Ruggedized military Windows handheld
(by Conrad H. Blickenstorfer)

Tallahassee Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Tadiran Communications, specializes in the design, development and production of military, industrial and commercial communications equipment, rugged military computers and rugged PDAs. Talla-Tech is a supplier of tactical handheld computers to the US Army, Marine Corps, Air Force and Navy.

The Tacter-31M RHC (RHC stands for Ruggedized Handheld Computer) is tough, multipurpose full Windows computer. The Tacter concept goes way back as we reported on the Tacter-21P shown at the 1995 Utility PDA Forum. It was a 486/66 rugged that weighed just four pounds. Its Tacter-31M descendent runs a 1.8GHz Pentium M Dothan processor, can accommodate up to 1.5GB of RAM and a 80GB disk and runs Windows XP or even Linux. Two versions are available now. One with a 6.4-inch display and a slightly larger unit with a 10.4 inch screen. Both are sunlight-readable and have touchscreens. The unit also contains an integrated folding keyboard.

As you'd expect, the Tacter-31M is built to withstand extreme environmental conditions. It has an operating temperature range of between -22 to 131 degrees Fahrenheit, can survive in 3.3 feet of water for 30 minutes per MIL-STD-810E, and is MIL-STD-461E tested for EMI.

As far as interfaces go, the Tacter comes standard with a Fastio port that supports commercial LAN and three USSB 2.0 ports. An MMIO port has a rugged connector with LAN, USB, Audio, serial and optional FireWire. There are two PC Card slots, external video, and commercial GPS. The 10.4" version can accommodate internal L-Band SATCOM. The device is either used as a mobile computer or a vehicle-mount.