First impression: The rugged Panasonic Toughpad A1 and B1 Honeycomb tablets

First Look

Panasonic has always amazed us with its very durable rock solid electronics, and taking us further in the league, Panasonic has announced two new and exciting Panasonic Toughpad A1 and B1 Honeycomb tablets. Expected early in 2012, these two Honeycomb slates are sure to break ground with their fall resistant and water proof abilities.

Panasonic Toughpad A1and B1 Honeycomb tablets

What’s new

Panasonic recently introduced two Toughpad models, the A1 and the B1. While the specifications of the smaller of the two, the B1, are not yet revealed, those of the A1 are rather promising. With a 1.2 GHz Marvell dual-core processor and a Micro SD card slot, this 10’-inch tablet can be dropped from 4 feet height and still be working perfectly. Additionally, it can be exposed to temperatures as low as 14 F and as high as 122 F. As if this was not enough, it also has a decent resistance to dirt and water drops. Those looking for a reliable tablet for their work, will most certainly love its feature of remote accessibility and encryption standards.

Picture Gallery

Panasonic Toughpad A1and B1 Honeycomb tablets

Panasonic Toughpad A1and B1 Honeycomb tablets

Features Walkthrough

This Toughpad A1 tablet has both an MIL-STD-810G and an IP65 certification, and use the Android Honeycomb OS. Its screen measures 10.1’’, with a 1024 x 768 pixel analysis, its screen is also readable in broad daylight and comes with a multi-touch feature too. The screen has an anti-glare feature, enabling the tablet to use a finger and pen touch input. The stylus is included.

As for memory capacity, the Toughpad A1 has a 16GB memory and a 1GB DDR2 flash memory. It comes with a processor that is dual-core and has added hardware safety. It can be expanded through its Micro-USB ports (2.0) and also included in it are a micro SDHC and an HDMI micro. The A1 tablet has an integrated 4G connection or the optional 3G mobile broadband connection. Its features also include a Wi-Fi hotspot rooter, along with a GPS receiver and Bluetooth.

For your personal and business video calls, this tablet has a 2 Mega Pixels Camera, a 5 Mega Pixels rear as well as an auto focus feature and LED light. It runs on a Li-Ion battery of 339 W. Its battery life can last up to 10 hours. It has a three year warranty, for both parts and labor. It also has business class support available.

What’s good

With these first-of-their-kind durable, drop-safe tablets, Panasonic brings to you Toughpads that you can literally have your kids play with. No more stressing and being anxious for keeping it safe and scratch-free, these a die-hard devices, that will just make our lives easier.

What’s not-so-good.

What got us wondering is the lack of information on the smaller B1 tablet, all we know about the B1 is that it has a 7 inch screen and will be the less expensive. On the whole, the specifics of the A1 are quite promising and are creating buzz among tech-savvies. The only minus we could think of is the fact that it might be and expensive tablet at about $1300.

Price and Availability

The price for the 7 inches B1 is not yet available, but you can purchase the A1 starting from $1,299, These Toughpads are expected to hit the markets in the Spring of 2012.

Wrap-Up

A decently promoted, with unique, yet necessary features such as water, dirt and drop resistance and durability, these Panasonic Honeycomb tablets are raising the bar in the Tablet-sphere. Panasonic at last provides a much-sought feature no other company dares to have featured yet. Spring’s getting closer, and you will be the first to try it out and see if its encouraging and promising characteristics hold water. This hard-surface tablet can be splashed and made dirty, but for how long can it sustain such adverse conditions? If its promises turn out to be true, then Panasonic will have successfully made us her fanatics. We vow to never touch another tablet if it actually does what it says. Now bring it out and let’s get dirty.