Rugged Laptops that stand the test

[DaRkDwArF]

Recently at work my supervisor asked me to look into some new laptops, the old ones being of the pentium mmx era were becomeing a little dated and the batterys had no life in them whatso ever.

Considering out of the 35 laptops we purchased 4 years ago only 8 remain in working order, we decided to go with a more rugged milspec style laptop, after searching the news groups I came up with this sexy peice of hardware!

<a href="http://slate.msn.com/id/2080546/" target="_blank">http://slate.msn.com/id/2080546/</a>
<a href="http://www.gobookmax.com/gobookmax/gbmax_ot.asp" target="_blank">http://www.gobookmax.com/gobookmax/gbmax_ot.asp</a>

The laptop in the spotlight is the GoBookMax apparently in use in the war in Iraq atm, the reviews and manufacturer claim that it not only meets all milspec standards but also far exceeds them. Being dropped 54 times opened up while powered on, able to be baked, frozen, washed off with a hose, etc...

Theres a promo video here:
<a href="http://www.gobookmax.com/gobookmax/demo.asp" target="_blank">http://www.gobookmax.com/gobookmax/demo.asp</a>

The price: $4,500USD
The basic features I found were:
PIII 700mhz cpu
Touchscreen Display that actually works outdoors ;-)
Cisco wireless network and external antenna
1 x pcmcia cardbus slot
2 x usb ports

If somebody in the US can order the whitepapers they can pull up a shitload more, but atm thats all I can get.

Just remember that this thing is one hardcore peice of machinery, like all milspec laptops the specs are lacking by todays standards, but you never buy these things to play games of design graphics on, their designed for communications, diagnostics and navigation in the field.

[DaRkDwArF]

I thought there'd be some discussion about this thing, this is amazing in my opinion, the first commercialy available laptop of it's class with government funding backing it... If these things pick off they'll become a hell of alot cheaper in the next few years! :D

[Energy84]

I say give the computer industry another 20 years to settle down, then you'll start finding some truly rugged, 25Ghz+ computers for cheap!
Unless you're the military, why would you need or even want a laptop out in the back country anyways???
Edit: Sorry for the criticism, but I do actually agree that's it's a really cool idea anyway. :)

<small>[ March 26, 2003, 11:27 PM: Message edited by: Energy84 ]</small>

[DaRkDwArF]

My god boy, are you blind? you live in america, america has 2 way sattelite internet. If your hiding from the heat and want to get the news everyday, talk to little timmy and post on the forum how are you going to do it if your shanty shack/cave keeps flooding? or a sandstorm kicks into your desert hideout?

Theres hundreds of applications for these sorts of things, their getting cheaper every year and now their commercial. You may have no use what so ever for them but I'm sure a small percentage of us may wish to keep posting on the forum after the appocalypse :D

[metafractal]

This would be perfect for a automatic gun turret. Just hook up a webcam, and install some software to run a process whenever it detects movement. Then, simply hook up a stepping motor (you can buy computer controlled stepping motor kits where I live) to move the base a relay (ditto with the kit) to control a solenoid for the hammer and your ready to go! Okay, not a 10 minute job, but certainly feasable. Of course you would still have conventional thick steel plating, but I would say that this would provide that edge nessacary for the system not to break down from shock or otherwise in a firefight.

[Tuatara]

'Not a 10 minute job' - no, more like a 5 year image processing research project! Otherwise you'd waste all your munitions defoliating trees every time the wind blows :D

That price isn't too shabby though, considering the price of an ordinary laptop. I'd have expected over $10k for that sort of thing.

Edit: it just occured to me that the automatic gunturret would be brilliant for rabbit control on some of NZ's high country sheep stations.

<small>[ March 27, 2003, 10:58 PM: Message edited by: Tuatara ]</small>

[DaRkDwArF]

How about tying it in with facial recognitian software. If it see's an unknown face it lets rip :cool:
Then again the lag behind something like that would defeat the purpose... how about a bluetooth beacon attached to yourself, deactivates the turret when your near it, rearms as soon as you leave it's proximity

[Anthony]

"How about tying it in with facial recognitian software. If it see's an unknown face it lets rip"

One day you stroll in with your sunglasses on...

"a bluetooth beacon attached to yourself, deactivates the turret when your near it"

What if one day the beacon fails for any number of reasons?

