A powerful, competent, modular, modern, flexible Windows all-in-one computer for when consumer market offerings just won't do
(by Conrad H. Blickenstorfer August 2014, photography by Carol Cotton)

Primarily known for its rugged tablets and notebook computers, GammaTech recently branched out into all-in-one terminals with its new Durabook P24. Featuring a large 24-inch display with full HD resolution, the stylish and slender P24 lineup is powered by Intel 4th generation "Haswell" i5 or i7 Core processors and includes special features such as a proximity sensor to automatically turn the display on and off and an optional internal UPS battery to provide backup power if the panel is moved around or used on a cart. The P24 lineup also includes an optional upgraded model designed specifically for the healthcare industry. RuggedPCReview had an opportunity for extended hands-on with a P24, and this article presents our observations and commentary.

Right upfront, why would a company that specializes in rugged computing equipment offer an Apple iMac-like all-in-one desktop computer? The answer is simple: because consumer market all-in-ones are quite popular, but they are simply not tough and sturdy enough for many commercial applications. Then why not get an industrial Panel PC for such applications? Because those are generally too large and heavy for anything but true industrial use. GammaTech felt that what was needed was something inbetween an iMac (or Dell XPS, HP Envy, Lenovo IdeaCentre, etc.) and a Panel PC, and hence the Durabook P24.

Throughout the design process, GammaTech identified and integrated features important to industries targeted by their emerging all-in-one, features not usually available in consumer products. The overall goal was to make their new creation an ideal match for applications in the business/enterprise world, in hospitality environments, at nursing stations, on medical carts, and also wall- or VESA-mounted in hospitals, clinics, or doctor offices.

And being used to making each of their products perform in demanding situations, they also designed the P24 to pass certain MIL-STD-810G tests, work in an extended temperature range, and be able to handle likely spills.

Needless to say, meeting all the requirements of a broad range of different markets and applications meant a formidable design challenge.

The product had to be tough enough to withstand some punishment, but also light enough to be moved around and deployed where it was needed. It had to be powerful enough to handle the complex, resource-intensive applications inherent to many industries, but without being weighed down by heavy, bulky cooling mechanisms. Unlike industrial Panel PCs that are often built to perform dedicated tasks and nothing else, the new machine had to be versatile enough to handle numerous possible tasks and interact with numerous potential peripherals.

The exterior design had to be durable and practical, but also elegant and attractive enough to fit into any environment. And the technology had to be advanced enough to satisfy business and enterprise users spoiled by the features and rapid advance in consumer technology.

Making the task even more challenging was the fact that the hyper-integrated design approach of consumer products — where components usually cannot be changed, upgraded or repaired — is simply not practical in an enterprise environment. Modules had to be easily accessible for configuration or replacement.

Building the truly corporate all-in-one

Those using their P24 with a desktop stand, however, will find that the USB ports only have about two inches of clearance from the desk surface. And, given that one often wants to quickly insert and remove a USB key, we would have liked to see one or two USB ports on the side of the unit where they are quickly reachable.

Under the Hood

Overall, the P24's internal design is modular, easily accessible, and well protected inside the unit's sturdy off-white polycarbonate housing. And the P24 doesn't glide around thanks to two white rubber bumpers on each bottom corner, as well as a sturdy rubber bumper insert at the bottom of the stand.

Excellent performance

The sample P24 GammaTech sent us had the i5 processor, the Core i5-4300M. This is a "standard voltage" model and though Intel considers it a "mobile" processor it's plenty powerful enough to also drive an desktop. To see what kind of performance the big 24-inch all-in-one can generate, we ran our standard benchmark suite, Passmark Software's PerformanceTest 6.1, that runs about 30 tests covering CPU, 2D graphics, 3D graphics, memory, and disk and then computes scores for each category and an overall PassMark score. We also ran our second benchmark suite, CrystalMark, for confirmation and additional information. For comparison, we included benchmark results of a variety of other GammaTech Durabook devices we've recently tested in our lab: the fully rugged R8300 notebook, the SA14 and S15H semi-rugged notebooks, and the CA10 rugged tablet.

