Rugged models tend to run a couple pounds heavier than normal laptops, but you can leave that protective carrying case at home. They resist shocks, water and dust and offer all the features a normal user would need.
In fact, they are practically indestructible: Depending on the make & model, think 30 minutes of heavy rain, 40,000 feet of altitude, 40G shocks, dust storms, saltwater mist, 70 degrees centigrade, 95% condensing humidity and enough vibration to shake a truck apart.
They even have nuclear battlefield models for the military designed to withstand the EMP – ElectroMagnetic Pulse – created by nuclear explosions. This pulse destroys unprotected electronics The SUV of notebooks is as heavy in the hands as on your pocketbook, however – models start around $3,000. Also, you should be prepared to accept last year’s technology at least – many still come standard with Pentium III processors and Windows 98SE.
Manufacturing prices are dropping, however, and shipments of convertible, ruggedized and slate PCs may hit over 9 million units by 2008. That's up 700 percent from the 1.2 million units expected to ship this year, according to a forecast by market researchers. Convertible notebooks are expected to make up the majority of those shipments.
The projected number of convertibles and tablets is small compared with the overall number of notebooks - 62.5 million notebooks ship yearly, a number that is forecast by market analysts IDC to climb to 100.3 million in 2008.
Microsoft, a major backer of tablets, is making the rounds with educators and developers to promote the benefits of tablet-based computing.
Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005 is currently available with the purchase of a tablet-style PC. Users can also get free upgrades at the Microsoft’s web site. The next Tablet OS version is slated to be part of the upcoming Windows Vista Home Premium Edition.
The Premium version, which is based on Vista Home Basic, is similar to the Windows XP Media Center Edition (XP MCE) but adds features designed for tablet PCs such as improved handwriting recognition and ability to use a tablet's stylus to pan through documents.
Only time will tell if these new laptops will flourish like wireless networking or fade away like floppy disks. But in an increasingly tight high-tech market were margins are low and profits are down, expect PC makers to pull out all the stops. They will introduce new and interesting additions to their offerings in a bid to rise above the competition. Who knows? Maybe one day we will all own a rugged, convertible notebook.
Before tossing your desktop to get a sexy, new convertible, remember: you will have to make some sacrifices: Greater expense, shorter useful life – the technology tends to be several months behind the most advanced desktops, virtually no upgrade path apart from more memory and lower overall performance – especially when it comes to games.
No comments:
Post a Comment