apparent. So did Microsoft take advantage of that? Nope. Instead, they failed to improve their mobile OS in any meaningful way, all the while confusing customers by endlessly […] →Read more
Android finally getting traction in vertical and industrial markets?
Just when Windows 8 is looming ever larger as perhaps a credible competitor to iOS and the iPad, we’re finally starting to see some Android action in vertical market tablets and handhelds. It’s timid, exploratory action still, but nonetheless a sign that the industry may finally break out of the stunned disbelief as Apple was first selling millions and then tens of millions of iPads. What has changed? Perhaps it’s the fact that it’s becoming increasingly harder to […] →Read more
The widening gulf between consumer and vertical market handhelds
Almost everyone has a smartphone these days. Smartphones are selling by the tens of millions every quarter. In Q1 of 2012, Apple and Samsung sold over 30 million smartphones each. Smartphones have become part of modern life. Everyone is tapping, pinching and zooming. Everyone except those who need a rugged smartphone. Because there isn’t one. Now to be fair, there are rugged smartphones and any number of ruggedized handhelds that add phone functionality to a handheld computer that […] →Read more
e-con Systems executive explains the reality of cameras in rugged computers
A little while ago I had an email conversation with the folks at e-con Systems. They are an embedded product development partner with significant expertise in camera solutions in the Windows CE and Windows Embedded space. The company offers a variety of lens and camera modules that can be interfaced with most of the common handheld processors from TI, Marvell, FreeStyle and others. My interest was, as I discussed in earlier RuggedPCReview.com blog entries, why at a time […] →Read more
The nature and potential of Windows 8 for ARM devices
Well, Microsoft announced in its Windows Blog (see here) that there will be three versions of the upcoming Windows 8. For PCs and tablets based on x86 processors, there will be plain Windows 8 and and the more business-oriented Windows 8 Pro that adds features for encryption, virtualization, PC management and domain connectivity. Windows Media Center will be available as a “media pack” add-on to Windows 8 Pro. A third version, Windows RT, will be available pre-installed on […] →Read more
There are few technologies that have changed our lives and work as fundamentally as GPS. Not so very long ago, if you needed to know where to go, you used a paper map. Today we simply punch in where we want to go, then listen to directions and monitor our position on the GPS display. And industry, of course, has taken wondrous advantage of GPS, using it to optimize and manage transportation and location-based services to a degree […] →Read more
The new iPad — both challenge and opportunity for rugged market manufacturers
If you want to sell tablets it’s tough not to be Apple. And on March 7, 2012, it got that much tougher. For that’s when Apple introduced the next version of the iPad, setting the bar even higher for anyone else. Why do I even mention that here at RuggedPCReview.com where we concentrate on computing equipment that’s tough and rugged and can get the job done where a consumer product like the iPad can’t? Because, like it or […] →Read more
Recently I received an email from someone in the industry that concluded with the question: “Wouldn’t a conversation on imaging in rugged handhelds be interesting to your readers?” The answer, of course, is “definitely,” and so I responded as follows: “I recently wrote two articles on the general state of imaging in handheld/mobile systems, so you basically know where I stand. In essence, given the very rapid advance in HD still/video imaging thanks to a convergence of CMOS, […] →Read more