Panasonic Toughpad line offers a choice of operating systems, including Windows 10 IoT Mobile Enterprise and Android 5.1.1. Panasonic Toughpads are classified as a 'handheld tablet,' however, with 4G LTE, the term smartphone is also appropriate. It's no ordinary smartphone though, being properly rugged (to MIL-STD 810G level) and incorporating a barcode reader on the back.
You won't be bringing this device out to wow your mates in the bar (particularly for £1,268 ex. VAT), but the delivery guy who arrives at your house may. It's definitely more useful than some of the bulky handhelds used by mobile field workers.
All of the toughness of the Panasonic Toughpads comes from a sturdy chassis with a durable plastic covering to cushion shocks. When the Micro-USB port and 3.5mm audio jack aren't in use, they may be covered using port covers.
On the Panasonic Toughpads, the barcode reader/camera unit is placed at an ergonomic angle at the back.
Panasonic emphasizes the location of the integrated barcode reader: it's tilted forward so field workers don't have to bend their wrists awkwardly to scan. Obviously, this component adds to the FZ-heavier-than-average N1's 4.7-inch weight.
The daylight-readable 10-point capacitive touchscreen has a brightness of up to 500 nits and may be used in a variety of settings.
When choosing a robust gadget, performance is usually the last thing on your mind; after all, it won't matter how fast it moves if it's ruined the first time you drop it or get it wet. However, it must be capable of managing the demands expected of it. The Panasonic Toughpad scored 2199 in the multi-core Geekbench 4 test; by comparison, a leading flagship smartphone like Apple's iPhone 7 or Samsung's Galaxy S7 scores more than twice as high. Regardless, there's no reason to believe that field employees would be kept waiting for their applications to load and perform their work on the FZ-N1.
The Panasonic Toughpad has a small footprint and a daylight-readable screen. Of course, due to the rugged chassis, these rugged computing solutions from the Panasonic Toughpad series are thick, but the device fits well in the hand, with all buttons and controls within easy reach. It's also not too heavy, weighing in at 277g (9.8oz). Other connections and controls include a proprietary docking port at the bottom, a volume rocker on the left, a dedicated camera button on the right, and five user-configurable buttons — two vividly orange-colored buttons on either side, and three (black, marked A1, A2, and A3) beneath the screen. Clearly, there's a lot of room for this gadget to fit into your specific workflow.
The Panasonic Toughpad is a well-designed rugged phone with a high-resolution screen, decent ergonomics, and a feature set that should aid mobile employees in a number of vertical sectors in getting their jobs done. Take a peek at the Windows version if Android isn't your company's thing. For a smartphone, these robust Panasonic toughpads are neither cheap nor expensive, but you get what you pay for.