PANASONIC TOUGHBOOK CF-18

Panasonic is renowned for its Toughbook portable computer range, which is made to a military rugged standard that the build quality of any average laptop or Tablet PC cannot match. The Toughbook undergo a rigorous toughening process so that they can cope with extreme working environments. Connection ports are sealed with rubber bungs; air vents are protected from dust and water; and the casing is constructed from tough magnesium alloy and rubber that can withstand drops from up to 3 feet.

The Panasonic Toughbook CF-18 (£1979 ex. VAT) is a Tablet PC that's built on a laptop design. In addition, the swivel screen can be rotated round to lie flat on the keyboard, allowing users to take advantage of the digitised screen for entering data and text using the attached stylus. Alternatively, users can use the CF-18 like a normal laptop.

The Toughbook is built around Intel's 900MHz Intel Pentium M (ULV) processor. It has 256MB of DDR SDRAM and a 40GB hard drive and runs on the Windows XP Tablet PC Edition OS. Performance was good, with a reasonable response time and Mobile Mark score. Unsurprisingly, however, the integrated 855GM chipset produced a poor 3DMark score of 1779, making it unsuited to graphics-heavy applications. This is unlikely to deter Toughbook customers, though, as graphics are invariably less important in the ruggedised portables market.

The 10.4-inch transmissive, anti-reflective digitised screen offers a resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels. It is designed to be legible outside, and we found this to be true in all but the strongest sunshine. The toughened touchpad lacks response and needed to be pressed hard in order to control the cursor. However, this is often the case with ruggedised machines, which can't use the more sensitive touchpads found on normal laptops.

The expensive price tag may put off some potential customers, especially if they don't require such a high level of ruggedisation. However, Those looking for an all-weather, all terrain Tablet, will find the Toughbook CF-18 a versatile and sturdy machine.

PRICE: £1979/£2325 (EX/INC. VAT)
PROCESSOR: INTEL PENTIUM M 900MHZ (ULV)
MEMORY: 256MB
HARD DRIVE: 40GB
SCREEN SIZE AND TYPE: 10.4-INCH DIGITISED
DISPLAY RESOLUTION: 1024 X 768 PIXELS
GRAPHICS CARD: INTEL 855GM
DIMENSIONS: 271 X 216 X 48MM
WEIGHT: 2KG
STANDARD WARRANTY: 3 YR RTB
CONTACT: 08700 100464 WWW.PANASONIC.CO.UK

RATINGS AND TEST RESULTS

BATTERY LIFE: 285 MINS
MOBILEMARK 2002: 113
3DMARK 2001: 1779

VALUE FOR MONEY: 6
PERFORMANCE: 6
FEATURES: 7
MOBILITY: 8
BUILD QUALITY: 9
OVERALL: 7