Hands-on review: Panasonic ToughBook CF-20

By Kane Fulton

Microsoft practically invented the convertible tablet category with its Surface line of devices, spawning a number of copycats with detachable keyboards. While these are fine for indoor use, their flimsy keyboard covers and low screen brightness (with odd exceptions, such has the Surface Pro 4) render them pretty useless for traversing challenging outdoor environments.

Panasonic is pitching its rugged ToughBook CF-20 as a device that offers the flexibility of a convertible tablet combined with the sort of solid build quality that has become synonymous with the company’s ToughBook line of devices. It has more in common with Microsoft’s Surface Book, design-wise, featuring a display that clicks onto a keyboard base that can be configured with a second battery for extra long runtimes on the move.

The CF-20 isn’t some half-hearted Surface clone with a chunky chassis; it’s a fully-fledged business machine with bells and whistles found along every chamfered edge. That’s reflected in the price tag, which starts at a cool £2,661 (around US$3,508 or AUS$4,609). So what does that get your business?

Let’s start with the CF-20’s design. It would be a stretch to call it attractive, but the ToughBook’s black-and-silver color aluminium does exude a certain …read more

Source:: techradar.com – PC and Mac