14 DAY TRIAL // Firefighters, police officers or soldiers that need more than just a rugged tablet for field work, have two new laptop options starting this week. Dell has just introduced the rugged Latitude 14 Rugged Extreme notebook and the Latitude 12 Rugged Extreme convertible notebook (can be used as a tablet too).
The new rugged notebooks can be considered the successors of the Dell Latitude XFR series and have been built to withstand hazardous environments where dust, moisture, vibration, extreme temperatures and such are a common occurrence.
In order to make the laptops invincible to the harsh conditions, Dell has used impact-resistant ultra-polymers and magnesium alloy for the chassis, which looks sturdy and reliable. The internal parts of the laptops are protected by virtue of sealed doors and compression gaskets.
Dell has added the fourth-gen QuadCool thermal management system, a system designed to ensure the hardware continues to run in optimal conditions even in extreme temperatures.
Dell has performed tests on the rugged notebooks in order to make sure they can survive drops up to six feet. The products also have ingress protection, emissions and hazardous materials certification granted by a third-party testing facility.
One of the most appealing feats on the new Dell laptops include the “Direct-View” outdoor-readable display, which means professionals will be able to use them in sunlight with minimal glare and reflectivity.
Anyway, the laptops are packed with everything a rugged professional might necessitate. The Dell Latitude 12 Rugged Extreme offers a choice of Intel Core i3, i5 and i7 dual-core processor combined with up to 16GB of internal storage (2 DIMM slot slots) and Integrated Intel HD Graphics 4400 (i3/i5) or Intel HD Graphics 5000 (i7)
In the storage department, there’s the possibility of opting for 128GB/256GB or 512GB mSATA solid stat drive, plus the optional 256GB mSATA SED SSD.
Dell Rugged Extreme 14 is powered by the same processors, but it’s a bit more powerful in terms of graphics, with Integrated Intel HD Graphics 4400 (i3/i5) or Intel HD Graphics 5000 (i7); Optional NVIDIA GeForce GT 720M (DDR3 2GB) discrete graphics with Optimus. Further specifications are pretty similar to the other model.
Dell will make the notebooks available in mid-May and will sell the Latitude 12 Rugged Extreme convertible starting at $3,649 / €2,686 while the Latitude 14 Rugged Extreme starts at $3,499 / €2,541.