Panasonic recently unveiled its TOUGHBOOK 55 mobile computer—a semi-rugged 14-in. laptop that the company says is the thinnest and lightest in its class (see figure). Intended to support the demands of public safety, enterprise, and government applications, the TOUGHBOOK 55 offers a great deal of flexibility thanks to its modular expansion packs. As a result, it can accommodate a variety of work environments, including the most demanding and unpredictable ones, according to Panasonic.
The TOUGHBOOK 55 features the latest Intel 8th-gen quad-core i5 and i7 vPro processors, as well as optional AMD dedicated graphics. Customers can also take advantage of an optional 1,000-nit touchscreen that’s easily readable even in direct sunlight.
The TOUGHBOOK 55 is a semi-rugged 14-in. laptop with a customer-driven modular design.
Two user-upgradable components of the TOUGHBOOK 55 are memory and storage, which can be as high as 64 GB and 2 TB, respectively. One benefit of the storage drive is a quick-release latch that allows for easy and fast removal. User-upgradability doesn’t end with memory and storage—the keyboard is user-upgradable, too.
Panasonic asserts that battery life is another primary benefit of the TOUGHBOOK 55. The laptop comes standard with one battery (on the left side) to allow for as much as 20 hours of battery life based on the MobileMark 2014 industry-standard battery test. The battery life can also be extended to 40 hours by utilizing an optional second battery (on the right side), in which case the batteries can be hot-swapped as well.
The TOUGHBOOK 55 comes equipped with other technology enhancements, such as tetra-array microphones for superior speech-recognition accuracy. The new infrared webcam supports facial recognition using Windows Hello and has a privacy cover.
On top of that, the TOUGHBOOK 55 features 92-dB speakers, faster and more secure Wi-Fi, and a larger touchpad. It’s also backward-compatible with the previous generation of vehicle and desktop docks. The TOUGHBOOK 55 measures 10.7 (L) × 13.6 (W) × 1.3 (H) in.