GammaTech Durabook P24 Benchmarks and Comparisons (PassMark 6.1)

PERFORMANCE COMPARISON	Durabook	Durabook	Durabook	Durabook	Durabook
Model	P24	R8300	SA14	S15H	CA10
Model	All-In-One	Rugged notebook	Semi-rugged Notebook	Semi-rugged Notebook	Rugged tablet
Year tested	2014	2014	2013	2014	2013
Processor Type: Intel	Core i5	Core i7	Core i7	Core i5	Atom
Processor Model	4300M	3667U	3520M	4300M	N2600
Processor Code	Haswell (4G)	Ivy Bridge (3G)	Ivy Bridge (3G)	Haswell (4G)	Cedarview
CPU Speed	2.60GHz	2.00GHz	2.90GHz	2.60GHz	1.60GHz
Turbo Speed	3.20GHz	3.20GHz	3.60GHz	3.2GHz	No turbo
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	37 watts	17 watts	35 watts	37 watts	3.5 watts
CPU Mark	4,369.8	3,685.6	4,162.3	4,375.4	463.2
2D Graphics Mark	652.9	546.5	594.4	613.5	NA
Memory Mark	1,763.6	1,822.8	1,234.8	1,774.7	205.6
Disk Mark	2,367.4	1,294.2	694.2	883.8	1,127.7
3D Graphics Mark	516.2	438.3	455.2	563.4	65.9
Overall PassMark	2,124.1	1,711.2	1,622.7	1,831.1	395.5
ALU	50,160	43,695	55,163	51,183	10,673
FPU	50,479	47,207	52,406	50,385	8,073
MEM	50,732	47,328	46,309	50,614	7,099
HDD	34,318	25,369	6,853	22,882	21,856
GDI	19,142	17,192	18,200	19,791	1,372
D2D	7,288	2,432	2,568	8,534	532
OGL	14,857	6,508	7,090	15,858	7,114
Overall CrystalMark	226,976	190,001	188,589	219,247	56,719

As expected, our Intel Core i5-based Durabook P24 performed very well. The overall PassMark and CrystalMark scores indicate that GammaTech's elegant all-in-one desktop is more powerful than all but a very few high-end mobile systems. So for anyone used to notebook and tablet performance levels, the P24 is likely faster.

It's often difficult to interpret performance benchmark results because different architectures and configurations mean it can be a bit like comparing apples and oranges. However, one can see major issues that can make a big difference in day-to-day operation. What is clearly obvious in the above table is that the integrated graphics in Intel's 4th generation chips are significantly more powerful than those included in even Intel's 3rd generation of Core processors. One look at GammaTech's Haswell-powered P24 and S15H superior CrystalMark D2D and OGL results and it's obvious those machines no longer need a discrete graphics option to get the job done.

One big difference in the chips used in GammaTech's lineup is their TDP, the thermal design power. Intel's current philosophy is to design chips around a maximum amount of heat they generate. Lower TDP designs have lower nominal clock speeds, but can reach, for brief periods, significantly higher "turbo" clock speeds. Higher TDP designs normally operate at higher clock speeds, which means higher power consumption, but also higher average performance. What this boils down to is that, for example, the frugal low voltage 17-watt processor in the R8300 notebook comes close in peak performance to the 35 and 37 watt standard voltage chips used in the P24, SA14 and S15H, but the latter will offer higher sustainable everyday performance. An automotive analogy would be the comparison between a turbocharged 4-cylinder engine versus a big V8. The turbo 4, though plenty powerful needs less gas, but the V8 still offers more instantly available power.

The table also dramatically shows the performance advantage of Core processors over the far less complex Atom processor designs. The N2600 used in the CA10 tablet easily gets the job done, but at a significantly lower performance level.

And do note one important thing: in all of our benchmarks solid state disks outperform rotating media (i.e. conventional hard disks) by a substantial margin. The 300GB iRAM solid state disk in our sample P24 provided superior performance that's simply not available from conventional hard disks or even lesser SSDs. SSD still cost more and available options usually have less capacity than hard disks, but if performance matters, they are absolutely the way to go.

Power and Battery Life

Also note that GammaTech offers a special "medical grade" AC adapter with a higher 135 watt rating (versus the 120 watt of the standard adapter). This comes in handy in situations that require frequent use of multiple USB ports, or with peripherals that draw power via USB.

Ruggedness and Protection

As for the operating temperature range, that'd be 41 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit. That's not extreme, but it's probably safe to say that few customers will deploy a large all-in-one in places where it's near freezing or as hot as a summer day in Arizona.

Medical version

ANSI/AAMI 60601-1 is a widely accepted benchmark for the safety and essential performance of medical electrical equipment, and antimicrobial surface protection is applied to help stop the spread of viruses and germs while it protects patients and practitioners at work. The P24 has passed JIS Z2801 certification with 1% of anti-bacterial material being added to both the upper cover and back side of the unit. GammaTech points out that many medical Panel PCs on the market today only use 0.2% antibacterial material, significantly less than the P24. For a more detailed description of JIS Z 2801 testing, read here.

Summary: GammaTech Durabook P24 All-In-One