Mini-Rugged PC: Tangent Announces Fanless Industrial Strength Rugged Mini PC With Compact Flash Storage Option
Tangent Inc., the provider of technology solutions for healthcare, education, industrial and government markets, has developed an industrial strength mobile 
computing solution, called the Rugged Mini Fanless, for use on factory floors, in the field, mounted to carts or vehicles, or in other harsh environments.
"Unlike office computers, Tangent's Rugged Mini Fanless is designed to take a beating," said Douglas Monsour, Tangent's President. "It can withstand shock, dust, vibration, humidity, extreme cold and heat, and even electro magnetic interference. The Rugged Mini is at home in industrial, manufacturing, mobile, and construction applications."
The Rugged Mini Fanless comes in a rugged casing with a powerful CPU, high speed memory and storage, and mounting brackets all important parameters for an industrial grade system. It has a sleek design, small footprint and is lightweight (9"W x 7"L x 2"H, and less than 4 lb.). A solid state industrial grade PC version with Compact Flash instead of a hard drive is available and contains no moving parts, greatly reducing critical points of failure.
With its fan-less, convection-based passive cooling system, the Rugged Mini eliminates the CPU and chassis fan major source of failure in dirty environments. In cart mounted applications the Rugged Mini provides a long operating cycle and significantly extends battery life and reduces time between re-charges. It consumes only six watts in standby mode, 24 watts in the "on" position while idle (using Intel's ESS (Enhanced Speed Step), and 44 watts at 100 percent utilization. This compares to a typical PC using 75-125 watts.
Tangent's Rugged Mini is available with a choice of low voltage Intel Celeron M, Core Solo, or Core Duo processor. The Rugged Mini can be used stand alone in place of a full integrated system. It can be easily wall mounted or attached to a display screen via its mounting flanges. Tangent can customize units for meet volume requirements.
Tangent's design integrates broad compatibility with current WiFi standards. It uses a Cisco LEAP compatible WiFi solution offered with a variety of WiFi antenna options. The Rugged Mini also has VGA and DVI output so it can be easily connected to a touch screen or regular flat panel monitors of all sizes. Dual displays are supported in landscape and portrait modes.
The Rugged Mini has a starting price of $1195 and comes pre-loaded with Microsoft Windows XP Pro. Tangent backs the Rugged Mini with a one-year parts and labor warranty and optional one year on-site service. It is available direct from Tangent at www.tangent.com.
About Tangent
Tangent, Inc. Founded in 1989, Tangent provides technology solutions to education, government, corporate, and healthcare markets. Tangent's award-winning technology includes desktops, notebooks, wireless labs, thin clients, and servers. Tangent products have earned numerous awards, including eight Editor's Choice awards from PC Magazine.
Source: Tangent