I know it's not a serious idea, but these things should be less dangerous to you than the enemy :cool:

[DaRkDwArF]

Thats the name of the game though, would you work as a butcher and expect not to one day cut yourself? set up some form of audible beep or led indicator to tell you if the turrets online or not...

[Ghostcustom 24]

Back to the laptop:
How do you guys think this thing would stand up against the sand?

I read up on how it is hardened against alittle rain but they didn't say anything about sand.

Imagine it - you have this thing in Iraq with all the sandstorms and crap. The sand would get under the keys, in the ports, ect. What a mess!

[DaRkDwArF]

the keyboard is completely sealed, no problem there and I'd assume like most other laptops of this class, it'd have rubber port covers at the absolute minimum, especially for the price...

[darkdontay]

I would be more worried about the heatr. I have a friend that just got back in Jan. He was telling me that over in Kuwait in July it got to around 130 average temp.. So I would be more worried baout them melting down.. I can though see where sand could be evil...

How is the 3.5 in floppy drive sealed?
and the conections and conectors in the back?

[DaRkDwArF]

My god look at all the questions in the posts above about the ruggedness of this thing if you READ MY FIRST POST, you wouldn't be making statements like that, just watch the promo video and look at the expanded view, 3d view and tech specs, all will become clear

[darkdontay]

Looked already and although you seemed to have a idea how you se it, I never saw any specifications on how it was sealed, the total length of time it was under temprature.. I may have missed that I'm sorry.

[Ghostcustom 24]

I am personally not to impressed with it's 'ruggedness'. It is water resistant - not water proof which means it can only take a certain amount of water in a certain amount of time.

This is (in my opinion) it's major flaw. These devices will be used in the field around the clock. The military does not have the option to take these things out of the rain when it has been exposed to more water than the specifications allow for. And peoples lives could be lost if these types of things fail to work.

[darkdontay]

They seemed to allways show it on rock just above the water... simlutating like it could stand to get realy wet thought you only see them pour some water across the front. I still though would like to see the tests where it died... to what limits where they able to push it before it was too much... that might help more people to see wether or not it is something for them

[DaRkDwArF]

Maybe some more third party reviews are in order...

[Agent Blak]

will it stop a 7.62/.308 at 50 yards?

[DaRkDwArF]

Thats about the only criterium it should pass on this forum <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="wink.gif" />

[photonic]

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica">I am personally not to impressed with it's 'ruggedness'. It is water resistant - not water proof which means it can only take a certain amount of water in a certain amount of time. </font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica">I'm sure it can handle water longer than you can hold your breath. I don't think they're intended to be used at the bottom of the ocean. If it's rated the way other things are rated(i.e. watches), it's probably water resistant to a certain depth. After which the pressure would break the seals or something.

Darkdwarf: You mentioned two way satellite internet in the U.S. Could you link me to that? Most of the time satellite internet only uses the dish for downstream. If you want to upload, you have to dialup.

[Anthony]

Two-way satellite is available to residential areas in UK/Europe:

<a href="http://www.ispreview.co.uk/broadband/sat.shtml" target="_blank">http://www.ispreview.co.uk/broadband/sat.shtml</a>

Prices are higher than ADSL or cable though.

[Ghostcustom 24]

About the water:
On the site it states that it can take up to a certain amount of water (inches per hour- as in rain). It doesn't say what happens when it is exposed to more that that amount.

About the satellite:
I use DirecWay two-way satellite Internet service from Hughes. It is available to anyone who can see the satellites but in this case your dish has to be somewhat permanently installed (to something that will not move).And oh yea, it's fast. On a good night I can download at about 600kbs. The lowest I have ever received was like 200 and I have peaked at about 900 (it does fluctuate though).

But the military has their own satellite system...

[photonic]

Ghostcustom: This is off topic but interesting none the less. Have you ever tried contacting other satellites using your DirecWay dish? Do you know what frequency it operates in? I've become interested in satellite communications as of late and have been trying to build/buy a two way satellite for experimenting(legally of course <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="wink.gif" /> ).

[DaRkDwArF]

Let you guys on a little secret, you can use the downstream without being on the ISP, there is software out there that will capture the traffic as a .bin file, and it can filter out alot of junk, really what it presents it too you as is a compressed file holding all the files going downstream via your set constraints. good way for getting free porn and music when your in the middle of no where =)

[Ghostcustom 24]

I have seen information about that (look around <a href="http://www.copperhead.cc" target="_blank">Here</a>). I have the DirecWay Satellite-Return System, also known as DirecWay 2-Way.

