Panasonic has just recently released the Toughbook U1. It includes the following features:

• Intel Atom Processor - Can run full Vista or XP.
• Solid State Hard Drive, IP54 (4-foot drop to concrete)
• Barcode, GPS, Camera, WiFi, Bluetooth, 3G Options
• 9 Hour Battery Life, Hot Swappable Battery
• 5.6″ LED Touchscreen w/ Full QWERTY Keyboard

I can see a lot of potential for these devices for both field workers and as vehicle mounts. They run about $3000, somewhat more than an industrial PDA; however the screen real estate is outstanding (1024×600 vs 320×240).

Also considering that this is a full OS (not a simple mobile edition) your existing desktop applications can be used and developed for it. Keyboard is a bit small on these types of devices, but the touch screen can definitely be leveraged instead. Here is the link the the product spec sheet.

You don’t hear as much about serial ports nowadays, but a large amount of equipment ranging from PLC’s to LED boards still depends on serial communication. The issue comes when extensive and costly wiring is required.

Enter the Digi Wi-SP. These little wonders allow for serial communication to occur between PC’s and your equipment via your existing 802.11 WiFi network. Features include:

• Selectable RS-232/422/485 interface
• Enterprise-class WPA2/802.11i wireless security
• Flexible 9-30VDC power supply
• Integrated web server for remote management

I have configured and used these for several years in a floor counter system for internal logistics/conveyance management. They are incredibly reliable. The only issues I have encountered is placing them inside a lot of obstructions or a user simply unplugging them by accident.

Another one of our departments was buying an entire computer, network drop, and plasma display to do the same thing while all that was required was one of these $300 units with a cheap LED sign. Think out of the box!

The latest craze in wireless routers is the draft 802.11n standard which boasts speeds upwards of 300mbps (megabits per second). Is it worth the hype? Should you enable your home or office for this new standard. That depends. Here are some factors to consider if you do choose to make the switch:

1. Most 802.11n routers have received mediocre reviews at best. This is still a fledgling technology and definately not ready for the enterprise yet. Best kept at home for the time being.

2. 802.11n can leverage the 5Ghz spectrum rather than the 2.4Ghz spectrum that older 802.11 standards leverage. The 2.4Ghz spectrum has a limited number of channels while it also shared with a slew of other devices ranging from your Bluetooth headset to your microwave oven. Interference is inevitable. If you invest in a 802.11n network make sure you get a dual-band router (like the LinkSys WRT600N to the left) that handles both spectrums.

3. The older and established 802.11g has maximum throughput of 54mbps. Please note this is theoretical. You may only get anywhere close to this when your computer or device is literally right on top of the router. Once you start moving a few feet away, the signal and throughput will degrade with distance. Actual 802.11g throughput is often under 20mbps. The same is true with 802.11n. You can add more routers/repeaters to your home network to boost the signal.

4. You may also want to consider a router (and corresponding hardware) that includes Gigabit ethernet since the actual throughput of a draft-N router is well above that of a standard 10/100 ethernet connection.

5. The only reason most people would ever need to use draft-N is for large file transfers from computer to computer. For just Internet access alone you probably do not need it. The actual throughput of the older 802.11g networks is already way above what most ISP’s can handle.

Now let me turn to my own review. I just recently purchased a NetGear WNDR3300 from Dell for less than $100. It supports dual-band draft N to minimize interference and has eight internal smart antennas that adjust to the client position. I purchased the unit after I found my existing 802.11g router too slow to stream media from the PC in my office to my HDTV in the living room. 

On the downside signal strength leaves much to be desired. The draft-N at 5Ghzdoes not seem to have the range that my old LinkSys G-router used to have; however once the client connects the antennas in the unit adjust and signal strength improves! Throughput maxes out at a theoretical 270mbps on my laptop network card, however my actual throughput for streaming media is around 60mbps which is more than enough to stream full HD (which requires around 25mbps actual throughput). At this point, I actually think the bottleneck is the hard drive on the media server which is an older IDE unit (rather than a newer SATA model).

One final note, I had to significantly tweak my laptop network drivers. There were some adjustments that had to be made to stream media from an older XP box to Vista. Here’s an article to assist.