March 2017

Crystal Group showcases rugged embedded computers at Navy League’s Sea Air Space Exposition
Crystal Group announced it will highlight its rugged embedded computer line at Navy League's Sea Air Space Exposition. These embedded devices are ideal for use in environments where water threats, extreme temperature and volatile conditions occur; yet high capacity computing, graphics performance, power saving and long-term server availability are in demand. The SE16 Sealed Embedded Computer has an all-aluminum construction with custom EMI gasketing to seal the chassis, allowing it to operate while fully submerged in water up to one meter. The RE0814 is a rugged embedded computer with no moving parts is a cost-effective solution for harsh environments and critical around the clock land, sea, air, and space operations. [See Crystal Group media release] -- Posted Friday, March 31, 2017

ARBOR launches a new digital signage player with 6th generation Intel Core i-series processors
ARBOR Technology, a leading provider of embedded computing solutions, is pleased to present its new ELIT-1900 digital signage player with 4K/Ultra HD display support for commercial environments. Based on Intel® 6th-gen Skylake-H CPU technology and containing an AMD E8860 GPU, the ELIT-1900 delivers outstanding processing performance and truly immersive graphics. ELIT-1900 With support for six simultaneous independent displays via HDMI or DisplayPort, the ELIT-1900 provides a vibrant visual experience with 4K graphics and complex multimedia features, making it ideal for a wide range of demanding applications in areas such as retail, hospitality and public services. [See ARBOR media release] -- Posted Thursday, March 30, 2017

ARBOR Technology launches Digital Signage Player with 6th Gen Intel Core™ i-series processors
ARBOR Technology, announced its new ELIT-1900 digital signage player with 4K/Ultra HD display support for commercial environments. Based on Intel 6th-gen Skylake-H CPU technology and containing an AMD E8860 GPU, the ELIT-1900 delivers outstanding processing performance and truly immersive graphics. [See ARBOR media release and ELIY-1900 product page] -- Posted Thursday, March 30, 2017

Getac partners with Trivalent to provide next generation data protection for the first time in rugged computing devices
Getac announced its partnership with Trivalent, a leading provider of next-generation data protection services, to deliver seamless and robust next-generation data protection for the first time on rugged computing devices. By integrating Trivalent’s software security into its line of rugged devices, Getac confirms its commitment to safeguarding customer data with technology that has been certified by the NSA. [See media release] -- Posted Tuesday, March 28, 2017

Added: Winmate EAC-PRO
Winmate's new EAC-PRO is an Intel 6th generation-based embedded computer for factory floor, vision systems, surveillance, machine automation, medical imaging and similar. It measures roughly 8 x 8 x 8 inches and weigh 10-12 pounds depending on configuration, and is perfect for projects that do require PCI and PCI Express expansion in a compact, industrial-grade package. And with Winmate using an embedded systems approach with the EAC-PRO, the company should easily be able to accommodate custom configurations with different SBC (Single Board Computer) and I/O boards. [See RuggedPCReview's description, analysis and specs of the Winmate EAC-PRO and Winmate's EAC-PRO product page] -- Posted Tuesday, March 28, 2017

What happens when you don't upgrade your hardware
So the folks in the new SciFi movie Life are using Handheld Group's ultra-rugged Algiz 10X tablet when they retrieve a space probe returning from Mars. Problem is, the probe contains a very hostile organism that escapes containment and evolves. Quite obviously, had the scientists on the space station upgraded to the new and improved version of the Algiz 10X, the problem could have been avoided. Lesson: Always upgrade to the latest version! [See "Life" trailer on YouTube and also what the new version of the Algiz 10X looks like] -- Posted Saturday, March 25, 2017

Review: Getac T800 Gen 2 ultra-rugged Windows 10 tablet
The T800 is Getac's entry into the compact 8-inch rugged tablet market. Its footprint is just a little larger than that of an iPad mini, making it easy to carry around and stow almost anywhere. RuggedPCReview takes an extended look at this highly configurable, state-of-the-art Windows 10-based capacitive multi-touch tablet that can handle 6-foot falls and plenty of punishment. [See review of the Getac T800 Gen 2 ultra-rugged tablet] -- Posted Friday, March 24, 2017