But I have not tried it becuase I have had to retune it 4 times (snow warped the fence which it is bolted to) and it has to be very percise (for the internet, DirecTV comes in fine though...). And I know very little about it, though I am very interested.

&gt; Should I start a new string about this?

[DaRkDwArF]

it is interesting... but still rather useless as you have nbo control over the data being recieved, more snooping on the world then one person and not exactually free internet, just check out 'http://copperhead.cc' that where I started and 'http://austech.info'.

[photonic]

Darkdwarf, why do you say that you have no control over the data being received? Surely there's some way to manipulate what's being received. Also, there's got to be like promiscuous mode for a satellite. That would be great. I have directv. If DirecWay is KU-band them I would bet that DirecTV is too. I wonder if it would be possible to intercept data from all those roof mounted dishes on gas stations.

[Ghostcustom 24]

If you guys would like to make a list of questions for me I will be sure to get them answered, by people that know this stuff.

I find it very ironic that I live only a few miles from the Hughes DirecWay uplink station (large complex - has tons of huge dishes thats say DirecWay) and yet to get good internet I must beam up to a satallite and it beams it down only a few miles away to Hughes servers and that goes through the 2nd largest fiber obtic cable route (Boeing, NIST, Lockheed Martin, and several major server banks are located on this route) in MD to the servers in DC and off to the world.
It is so messed up.

[usp45]

I noticed that this thread is a bit old; some of you may be interested in the latest model of this product. Itronix was acquired by General Dynamics last year, and has since been working on a true weatherproof laptop. They released the XR-1 this fall, which is a completely sealed Intel Core Duo laptop with pretty reasonable specs.

'http://www.gd-computing.com/index.cfm?page=Products:XR-1'

Some of my work relates to the oceanography field; one of my colleagues has purchased one of these for use in the field. In particular, his criteria was that the laptop withstand immersion in salt water while continuing to operate. The laptop may also be immersed in a bleach solution for cleaning purposes. The first unit we received had two problems (a minor defect in one of the non-critical seals, and a missing backlit keyboard that nobody told us wasn't available yet), so we are awaiting a replacement before we begin stress testing (i.e. watching movies on the bottom of a swimming pool).

This looks like a very promising laptop for anybody who requires a portable computer in a hostile environment, should they meet their claims.

[mydnight]

In many (most?) areas you don't even NEED satelite for internet -- you can get special modems that allow you to connect to the cellular network using the SIM card out of your phone. Speeds are comparable to dialup, but if all you are doing is checking your email or The Forum, it shouldn't be that big of a problem.

Edit: it just occured to me that the automatic gunturret would be brilliant for rabbit control on some of NZ's high country sheep stations.


Wouldn't that shoot the, umm, sheep?

[Errant]

Disclaimer: Whilst I am not directly connected to this company, I have dealt with and tested some of their equipment for occupational useage.

http://www.ruggedsolutions.co.uk

This UK company makes ruggedised equipment for use in adverse environments.

I have used the rugged PDA and found it to be capable of withstanding maritime construction operations (fully waterproof, not just splash or water resistant) and the inbuilt GPS and Bluetooth certainly was useful on the connectivity front. USB connectivity allows use of most PC periphrials(sp?).

Downside - as standard you are stuck with Windows CE but on the upside as far a ruggedness we failed on site to render the PDA inoperable. After being run over on compacted hardcore by a 16tonne tracked excavator resulted in marring to the outer case (plastic scratching) and a slight distortion to the screen (slight color loss to one side but still readable and fully useable). As for water it is rated to 1m for 30min but succcessfully survived a dunking approx 10m of saltwater in the harbour. :eek:

Tough gizmo, not as fully useful as a laptop, but more easily carried and tougher than any I've ever used (including Sony's Toughbook which was destroyed on site within 40mins of arrival! :rolleyes: )

I'd give it a thumbs up. :D

[deaddwarf]

I'm back again under a different user as my last email was hacked (hushmail) I was originally posting as darkdwarf. I now use a CF-18 touchpad panasonic toughbook. It's got a CDMA modem in it and I've been successfully fielding it with my GPS (A garmin 60CSX) and my Icom radio using various mapping software to work with the NMEA data.

It's not particularly advanced in comparison to the latest laptop specs, and I've had to purchase an external DVD/RW drive and upgrade the ram, but it far exceeds my needs in terms of portability, reliability and ruggedness.