New Toughbook CF-20 Looks freaking awesome

Oh my days! I thought there would be loads of buzz on here about the new CF-20 but can't find any posts. Spooky.

http://business.panasonic.com/toughbook/2-in-1-hybrid-detachable-laptop-toughbook-20.html

HD widescreen 2 to 800nit multitouch including wet use and gloves

Thinner and much lighter than the CF-19.

High power USB charging

14 hours battery life with 2 battery bays

Emissive chiclet keyboard as standard

Massive multitouch touchpad

Port covers completely redesigned

Everything else you'd expect and plenty of configuration options. Panasonic just threw everything at this bad boy.

Not expecting the side facing speaker will be as good as the current CF-19. The one on my CF-C2 is barely useful.

But if i'm wrong about that then for me this is looking like the holy grail Toughbook

from the UK launch:

 

Cool!
But it's even larger (depth) than CF-19 with the same (and, even worse, it's widescreen) LCD.
Despite of this, I would buy this laptop for USD <1000 right now

 

a side firing speaker about as big as a dime ?
and i thought those $10.00 transistor radios back around 1970 sounded bad .
i am not impressed .
at least design the thing to have a speaker facing in the user's general direction .

 

CF-19 = 8.5" depth x 10.7" width x 1.9" (H) Weighs 5.1 lbs
CF-20 = 9.2" depth x 10.7" width x 1.3" (H) Weighs 3.9 lbs

their note on dimensions: Includes tablet and keyboard dock with handle. Tablet when detached is 10.7" (L) x 7.7" (W) x 0.6" (H). Serial, 2nd USB, Magstripe reader integrated options increase overall height and prohibit use in convertible mode.

I can live with the slightly bigger footprint for lighter and thinner

So they are selling it as a "tough tablet with keyboard dock". Interesting. For my use this is better than only having a convertible tablet option. As the guy in the video said the tablet is rated for a 1.8m drop while together only 1.2m.

The tablet part is very similar spec to the FZ-G1 and quoted as being a similar price so seems good value for me. I need a well integrated and emissive keyboard not some BT separate KB or flimsy fold down job without emissive.

 

I'm guessing the widescreen is to allow space for the tablet docking area and to make use of the screens in use for the FZ-G1.

Just noticed the FZ-G1 quotes the same run time using it's one battery as the CF-20 does using 2 though only one is in the tablet part so when the CF-20 is used in tablet mode it'll have about half the run time of the FZ-G1. That said could bring the second battery and hot swap them when needed.

 

still better than the CF-18 and CF-29 firing down into whatever sound absorbing material it's rested on. That was championship level stupid.

At least the headphone jack is on the side as well though and not around the back.

 

Hi abd,

Shawn started a cf20 thread about two months ago
http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/cf-20.783699/

There is also a collection of cf20 information at TBT
http://toughbooktalk.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=2764

 

Ah i thought there must have been something but try the search for "cf-20" nothing comes up still apart from this thread now.

Thanks for the links!

 

Again, the big question? Can Kent T kill it? If it lasts, it's worthy. If not, only a semi rugged or business rugged. Or not worthy of the ToughBook label.