Panasonic’s new rugged 2-in-1 detachables reflect European market demand for hybrid mobile devices
Panasonic Europe notes that a new IDC whitepaper predicts that IT buyers will be equipping their mobile workforces with more detachable mobile devices in 2017. With an increased awareness of the need for data entry and content creation to improve productivity, the predicted screen size sweet spot for these devices will be displays of 12-13.3 inches. Which pretty much describes the recently introduced fully rugged 12-inch Panasonic Toughbook CF-33 and the semi rugged 12.5-inch Panasonic Toughpad FZ-Q2. Both are 2-in-1 detachables offering the best of both worlds with tablet and notebook functionality in a single business device. [See Panasonic media release] -- Posted Friday, March 24, 2017

Crystal Group and Intel forge rugged autonomous vehicle all-weather solution to deliver on IoT promise
To meet the growing demand for reliable technology on the Internet of Things (IoT), Crystal Group, a designer/manufacturer of rugged computer hardware, announced the development of a rugged server able to withstand extreme temperature variations for commercial autonomous vehicles (AVs). Crystal Group's Intel-powered RS363S15F Rugged 3U Server is just one example of an agile and rugged system with applications for the commercial AV market. Crystal Group and Intel have been working with other technology companies and major automotive OEMs as part of the Intel Internet of Things Solutions Alliance to build systems to support the entire driverless vehicle ecosystem. [See Crystal group media release and RS363S15F rugged 3U server] -- Posted Friday, March 24, 2017

GCSS-Army Deploying 9,783 Getac F110 G3 Rugged Tablets
The Global Combat Support System branch of the U.S. Army (GCSS-Army) has ordered 9,783 Getac F110 G3 rugged tablets with docking stations. After a thorough vetting process, GCSS-Army determined the Getac F110 G3 would be the best new rugged tablet to replace several aging and outdated Army management information systems across tactical logistics environments within the Army’s Active and Reserve components as well as the National Guard. The Getac F110 G3 tablets will ultimately be used to capture UID data using its built-in barcode reader to provide unprecedented asset visibility. [See Getac media release] -- Posted Tuesday, March 21, 2017

Added: Handheld Group Algiz 10X Gen 3
Product description and specs of the heavily updated 3rd generation of the Handheld Group's ultra-rugged Algiz 10X tablet now available on RuggedPCReview. Major updates include switch to 1920 x 1200 pixel, 16:10 aspect ratio, 10.1-inch display; switch to capacitive multi-touch with glove and rain modes; addition of optional active pen; switch to u-blox NEO-M8N positioning; and switch to Windows 10 Enterprise LTSB. [See description, specs and analysis of the Handheld Group Algiz 10X] -- Posted Monday, March 20, 2017

Full review 6th gen GammaTech DURABOOK SA14
The GammaTech DURABOOK SA14 is a modern semi-rugged laptop solution for customers who need more durability and ruggedness than consumer notebooks generally provide, but still at an affordable price. Now powered by Intel 6th generation "Skylake" processors, the impressively well-built SA14 convinces with very good performance, great battery life, a large display that works very well outdoors, and plenty of onboard I/O, all at a very reasonable cost. [See full review of the semi rugged GammaTech DURABOOK SA14] -- Posted Friday, March 17, 2017

Wireless Network Solutions completes validation of Janam XT2 rugged touch computer
Janam Technologies announced that value-added reseller Wireless Network Solutions has technically certified Janam’s XT2 rugged touch computer. This validation ensures interoperability between Janam’s Android-powered XT2 and Wireless Network Solutions’ Inspector+ 4.0 software. Inspector+ 4.0 is a cloud-based Android application that enables businesses in the airline, healthcare, and oil and gas industries to replace pen and paper tracking. The newly released software provides enterprise organizations with a robust method of cost-effectively improving inspection processes. [See Janam media release] -- Posted Thursday, March 16, 2017

Handheld appoints new President of Its North American subsidiary
Handheld Group announced the appointment of Mike Zelman as President of its North American subsidiary, Handheld US. Mike Zelman has been on the Handheld US board since its inception and most recently served as Vice President of Business Development for Handheld Group. Prior to joining Handheld, he served as Vice President of Marketing for Merix, a leading global manufacturer of complex interconnect solutions. He has also held management positions within the mobile computing division at Trimble, the electrical component business at Flextronics, and the semiconductor group within Agilent Technologies. [See Handheld media release] -- Posted Thursday, March 16, 2017

Global tablet shipments below 40 million in Q1/2017
According to DigiTimes, global tablet shipments in Q1/2017 will be less than 40 million units for the first time since Q2/2012. For all of 2016, tablet shipments were 183 million units. -- Posted Tuesday, March 14, 2017

