Panasonic launches 'evolved' new TOUGHBOOK G2 fully rugged tablet
Over the years, laptop and tablet manufacturers have striven to make their devices thinner and lighter. That’s fine for people working in offices, at home or in coffee shops, but for construction or emergency service workers out in the field, they need something that’s going to withstand daily knocks and bashes.
Panasonic has been making its TOUGHBOOK line of rugged computers for 25 years now and today at a virtual 'Evolved2Adapt' event, the company took the wraps off the successor to its popular fully rugged tablet -- the TOUGHBOOK G2.
The event took us through the TOUGHBOOK’s evolution over the years from 1996 to today, before showing off the G2, a 10.1in tablet which comes in two versions -- Standard and a Quick Release SSD model for data sensitive sectors such as emergency services, police forces and defense.
The new G2 is powered by a Intel Core i5-1031OU vPro Processor and comes with 16 or 32GB RAM. The desktop cradle allows the device to output 4K to two external screens. It includes eSIM support, improved screen brightness, a user-exchangeable expansion bay area, three customizable buttons on the front frame of the display for quick click, and also Windows Hello support. It comes with a digitizer pen and promises up to 18.5 hours of battery life with a user exchangeable battery.
There’s also an optional emissive backlit keyboard with an additional USB Type-A and Type-C port.
It is fully rugged designed for MIL-STD-810H1 and has an IP65 rating.
The G2 comes with Windows 10 Pro installed and can be upgraded to Windows 11 in the future. Linux is also a possibility but it's not offered as standard.
There is a range of dedicated accessories available for the new tablet including vehicle docks for use with or without the keyboard, hand straps, shoulder straps and cases with sanitizable options.
"Mobile workers loved the TOUGHBOOK G1 and 20 but the G2 will steal their hearts," said Dirk Weigelt, Senior Product Marketing Manager at Panasonic Mobile Solutions Business. "It truly is the next generation rugged device for mobile workforces. It offers all the benefits of the latest technology, while maintaining important access to legacy systems, all wrapped up in a more flexible, secure and ultimately even more usable device."
The TOUGHBOOK G2 tablet comes with a standard 3-year warranty and will be available from end of July 2021. Prices in Europe start from €2,450 / £2,218 + VAT. The device will be coming to the US and beyond shortly.
For more information visit www.toughbook.eu.