• On the "light" side, the new M101P, powered by a quad-core "Apollo Lake" Intel N4200 processor replaces the earlier M101B, powered by an older "Bay Trail" N2930 chip. The advantage here is that N4200 can reach higher peak clock frequency (2.50GHz vs 2.16GHz) while capable of idling along at just 1.10GHz when processing loads are light (the N2930 base frequency was 1.83GHz). So the new setup is faster but gets longer battery life.

• On the "high performance side," the new M101S, powered by a 7th generation "Kaby Like" Intel Core i5-7200U processor replaces the older M101H than ran on a 5th generation "Broadwell" Intel Core i5-5200U chip. The difference here is somewhat faster base clock speed and turbo clock speed plus two Intel generations of processor performance and efficiency improvements.

What the M101P and M101S have in common

• Display — Both models have a 10.1-inch screen with full WUXGA video. That's a 1920 x 1200 pixel, making for 16:10 wide-format and 224 pixels per inch. That's as sharp as Apple's retina MacBooks. And the display is of the IPS (in-plane switching) variety that makes for perfect viewing from all angles. Almost needless to say, both new M101 models use projected capacitive multi-touch for the effortless tapping, panning, pinching and zooming expected of modern tablets. The wide format and high resolution render the tablet perfect for Windows 10 operation, and you can work on it with gloves on and when it's wet.

• Size and weight — Both models have a footprint of 10.7 x 7.75, are three quarters of an inch thick, and weigh about 2.7 pounds. That's not totally thin and light, but definitely thinner and lighter than yesteryears rugged tablets, and certainly handy enough. No heavy metal frame here; construction is PC+ABS with rubber bumper corner protection overmolding.

• Battery and battery life — Both models come with a standard 38 watt-hour Li-Polymer battery that Winmate says is good for eight hours. An optional 76 watt-hour extended Li-Polymer battery doubles that to 16 hours. Those runtimes apply to both. Yes, that's thanks to the superior power management of the high-end Core chips.

• Ruggedness — Both are inherently rugged designs thanks to their tough PC+ABS case and overmolded TPR corner protection. Environmental specs include a very wide -4 to 140 degree Fahrenheit operating temperature range (-20 to 60 degrees Centigrade), which means that as far as temperature goes both can be used virtually anywhere. The tablets can handle 26 repeated drops from four feet per MIL-STD-810G, 516.6 IV to plywood over concrete. That's relevant because four feet is roughly the height a tablet is held while it's being operated when standing or walking. Sealing is at the IP65 level. That means total protection against dust, and ability to handle low pressure water jets from all directions.

Where the M101P and M101S differ

• Thermal design — One of the main benefits of the cooler running Pentium N4200 processor in the M101P is that this tablet does not need a fan. That's because the powerful Core processor in the M101S generates a maximum of 15 watts of heat that needs to be dissipated, whereas the Pentium N4200 in the M101P maxes out at just six watts, with no active cooling needed. No fan means no noise and one thing less that can get clogged or break down.

• Connectivity — The lack of a fan means the M101P has room for an optional expansion port that can accommodate RS232 serial/USB and all sorts of other add-on modules.

• HazLoc and Medical — The fanless M101P allows cross-zone operation in ATEX Zone 2, Div 2 areas. The M101S doesn't. Likewise, the fanless M101P is suitable for medical environments as there is no difficult-to-disinfect fan to whirl up dust.

• Higher performance — With its Intel "Apollo Lake" processor, the new M101P has an inherent performance and efficiency edge over the older M101B.

• USB 3.0 Type C — The new M101P has a USB 3.0 Type C port replacing the LAN/RS232 combo connector on the old M101B. The Type C connector is smaller and reversible, so no more having to flip the USB connector around because you tried to put it in the wrong way. In addition, with an adapter, the USB Type-C port can output HDMI, VGA, DisplayPort, and more from a single USB port.

• Newer tech — As you'd expect from an upgrade, WiFi and Bluetooth are of newer and faster standards, GNSS now supports not only GPS but also GLONASS and BeiDou, the main camera has higher resolution (8mp instead of 5mp), there are now dual microphones with noise cancellation, and the screen is even brighter (800 nits instead of 700).