Xplore expands scope of rugged tablet deployment with top 10 U.S. electrical power and natural gas utility company
Xplore Technologies has received a new $750K expansion order from one of the nation’s top 10 electric power and natural gas utility companies, bringing the value of the multi-year field service mobilization initiative to more than $3.5M to-date. These additional XSLATE B10 fully rugged (IP65) tablet PCs and in-vehicle docking solutions will be deployed to the nuclear plant and material logistics groups, among others, to facilitate service dispatch, deliver asset intelligence to infrastructure assessment teams, and improve the efficiency and coordination of repair crew actions. [See Xplore media release] -- Posted Monday, March 13, 2017

Motorola Solutions expands managed & support services with Chile acquisition
Motorola Solutions announced that it has acquired Interexport, a company that provides managed and support services for communications systems to government agencies, public safety and enterprise customers in Chile. Motorola Solutions expects Interexport to add approximately $50 million in revenue for 2017. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. [see Motorola Solutions media release] -- Posted Monday, March 13, 2017

RuggedPCReview blog: Are "mobile" sites really needed?
A few days ago I used one of the readily available website analysis tools to check RuggedPCReview.com. The resulting report gave me a stern "site not mobile-optimized" lecture. "Mobile-optimized," of course, refers to the fact that sites on the one-size-fits-all world wide web are being viewed on a very wide range of devices with a very wide range of screen sizes. And it is certainly true that viewing a webpage on a 27-inch display is a very different experience from viewing it on a 4.7-inch smartphone... [read blog article] -- Posted Friday, March 10, 2017

Havis adds computing solutions to work truck, van fleets
Havis announced it has added vehicle-specific computer docking and mounting solutions designed to increase mobile productivity in work trucks, vans and SUVs. Havis will display the solutions at the National Truck Equipment Association (NTEA) Work Truck Show March 14-17, 2017, in Indianapolis, IN. Havis offers vehicle-specific solutions for a number of top-selling brands, including Ford, Chevrolet, Ram, Nissan and more. Havis said it will display a total mobility solution installed in a 2016 Nissan Frontier during the show. -- Posted Friday, March 10, 2017

Site improvement: easy search for product reviews
The "recent reviews/additions" list in the righthand column of the RuggedPCReview front page contains links to almost a thousand products reviews. To make it easier to list just the products of a certain company, or search for a particular product or groups of products by name, we added a "filter" input box. So if you type in "Getac" you instantly get a list of all Getac reviews on our site. Let us know if this is useful. -- Posted Thursday, March 9, 2017

Datalogic is recognized as best channel vendor for 2017 by Business Solutions Magazine
Datalogic, a leader in Automatic Data Capture and Industrial Automation markets, and producer of bar code readers, mobile computers, sensors, vision systems and laser marking equipment, is proud to announce that it has been named a Best Channel Vendor for 2017 by Business Solutions Magazine. Datalogic scored well in all seven categories and placed high in four specific divisions (product features, product reliability, channel friendly, and channel program [See Datalogic media release] -- Posted Thursday, March 9, 2017

Avalue/Bytec Healthcare offer IP67-sealed mobile power packs
With all the horror stories of overheating, burning and exploding batteries, everyone has become somewhat cautious in dealing with them. There are, however, situations where certain types of battery packs must be routinely cleaned and disinfected, such as healthcare environments. To that extent, Avalue Technology's healthcare alliance partner, Bytec Healthcare, has launched intelligent Geni-Tec battery modules. The IP67-sealed mobile Geni-Tec Modules can be washed under running water, deep-cleaned, and disinfected with NHS solutions. [See Avalue media release and Geni-Tec Power Systems page] -- Posted Wednesday, March 8, 2017

VIA to debut VIA VTS-8589 OPS board at Embedded World 2017
VIA Technologies announced it will debut its new VIA VTS-8589 OPS board at the 2017 Embedded World Exhibition and Conference being held this March 14-16 in Nuremberg, Germany. Compliant with Intel’s Open Pluggable Specification (OPS), the VIA VTS-8589 can be installed into OPS-compatible displays without the need for additional power, connectivity, or real estate. [See VIA media release and VTS-8589 OPS page] -- Posted Wednesday, March 8, 2017

