NEC's ShieldPRO Tablet PC: as tough as it is ugly, almost
Look, it's fine to claim your wares can handle drops, spills, pressure and dust. Who doesn't aspire to a sense of unkempt ruggedness now and then? But if you've got the 'nads to drop it or bath it in a tub of sparkling water for press shots, well, our mustachioed public servants should probably take notice. Sure, NEC's new ShieldPRO Tablet PC isn't the prettiest girl on the block, but she'll do ya right when the going gets tough: 90-cm (nearly 3-foot) drops to concrete, -20°C to 50°C (-4°F to 122°F) temps, dust, sand, water... no problem, this pup brings a 54 Ingress Protection rating. The Magnesium Alloy chassis measures in at 48-mm (1.89-inch) thick and up to 3.5-kg (7.7-pounds) to protect a 1.2GHz Core Solo U1400, up to 2GB of memory and 60GB of disk, a 1024x768 12.1-inch display, 8-hour battery, and a variety of in and outs. You can even opt for a Linux pre-load and Solid State Disk for added robustness. This slab is yours nicely spec'd for about ¥300,000 or $2,600 starting January in Japan.
[Via Impress]
