Asus, one of the leading manufacturers of computer hardware products announced yesterday the release of its ruggedized computing solution for mobile professionals. Coming in the form of a compact, Intel-based notebook, the ASUS B51 has been designed to withstand tough environments, while being capable of providing a reliable computing alternative.
Although it has been designed to endure harsh treatment, the B51 comes with a lightweight, yet strong magnesium alloy chassis that is said to offer excellent protection for the internal components of the notebook, which weighs 3.1 Kg when equipped with an 8-cell battery.
ASUS' new product has been built according to the military specifications (MIL 810F Method 516.5 Procedure IV), which means it can withstand drops from a tabletop height of up to 75cm. Also, the notebook has been equipped with a special sponge protection system for its hard drive and features a drainage path for its keyboard. This means that the B51 can withstand drops, shocks, spills and scratches.
Performance-wise, ASUS' B51 rugged notebook can be equipped with an Intel Core 2 Duo processor and is built using the Intel GM965 chipset. The notebook comes with graphics provided by an Intel GMA X3100 Gfx solution, it can support a maximum of 4GB of system memory and sports a 320GB SATA hard drive and ODD S-Multi. On the connectivity side, the B51 provides wireless support through an Intel PRO/Wireless network card with Bluetooth 2.0+ EDR support. ASUS' new product also offers a built-in 1.3MP camera and bundles a Windows Vista operating system.
Users can see a demonstration of the capabilities of the ASUS B51 notebook in a promoting video posted on the company's YouTube channel.
On the rugged notebook market, Panasonic has a strong position with its
Toughbook series, which has been highly awarded for its rugged capabilities.
Find us on Google+
