Known for making rugged Android tablets that can take a beating, Panasonic unveiled the Toughpad FZ-A2 during the Automotive Innovation Summit 2016 in Barcelona, Spain.
Starting on the outside, the Toughpad FZ-A2 is shrouded in magnesium alloy, which should allow the tablet to withstand drops from 1.2 meters high. Furthermore, the Toughpad FZ-A2 comes with IP65 certification that makes it resistant to dust and water, with the tablet able to function in temperatures ranging from minus 10 to 50 degrees Celsius, or 14 to 122 degrees Fahrenheit.
Continuing our exterior look at the tablet reveals a 10.1-inch, 1,920 x 1,200 resolution display that can be used with your bare hand, gloved hand, or a capacitive stylus that Panasonic will sell. A 1080p camera sits above the display, while an 8-megapixel camera can be found around back.
Taking a peek under the hood, the Toughpad FZ-A2 is powered by a quad-core Intel Atom x5-Z8550 processor that can go from 1.44GHz to 2.4GHz, along with 4GB RAM. The tablet is equipped with 32GB of native storage, though the MicroSD card slot should please those wanting for more storage.
The Toughpad FZ-A2 supports USB 3.1 Type C, through which the tablet not only gains OTG support, but also allows it to charge other devices — a handy feature for those not willing to walk around with a portable battery charger. In addition, the tablet runs Android 6.0 Marshmallow, with Android for Work’s Enterprise Security preloaded.
Finally, the Toughpad FZ-A2 can be customized with a 2D barcode scanner, a smart card reader, and 4G LTE connectivity.
Overall, the Toughpad FZ-A2 sounds like a very promising Android tablet that checks off many wants and needs for enthusiasts. Unfortunately, the tablet is primarily aimed at the enterprise market, with a wallet-emptying $1,334 price tag to boot. The Toughpad FZ-A2 will be available sometime in July.
