Startups join the push to revive the palmtop | Rugged Smart Phone

Ongoing upgrades to ERP systems have triggered additional investments in new mobile terminals, barcode scanners, warehouse signage and other purchases to support new software features. According to VDC Research, the global handheld barcode scanner market will reach more than $1.48 billion through 2022. That growth is also being driven by wider adoption of 2D imagers, which can increase business workflow efficiency, and growth in e-commerce which requires companies to meet the demand for faster delivery speeds and omnichannel functionality.

The whole thing measures 6.7″ x 3.1″ x 0.6″ and weighs 11 ounces. Planet Computer also offers accessories including a USB Type-C adapter that adds two full-sized USB ports, another USB-C port, and an Ethernet jack, and a separate USB Type-C to HDMI adapter.

It sports a 7-inch HD screen with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels, along with rain and glove mode, and passive stylus support. Toughbook FZ-L1 is powered by a quad-core Qualcomm MSM8909 SoC, clocked at 1.1GHz, paired with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of onboard storage.

Beyond the specs, Osmo Pocket comes with a load of intelligent features that, at the push of a button, allow users to capture creative videos and photographs. It also has a battery life of over two hours.

Apple should be worried about the Surface Book 2. The keyboard is solid, the trackpad feels as responsive as the MacBook Pro, and the hardware looks and feels premium. Microsoft has given users a good set of reasons to jump ship, but in the cloud-connected world of today, the jump is perhaps more dramatic than it would have been back in Steve Jobs’ day. For the first time in a while, though, I find myself jealous of PC users.

Otherwise, there is not much to see here in terms of software, it’s just Android 8.1 Oreo. We would usually say this is a good idea, but with such a small screen we think the UI should have optimized, which is something Palm did with its companion phone. As it is, the Unihertz Atom feels unintuitive and cramped.

We are getting close, but what I would like to see is a device you can use as your phone, take with you and plug into the dash to use in the car, and pull out and take to the office. Just attach power and HDMI, and off you go from work to car to home and back again. In this dream there is a universal connector that can actually supply power and HDMI so you can plop into universal power ports (leave the cables at home).

This rugged tablet is also designed to MIL-STD810G standards, is IP67 rated and is drop resistant up to 5 feet. It is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, has 2GB of RAM and 16GB of inbuilt storage. Panasonic claims that the Toughbook FZ-T1 is capable of delivering up to 12-hours of battery life while the Toughbook TZ-L1 is capable of up to 9 hours of usage time. The prices of these devices start at Rs. 60,000 without tax but will go up based on customisations.

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Rugged Smartphones market provides a forecast assessed on the basis of how the market is predicted to grow

The report provides global Rugged Handheld Electronic Devices market segmentation based on the product type, end-users, and region. The Rugged Handheld Electronic Devices market shares of each segment are calculated in the form of revenue likely to be generated (USD million) and year to year growth rate (CAGR). In the additional section, Rugged Handheld Electronic Devices report includes market division study over the significant geographies of the world such as North America, Asia-Pacific, Europe, South America, The Middle East & Africa and rest of the world.

For a little over £200 (or $260), this is a great piece of technology that gives you most of what a much more expensive device can offer, and a few things they often can’t.