2020 has started, and with it the events and fairs dedicated to the world of technology.
In these first months, each manufacturer has advertised and will shortly launch its new line of products, each with its own characteristics and peculiarities and also with a few more innovations to remedy the criticisms of stagnation and lack of novelties in recent years.
Below is a brief analysis of 2020 Ruggtek devices and those that remain the best options in terms of specifications and value for money.
Ruggtek RP 550 and RPA 550: a small, portable and powerful handheld device.
RP 550 and RPA 550 can be defined as two “different twins”: they are both handhelds – therefore, neither laptops, nor tablets – that share the design and internal components, but have a fundamental difference in their operating system:
RP 550 has Windows 10 while RPA 550 – as suggested by the “A” in the acronym – runs Android.
A palmtop, as the name suggests, is a device designed to comfortably fit on the palm of the hand, and is therefore very light and easy to handle.
Like a laptop, the palmtop also has an internal battery that can be recharged and allows it to run for several hours without needing to be plugged to a power supply.
Despite having aesthetic similarities with a smartphone, a palmtop is not a smartphone and compared to it has less autonomy: this is due to internal components and, in the case of Windows, to a more energy-intensive operating system than a smartphone, which therefore doesn't allow palmtops and handheld devices to have 24 hours autonomy.
Like a laptop, a palmtop has a larger battery. The difference with a laptop is, on the other hand, the absence of hard drives so that the memory can only be expanded by means of permanent ROMs or SD / Micro-SD cards (the same as smartphones and digital cameras).
Ruggtek RP 550 is a modern handheld device that offers users the convenience of a smartphone and the power of Windows 10 Pro.
A device designed taking into account the new 4.0 Industry standards that combine design and technological innovation, as well as resistance to shocks, falls and temperature variations.
RP 550 features a 5.5-inch capacitive multi-touch display with Gorilla Glass technology: a bright and bright display – up to 500 Nit – even in direct sunlight, with excellent definition thanks to the IPS technology; Gorilla Glass is a guarantee of resistance to scratches and falls to increase durability.
The resolution is very high, and this guarantees even more quality and brightness: we are talking about a 1080x1920p Full HD screen that allows you to see photos and documents in high resolution, which is essential in a device that has been designed for work and business.
In terms of ports and connectivity:
- 1D and 2D barcode reader
- NFC reader
- 4G LTE telephone network
- Bluetooth and Wireless dual band
• USB 3.0 – useful for much faster import and export of files on external media;
- Micro-SD slot to expand the 64GB memory.
On a technical level, the device has an Intel x5 CPU, which is combined with 4GB of RAM memory: a combination that gives the operating system the ability to run without jamming or other problems, being able to run quite a few programmes.
Ruggtek RPA 550 is, on an aesthetic level, the twin brother of the device just described, but changes in some hardware components and software.
This device, in fact, does not run Windows but Android 7 Nougat: a lighter, customisable, fluid operating system that, among other things, enjoys the largest Application Store ever.
Furthermore, due to the lightness of the system, the RPA 550 has 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage – always expandable – combined with a MediaTek Quad-Core processor, which also allows smooth operativity. The provision of ports, functionality and certifications, however, remains the same as the Windows model.
Ruggtek RT 308: the evolution of the Rugged tablet.
Brand-new in the tablet world is Ruggtek RT 308, a new device in the range that focuses on compactness and light weight.
The tablet, always faithful to the “Rugged mission”, therefore with IP certification to resist splashes and dust, has 8.1 ” display – naturally multi-touch-screen – which makes it very small and easy to handle.
The Gorilla Glass technology, as seen, allows it to be very resistant to scratching.
Being compact does not mean giving up power: Intel's Quad-Core CPU allows excellent operation of Windows 10 Professional, the most popular OS in the world and on which the main software runs. The CPU is joined by 4GB of RAM and 64GB of expandable storage memory.
Again, the equipment is important:
- 1D and 2D barcode reader
- NFC and UHF reader
- 4G LTE telephone network
- Bluetooth and Wireless dual band
- Micro-SD slot to expand the 64GB memory.
The year 2020 has begun, and with it the events and fairs dedicated to the world of technology have already kicked off.
Each manufacturer in these early months has advertised or will launch its new product line, each with its own characteristics and peculiarities, and also with a few more novelties than in recent years, to counter the criticism of stagnation and lack of novelty.
What a rugged product aims at.
The most interesting novelty on the consumer side, however, remains that of the foldable display, already introduced in 2019 by two manufacturers and reintroduced again in this 2020, improved, updated and made more useful both by some of those same manufacturers who had launched it last year, and by some new competitors. But the discourse always remains the same: on the consumer side, it is “knockout” design and functionality that are the key, because they aim to impress the end user by enticing him or her to buy this or that device.
The rugged sector, on the other hand, is different and therefore has other priorities. Devices of this kind are not aimed at the general public - although they are present, in some cases, in large retail chains because they are particularly appealing to a niche audience.
These are products related to the business sector, to manufacturing, to the industrial world.
