Panasonic's T4 and W4 Toughbooks
By Paul Miller 
posted November 17th 2005 7:00AM
posted November 17th 2005 7:00AM
Panasonic is updating their domestic Toughbook line with the T4 and W4, similar to the
Let's note models we saw back in April. They're both
12-inch XGA compact lapsters, with a bit less emphasis on the "Tough" than their more
industrial counterparts. The T4 has a
touchscreen anti-glare display and packs 9.5 hours of battery in its 3 pound frame; while the W4 loses the touchscreen
action, drops the battery to 6 hours, and adds a DVD/CD-RW combo drive (the T4 doesn't include an optical drive). They
both feature 1.2GHz Pentium M 753 processors, 802.11g WiFi, and 512MB of RAM, but not a whole lot else. So what's all
this semi-durable portability going to cost you? How about $2,149 street for either one.
[Via TG Daily]
The article is wrong. The T4 is 2.8 lbs and the W4 is 3.3 lbs. No other laptop gives you an sxga+ in a 3.3 lbs. package, so obviously that's what you're paying ofr.
I am using a CF-28 right now and this guerilla is hardly durable enough..... I think my dept paid something close to 4 grand for each of these. I think many might be better off getting a cheap throwaway and planning on replacing them every year or two.
I've had a Toughbook W2 for about 18 months now and I can't imagine loving a notebook more than this one. It's light (2.8lbs), includes everything I need (optical, wireless, etc.) without annoying dongles or adapters, has great battery life, and is quite tough for a non-industrialized notebook (a colleague dropped it 2 feet onto the floor while it was running and it didn't even blink). I'd definitely buy another Toughbook if this one got stolen or destroyed.
I'm in the same boat as Craig. Had my W2 for over a year now and love it to death. Feather light, great features (love the scrollpad), *quiet*, and it's plenty powerful for what I use it for. The only thing that would pull me away would be if Apple came out with a ~3lb Intel based notebook.
Just wanted to third Craig and Chu Chu's comments. Have had it a year. Great machine.
I've been using a W2 for a little over two years now, and still love it. Am definitely planning to stick with this line of products when it's time for an upgrade. I've used this machine almost every day, have carried it around on 4 continents, and barely notice it when I've got it in my bag. I've had lots of laptops for work and personal use over the last 12 years, and this one has definitely been my favourite for its size, weight and reliability. It might not be "tough" enough for some purposes, but it's been great for my needs.