Ubiqconn buys RuggON to expand global industrial IoT strategy
Ubiqconn, a subsidiary of FICG (First International Computer Group), announced the acquisition of RuggON, a supplier of rugged portable computing systems and industry sponsor of RuggedPCReview.com. Ubiqconn considers the acquisition a step towards offering complete Mobile IIoT (Industrial IoT) solutions and expanding its global Industrial IoT (IIoT) market strategy. The management team remains after the acquisition, and resources from parent company FIC Group will be provided to expand product lines and branding development for RuggON. [See Ubiqconn media release] -- Posted Wednesday, March 8, 2017

Getac expects revenues to grow strongly in second half of 2017
Digitimes reports that rugged PC manufacturer Getac Technology expects its revenues to decrease sequentially in the second quarter, and that shipping volume will grow strongly in the second half due to increased procurement orders. Getac currently is the second largest vendor in the rugged industrial PC market, holding a market share of 16-18%. Getac is looking to boost the market share to 30% in the next three years. -- Posted Wednesday, March 8, 2017

U.S. Navy awards Patriot Technologies. a large-scale rugged tablet contract for naval shipyards
Patriot Technologies announced a five-year blanket purchase agreement awarded by the Defense Information Technology Contracting Organization-Scott Field Office for the US Navy to procure rugged tablet computer designed by DT Research, a designer and manufacturer of purpose-built computing solutions for vertical markets. The US Navy selected the DT311 rugged tablets to deploy to personnel working at various shipyards for technical maintenance management, warehouse inventory control, field testing and training, and other field data operations. See media release] -- Posted Wednesday, March 8, 2017

Getac introduces MX50 5.7-inch secure, rugged Android tactical tablet for armed forces
Getac introduced its first rugged tactical tablet, built from the ground up, for combat-ready military forces, including dismounted warfighters, elite enforcement agencies and Special Forces military units. The Android-based, Intel x5-Z8350 powered 5.7-inch tablet is heavily ruggedized and will meet the Common Criteria ISO/IEC 15408 computer security certification as well as the NSA’s Commercial Solutions for Classified (CSfC) guidelines and Data-at-Rest (DAR) requirements. [See Getac media release and RuggedPCReview's description, analysis and specs of the Getac MX50] -- Posted Tuesday, March 7, 2017

Zebra study: 7 in 10 retailers will invest in IoT technologies to revolutionize customer experience
Zebra Technologies published the results of their 2017 Retail Vision Study. The study revealed that nearly 70% of retail decision makers surveyed are ready to make changes to adopt the Internet of Things (IoT), and 65% plan to invest in automation technologies for inventory management and planogram compliance by 2021. This includes investment in mobile devices, kiosks and tablets to increase payment options, mobile point-of-sale, micro-locationing, big data predictive and software analytics for loss prevention and price optimization, and more. [See Zebra media release and one-page summary infographic] -- Posted Monday, March 6, 2017

Winmate's G-WIN Heavy-Duty Panel Computer: Concept and Testing
In its latest newsletter, Winmate ran an illustrated compilation of RuggedPCReview's discussion and commentaries on the company's expanding series of G-WIN heavy-duty panel computers. The focus is on the differences between ruggedness and ruggedness testing in heavy-duty panel computers compared to portable mobile computers.
[Read Winmate's G-WIN Heavy-Duty Panel Computer: Concept and Testing] -- Posted Monday, March 6, 2017

Full review: MobileDemand's rather amazing US$595 2-in-1 rugged Windows xTablet Flex 10A
It's difficult to figure out what to make of MobileDemand's xTablet Flex10A. It's essentially a generic 10-inch Windows tablet inside expertly designed and executed ruggedization armor, and including straps and handles and pen and screen protector and all. And with an optional very well matched detachable keyboard it becomes a remarkably useful 2-in-1 hybrid. All for US$595 (plus about $100 for the keyboard and easel). [See full review of the MobileDemand xTablet Flex 10A] -- Posted Monday, March 6, 2017

Disruptive innovation?
In a recent Xplore blog, Bob Ashenbrenner postulates that "if you want to get things done, don’t let innovation (or tech) become disruptive." As we are continuously bombarded with new technology and pressure to rethink and innovate, do we perhaps focus too much on change and reinventing, and not enough on reaping the benefits from tried-and-true methods and technology? Good questions, and certainly something to think about. [See If You Want to Get Things Done, Don’t Let Innovation (or Tech) Become Disruptive (Part 1)] -- Posted Friday, March 3, 2017