A Rugged product, when upgraded, does not aim to change the design in order to “make itself look better”. A new product in the industry, therefore, does not introduce new colours, new shades or a new camera layout, but will rather try to improve certain sides that were critical in the previous product, such as weight, memory, ports and other useful features.
A rugged product must first and foremost be functional and useful, but above all it must be durable and have a good supply of external inputs to better facilitate work.
Unlike mass-produced devices, which are mostly linked to the office or home environment, or in any case to everyday life, Rugged products are aimed at a group of workers who every day have to deal with difficult and in many cases extreme conditions, such as sudden changes in temperature, an excessively hot or excessively cold environment, high risk of falls, even from great heights. All factors that would literally destroy a traditional product in a short time.
On the contrary, these devices are heavier than their consumer “cousins”, have a highly resistant rubber and polycarbonate casing that protects the inner core, the processor and all the more delicate components from the conditions just mentioned. In addition, they usually have more sophisticated technologies - perhaps at the expense of a less brilliant and dazzling display - to better process data and generally have a greater speed of calculation, useful in working conditions where time is often short and certain operations must be performed very quickly.
They are devices that always enjoy the best and most specific certifications for water resistance and dust resistance. And, in addition, these devices improve their ports every year, always leaving USB, infrared, HDMI and so on so that data transfer is faster even when there is no connection or without having to wait to get home or to the office.
After this introduction, therefore, here is a brief look at the Ruggtek devices coming in 2020 and those that remain the best to buy in terms of specifications and value for money.
Ruggtek RP 550 and RPA 550: a small, portable and powerful handheld.
The RP 550 and RPA 550 can be described as “different twins”: they are both handhelds - i.e. neither laptops nor tablets - sharing design and internal components, but have the fundamental difference in the operating system:
RP 550 has Windows 10, RPA 550 - as the “A” in the acronym suggests - runs Android.
A PDA is a device designed, by name, to fit comfortably in the palm of the hand, and is therefore very light and handy.
Like a laptop, the PDA also has an internal battery that can be recharged and allows it several hours of autonomy without having to remain plugged in.
Although it has aesthetic similarities with a smartphone, the handheld is not a smartphone and has a lower autonomy compared to it. This is due to internal components and, in the case of Windows, an operating system that is more energy-intensive than a smartphone, which therefore prevents the handheld from having an autonomy that lasts all day.
Like a laptop, a PDA has a larger battery. The difference with a laptop is, however, the absence of a hard disk, so that the memory can only be expanded by means of permanent ROM or SD/Micro-SD cards (the same as in smartphones and digital cameras).
The Ruggtek RP 550 is a modern handheld that offers the user the convenience of a smartphone and the power of Windows 10 Pro.
A device designed with the new Industry 4.0 standards in mind, combining design and technological innovation, as well as resistance to shocks, drops and temperature variations.
The RP 550 is equipped with a 5.5-inch multi-touch capacitive display with Gorilla Glass technology: a bright and brilliant display - up to 500 nits - even in direct sunlight, with excellent definition thanks to IPS technology; in addition, Gorilla Glass is guaranteed to resist scratches and drops to increase durability.
The resolution is very high, which guarantees even more quality and brightness: we are talking about a 1080x1920p Full HD screen that allows photos and documents to be viewed in high resolution, which is essential in a device that is designed for work.
In terms of ports and connectivity, they are present:
- 1D and 2D barcode reader
- NFC and UHF reader
- 4G LTE telephone network
- Bluetooth and dual band wireless
- USB 3.0 - useful for much faster import and export of files to external media;
- Micro-SD slot for 64GB memory expansion.
On a technical level, the device has an Intel x5 CPU, which is combined with 4GB of RAM: a combination that gives the operating system the ability to run without crashes or other problems, being able to run quite a few programmes.
The Ruggtek RPA 550 is, cosmetically speaking, the twin brother of the device just described, but changes in some hardware and software components.
This device, in fact, does not have Windows but Android 7 Nougat: a lighter, more customisable, more fluid operating system that also has the largest application store ever.
In addition, precisely because of the system's lighter weight, the RPA 550 has 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage - always expandable - combined with a MediaTek Quad-Core processor, which again allows for smooth and fluid operation, without any lag or problems. The ports, features and certifications, however, remain the same as its Windows sibling.
Ruggtek RT 308: the evolution of the Rugged tablet.
New in the tablet arena is the Ruggtek RT 308, a new device in the range coming in 2020 that focuses on compactness and light weight.
The tablet, still true to the “Rugged mission”, i.e. IP-certified to withstand splashes and dust, has an 8.1’’ display - multi-touch-screen of course - which makes it very small and handy.
Gorilla Glass technology, as we have seen, allows it to be very durable and non-scratchable.
Being compact doesn't mean sacrificing power: the Intel Quad-Core CPU allows Windows 10 Professional, the world's most popular OS and on which the most important software runs, to run smoothly. The CPU is complemented by 4GB of RAM and 64GB of expandable storage memory.
Again, the equipment is important:
- 1D and 2D barcode reader
- NFC Reader
- 4G LTE telephone network
- Bluetooth and dual band wireless
- Micro-SD slot for 64GB memory expansion.
