John Buckley’s monthly round up of all the tech worth knowing about, for work, rest and play.
Ruggedly Handsome
Panasonic intends to make work life a lot easier with the release of the all new Toughpad FZ-M1, the thinnest and lightest rugged 7” fanless tablet with an Intel Corei5 processor available today.
This business tablet runs Windows 8.1 Pro and can be customised to meet the needs of highly mobile professionals in a variety of markets such as field services and sales, retail, supply chain and logistics, and government.
The high visibility, daylight-readable display has an anti-reflective treatment, making it ideal for outdoor use while an optional stylus is available for signature capture and similar applications.
Price: Starts at $3170 plus GST for the base model and increases depending on configuration. Website: www.panasonic.co.nz/products/business-solutions/toughbook/
Light the iBeacons
These small devices are at the forefront of the latest technological wave to hit retail. Beacons are essentially low-power, low-cost transmitters that trigger notifications on people’s smartphones when they come into range, anywhere from a few centimetres to ten metres away.
The Estimote beacon shown is just one product using the technology developed by Apple. They are currently being piloted with some of the largest retailers in the USA and Europe with applications ranging from proximity marketing and indoor navigation through to contactless payments.
Price: Three for $US99 plus shipping. Development and app production costs are additional. Website: www.estimote.com/
The full length feature is available in the July 2014 issue of FMCG Business.
