June 25, 2008 5:34 AM PDT

Panasonic unveils Toughbook CF-U1

(Credit: Panasonic)

Panasonic today added a tablet UMPC to its rugged Toughbook line. Sure, you could buy six Asus Eee PCs and still have some walking around money left for the price of one $2,499 Toughbook CF-U1, but we doubt you'll grab your lunch pail and Eee PC and head down to the mine. Panasonic's latest Toughbook is, of course, built for use in the field. It's "engineered for the walking worker," according to Panasonic, and comes loaded with features.

The 5.6-inch LED backlit LCD touch screen is designed for viewing in direct sunlight, and below it is a backlit thumb keyboard divided by a number pad and arrow keys in its middle. On the right side, you can see a hand strap, but should you choose not to tether yourself to the Toughbook CF-U1, you can rest easy knowing it's been engineered to survive a four-foot drop and to resist rain, spills, dust, and vibration. It ships with two batteries, which, according to Panasonic, adds up to 9 hours of running time. The unit measures 7.2 inches wide by 5.9 inches deep by 2.2 inches high. It weighs a trim 2.3 pounds, which includes lugging around both batteries. It's completely fanless and uses a solid-state hard drive and an Intel Atom CPU, all of which should aid battery life.

In addition to a 2-megapixel Webcam and fingerprint scanner, it also features barcode and RFID readers and GPS. Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and 3G-mobile-broadband are also onboard. Many of these features are listed as options, so they most likely will add to the $2,499 price. Panasonic expects the Toughbook CF-U1 to ship in August.

Full specs after the break.

Genuine Windows Vista Business with Service Pack 1 (with XP downgrade option)
Intel Atom processor Z520 1.33GHz with 533MHz FSB, 512KB L2 cache
16GB solid-state removable drive (32GB optional)
1GB memory
5.6-inch WSVGA sunlight viewable touch screen (1024x600 resolution)
Antireflective screen treatment
LED backlighting
Intel Wireless Wi-Fi Link 5100 series (802.11a/g/draft-n)
Bluetooth v2.0 + EDR
Interfaces: USB 2.0, SD Card, Microphone, Headphone, Expansion Bus
Integrated options include 3G mobile broadband, integrated camera, fingerprint scanner, GPS, barcode or RFID readers
Optional expansion modules for magnetic stripe reader and serial/Ethernet/smart card are expected in late 2008
Approximately 9 hours of battery life
2.3 pounds (with strap and both batteries)
2.2 inches tall by 7.2 inches wide by 5.9 inches deep

Matt Elliott, a CNET editor since 2000, heads up coverage of computer hardware, from desktops and laptops to their assorted components and peripherals. Prior to joining CNET, he worked for PC Magazine. When not writing about computers and wrestling with their shipping boxes, he likes shooting with his Nikon D50 camera. Matt is also skilled with a tape gun. E-mail Matt.