General Dynamics
Itronix certainly has the
rugged computer gig down pat, but the GoBook VR-2 scales things back a bit and only gets the "semi-rugged" treatment. Don't think this bad boy's not a workhorse, however, as this machine was reportedly designed to "meet the demanding needs of mobile workers in a variety of commercial, field service, public safety, and military markets." Among the niceties that make the day-to-day a bit easier is a 13.3-inch XGA DynaVue touchscreen display, Intel's 2GHz T7300
Core 2 Duo processor, up to 4GB of RAM, up to 120GB of hard drive space, an optional HDD heater for those chilly morns in Killington, DVD burner, PC Card slot, optional
ExpressCard slot, VGA output, audio in / out, four USB 2.0 ports, gigabit Ethernet, 802.11a/g/n, integrated fingerprint reader, optional
WWAN / GPS, Bluetooth, and a three-year warranty that should keep you feeling secure. Of course, this beast can handle a decent amount of shock, dust, and humidity too, but we wouldn't expect anything less with a base price of around $3,500. Click on through for a few on-the-job snaps.
posted June 6th 2007 8:44AM
Sometimes I wonder why Endgadget has such a hard on for certain things.
1. Ruggedized laptops
2. windows xp tablet phones (yeah, 15 inch screen... not a phone anymore)
3. The iPhone, it's a stinker leave it alone
4. HDMI seriously, 50 bucks a foot, and it's audio AND video.... I don't think so. Wont use it. Ever.
HDMI cables ARE the future, and I got a 15 foot cable for $30 on the internet, maybe you should look outside the local best buy.
Engadget's erections are for all "gadgets", with the iPhone being their Viagra :P
I appreciate ruggedized coverage, especially the gory details as to what parts make them "rugged" and push the specs up higher and higher. Sales in the rugged market makes the parts cheaper to add to regular old gadgets - so maybe someday I will be able to get a RAZR that won't die when it comes into contact with a single droplet of water.
Honestly go books are a piece of Cr@p , we have had nothing but problems at work with them they are not even fully rugedized , and they fall apart very easily
we opted to go back to panasonic toughbooks a little more expensive but damn they can handel the load
1998 called, it wants it's laptop design back.
I disagree, HDMI needs to die a horrible and painful death. Audio and video are separate and need to remain that way. You and I disagree. That's fine, no need to insult me there chief.
Engadget tries to feature news stories that they feel will attract the most computer users to the website.
Even though you may dislike certain news posts here and there, doesn't mean others will agree.
For example, in my view;
1. I've had a laptop (several others may have similar situations) that has noticable wear and tear over the years. I go around Central London alot, and due to that, the "aging" is self-explanatory. A little extra support isn't all bad, albeit the price.
2. Many people prefer tablet PCs or PDA Phones, these are just win-wins if you don't mind the lack of convenience (a bit big for most pockets).
3. The iPhone, I admit I'd say it's just a novelty, but, aren't all phones these days? When was the last time anyone actually picked up a phone that focused on 'calling' people? I found the Razr, for example, extremely uncomfortable when it came to making calls, due to it's shape and that large bar in the center (yes I hold my phone in an odd position..).
4. This is pretty much the whole, "Convenience over price" argument that's been flaunted one too many times. For example, the Wii's Virtual Console allows you to download games from previous consoles, yet they're more expensive than just picking one up from the "used pile". So, it's a matter of if people would prefer to use a single cable (HDMI) or several (Component) in order to recieve HD.
Everyone has their opinions, Engadget is just trying to think of what the majority of their users prefer to read.
Offtopic, I agree with John.
Also, thats quite a cool lappy, with some tasty specs..
We have deployed hundreds of Panasonic Toughbooks (CF-29 & CF-30 models) and have only had failure (of a hard drive) in four years! [And our company's competition switched to Toughbooks too.] And the internal hardware is fairly stable, requiring very few image changes.
If it ain't broke - don't fix it.
I am a dirty fucking spammer: rbuccicone@gmail.com