By William Jobe Cyrus

Rugged laptop computers, also called ruggedized laptops, are made for portability, convenience, and extreme reliability in even the worst of conditions. They're capable of dealing with strong heat and cold, dust, moisture, vibration and other conditions where regular computers might give up.

Generally, these computers are designed to do their jobs from scratch - models adapted from ordinary consumer laptops don't have the basic engineering behind them to make them truly effective at withstanding harsh conditions. They will generally be more costly, larger, heavier and somewhat behind the technology curve of regular hardware. This, plus the difficulty of finding them in retail stores, means that most of them are used by organizations, not consumers.

Rugged laptop computers can be expected to include a number of different design features, though you're unlikely to see all of them on every computer. Some machines are less rugged than other examples, and most brands produce models with varying degrees of ruggedness.

Features that make a laptop computer rugged can include sealed keyboards, LCDs, ports and connectors that keep dust and liquid out, shock mounted storage drives that can cope with sudden drops and constant vibration, and electronics that operate on less power than those found in conventional laptop computers. That maximizes battery life. Wireless communication methods are also extremely common.

Displays on rugged laptops are bright and designed to deal with direct sunlight or dark conditions. Cases and frames include roll cages of magnesium alloy, or are simply made entirely with this alloy, to prevent cracking and other damage. Passive cooling to prevent overheating and components that take heat well are also common in rugged laptop computer construction.

Rugged laptops can be found in all kinds of sectors and situations, from medical emergency staff to police and fire department use. Military personnel make use of rugged laptops, as do utility companies and some companies, such as those in the mining, oil drilling, and construction fields. These laptops go anywhere hard use is expected.

The majority of rugged laptop computers are built around one philosophy - make a controlled environment so delicate electronic components are protected from their environment. Of course, the better the parts, the better this can work, so top of the line electronic components are used.

There are lots of companies out there offering rugged laptop computers. Among them are General Dynamics, Panasonic, Twinhead and many others. The biggest demand for this kind of computer is from organizations and companies, so the majority of them are sold outside of the usual retail channels.

Rugged laptop computers are a good choice for people working in any organization that requires reliability of performance in any kind of condition. If you're someone who needs things done right, even in variable environments, skip the usual consumer laptop and consider a rugged one instead. You'll get a lot more reliability and your computer will need much less frequent service.

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