COMPUTER TOT NHUT

Tough Choices

Ruggedized Notebooks Apr 1, 2004 By: Jim Engelhardt GPS World

Pages | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 According to a February 2003 report from VDC (www.vdc-corp.com), a technology market research and consulting firm, the ruggedized mobile computer marketwww.vdc-corp.com is expected to climb 7 percent this year and become a $1 billion a year industry by 2007. The company based its analysis on surveys and market research from 2002, in which ruggedized computer sales topped $700 million. The growth of this market should hardly come as a surprise, considering the increasing demand for mobile computing being driven by a focus on homeland security and defense programs. Besides those market drivers, the geospatial community is aggressively embracing mobile GPS/GIS and mapping, realizing that field force automation can drastically reduce staff time and costs related to data collection and maintenance. Rugged notebooks are particularly appealing in a tight economy because they last substanially longer than a standard laptop and tend to provide a better return on investment, despite the higher initial cost. As with all hardware, ruggedized notebooks are available in different configurations to meet various needs. Many of these units come with integrated GPS functionality or the capability to use real-time data from external GPS receivers. Making the selection of ruggedized notebooks more difficult is the array of standards to which units comply. The most widely accepted standards are MIL-STD-810E and MIL-STD-810F. These military standards comprise a subset of standards (detailed in a 539-page PDF at www.dtc.army.mil/pdf/810.pdf) for evaluating a product's resistance to rain, humidity, salt fog, sand/dust, vibration, shock, and temperature. Both military standards are essentially the same specification - MIL-STD-810F is simply a major revision of MIL-STD-810E - and they do not impose specific design requirements. Rather, products certified to the standards follow the environmental testing processes outlined in MIL-STD-810 documents. Thus, units certified to MIL-STD-810E are not necessarily of lower quality, they were just tested following older procedures and/or have not been reevaluated according to MIL-STD-810F. In addition, be aware that products compliant to the same standard may vary dramatically in performance. The standard for shock, for instance, entails that a unit withstand 26 drops from 3 feet onto plywood over concrete. Some notebooks barely meet the requirement, whereas other substantially exceed it. Both products, however, will be certified to the standard. This overview of ruggedized notebooks on the market, culled from information provided by manufacturers, supplies general information about the standards to which units adhere. The article is intended as a starting point for research about ruggedized options available for mobile GPS/GIS applications. To better compare products, it is recommended that buyers obtain a copy of a product's complete test report from the manufacturers. Units and product specifications are the most current and comprehensive information that could be obtained as of press time. We can not be held responsible of the accuracy of information provided by vendors regarding product performance and features. We have limited the discussion to ruggedized notebooks running full operating systems from original equipment manufacturers. Notably, dozens of companies rename, rebrand, and resell the notebooks from the manufacturers showcased in the following pages. In addition, other firms specialize in ruggedizing standard laptops from companies that do not manufacture rugged products. GETAC Inc. (www.getac.com) A770 Ruggedized to MIL-STD-810F for temperature, humidity, altitude, shock, vibration, and drop. Size/Weight/Battery Life: 310 3 255 3 70 millimeters/12.7 pounds/3 hours Display: 12.1-inch 1,024 3 768-resolution TFT, XGA LCD (13.3 inch, 14.1 inch, sunlight readable, or touchscreen optional) CPU: 1.4GHz or 1.6GHz Intel Pentium M RAM/Hard Drive: 1GB (maximum)/40 GB (standard) Connectivity: Serial, parallel, RJ-11, RJ-45, VGA monitor, USB 2.0, DC input, IR (infrared), port replicator, IEEE (firewire), PCI Audio support external Audio Jack Cable for Mic-In and Line-Out ports. Notes: Has more expansion options in Bay-2, and optional bottom mounted ISA or PCI card slot chassis. Bay-2 is water-sealed, can be configured with Ethernet, modem, additional serial ports, SCSI, PCMCIA, and DGPS receiver. It can be customized with third-party devices. GPS Functionality: DGPS option for A770 Bay 2 features dual interference channels, CMOS/TTL or RS232, and tracks up to 12 satellites; one L1 frequency W130 Ruggedized to MIL-STD-810F for temperature, humidity, altitude, shock, vibration, and drop. Size/Weight/Battery Life: 10.8 3 9.4 3 1.7 inches/5.94 pounds/3.5 hours Display: 12.1-inch 1,024 3 768-resolution XGA TFT LCD (daylight readable panel, sunlight readable panel or touchscreen optional) CPU: 1.1 GHz Intel Pentium M Processor LV or 1.0 GHz Intel Pentium M Processor ULV RAM/Hard Drive: 256MB (standard) or 1 GB (maximum)/40 GB (standard) Connectivity: Serial, VGA, USB 2.0, DC input, Docking, RJ-11, RJ-45, Microphone-In and Earphone-Out ports. Notes: Optional docking station is required for integrating a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, CD-RW.

http://www.gpsworld.com/gpsworld/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=92770