Product Reviews

The V100 tablet is built to take more than the occasional drop in its stride. And that isn't just the manufacturer's boast, either, as it complies with the American military's MIL-STD-810F standard for withstanding shock, drops, humidity and extreme vibration. The V100 also has an International Protection Rating of IP54, meaning that its chassis can prevent the ingress of dust particles and repel water.

Its military credentials are certainly reflected in its butch styling: knurled plastic protects every edge and shock-absorbing rubber cushions every corner. Ports are sealed behind rubber-edged plastic flaps and the hard disk and battery are behind sturdy magnesium doors, kept shut by dual catches. The hard disk is suspended in a slide-out metal caddy and equipped with a drop sensor to park the heads in the event of a fall. In our tests, we dropped it repeatedly from about a metre, only for it to thump on the floor and carry on working as if nothing had happened even with the screen open. Liberally pouring mugs of water over the V100 had no impact, either.

The port-concealing flaps are less impressive, though: a few days saw one hinge almost completely sheared off, with the others showing signs of fatigue. A couple of genuinely accidental drops also saw the flaps pop open on impact not ideal in dusty or damp environments.

But while we aren't convinced by every aspect of the V100's robustness, it's still an impressive piece of engineering. You'd expect this level of ruggedisation to incur a serious weight penalty, but the V100 is a relatively svelte 2.2kg. With the supplied handstrap affixed to its underside, you could carry the Getac around for prolonged periods without cause for complaint. For longer trips, you needn't consider the extra bulk of a laptop bag just strap the carry handle to the fasteners on the Getac's front corners

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and go. With battery life stretching to an impressive five hours under light use, you won't need to return to the mains too often, either.

Our review unit consisted of the most basic core specification a 1.2GHz Intel Core Duo U2500 processor, 512MB of DDR2 RAM and a 120GB hard disk. The low-voltage processor operates at a modest 1.2GHz which, combined with the frugal 512MB RAM, left the Getac with a sluggish benchmark score of 0.61. It's still enough to keep the supplied XP Professional running smoothly, but we'd be inclined to upgrade to 1GB as a sensible minimum. Barring the addition of extra RAM, there are few routes to significantly better performance, but given the conspicuous absence of any vents in the Getac's chassis that's a good thing. At full tilt, even the modest heat output of the U2500 was enough to keep the wristrest a little warmer than we'd like.

Our model came with a bright 10.4in passive touchscreen so bright, in fact, that we were forced to notch it down under office lighting. It's transflective, too, so still readable outside on the sunniest of days. The touchscreen itself is superb, working well with either the tethered telescopic stylus or a finger, although a digitiser and active stylus (with XP Tablet Edition) is also available for £126 extra. And should the 1,024 x 768 panel of the 10.4in model prove too limiting, there's also a 12.1in widescreen model available, replete with 1,280 x 800 resolution, for £205 extra.

An impressive selection of optional extras allows the V100 to extend its talents to a wide range of applications. Bluetooth, 802.11abg and gigabit ethernet all come as standard, but these can be supplemented with GPS (£70), which replaces the webcam, HSDPA (£270) or EVDO (£304). More exotic options include a rubber backlit keyboard, a low temperature upgrade for working down to -20°C, and a vehicle docking station with port replicator.

The Getac isn't without its faults: the flimsy port covers and the lack of an optical drive could be an aggravation. But it steals a march over similar convertible tablets in a few notable areas: a spacious keyboard, a relatively bright screen and wide scope for customisation. To top it all off, it's good value in a traditionally expensive market. Combine its straightforward strength with the optional extras and the V100 tablet provides a compelling option for the mobile engineer or field technician.