Motion F5 Rugged Tablet PC Stock Clearance and Ex Demo Sale

To make way for new models, we are having a clearance on Motion Computing F5 Rugged Tablet PCs until the end of next week.

If you are looking to trial a Tablet PC for an upcoming project, then why not take advantage of this offer before the end of financial year. You may also be able to take advantage to the Federal Government Investment Allowance.

The F5 features:

• Ultra Mobile design
  • Weighs only 1.5kg
  • Compact 10.4” screen
  • Convenient carry handle
• Rugged construction
  • Drop tested to Military Standards (MIL810F)
  • Water and dust resistant IP54 Rated
• Versatile connectivity
  • Bar code and RFID Scanner inbuilt (Optional)
  • Bluetooth, Wireless and 3G / Next G inbuilt
  • Docking station with spare battery charger

Check the demo section of our website for more information on the Motion F5 demo and stock clearance models available.

Last chance for government investment allowance this Financial year

If you’re in business you’re probably well aware of the “Small Business and General Business Tax Break” otherwise known as the Government Investment Allowance.

According to the ATO the Investment Allowance is now law and you can still take advantage of it in this financial year by purchasing before June 30.

For small businesses (Less than $2 million turnover a year) you may:

• Be able to claim a 50% expense in addition to your regular asset depreciation schedule
• Have until December 31 2009 to make the investment
• Have until December 31 2010 to take delivery

For other businesses (More than $2 million turnover a year) you may:

• Be able to claim a 30% expense in addition to your regular asset depreciation schedule
• Have until December 31 2009 to make the investment
• Have until June 30 2010 to take delivery

Tablet PC does not provide financial or Tax advice, so you need to seek professional advice to determine whether this information applies to your business.

Visit the ATO website to read the explanatory memorandum here.

HP Touchsmart Tx2 Multi-touch Tablet PC Review

We finally got around to reviewing the multi-touch HP Tx2! The Tx2 has been a very popular Tablet PC and it is introducing many newcomers to the wonders of touch computing.

The HP Tx2 is a great way to get into Tablet PCs for a very good price. While most full sized 12” Tablet PCs are selling for over AU$3000, the Tx2 is under $2000.

Best of all, it’s packed with goodies like the iPhone style multi-touch capacitive touch screen.

We’re looking forward to trying out Windows 7 on this machine! Roll on Tablet PC air-hockey and finger painting.

From the field: Why Brightness (nits) does not equal daylight readability

Working in the field in direct sunlight has always been challenging. Most Tablet PC vendors now offer some sort of daylight readable display. Beware though, not all daylight displays are created equal.

Some hardware vendors try to pass off daylight readability in terms of brightness, and brightness is measured in nits. So you might see a claim like “500 nits outdoor display.”

We all love to measure things with numbers, but nits is not a good measure of daylight readability.

Simply cranking up the brightness with a stronger backlight on a display causes a number of issues:

1. Significantly reduced battery life
2. Washed out colours
3. Low contrast

The very best solution is actually a display that is readable on little to no brightness on.

In other words, the more readable it is with the least possible nits the better. To achieve the best outdoor readability, you need to address:

• Reflection – Minimising sunlight reflection with Anti-reflective screen coatings
• Diffusing – Reflective, transmissive and transflective technologies work to diffuse light out effectively
• Viewing angles – some achieve up to 180 degrees in all directions, so you can read the display easily at any angle
• Contrast – This is the true benchmark of daylight readability.

According to Rugged PC Review, the effective contrast of an outdoor display is:

1 + (emitted light / reflected light)

So if the reflected light is high, the emitted light needs to be higher just for the screen to be readable.

Getting reflection, diffusion, viewing angles and contrast right can mean that your display is readable outdoors with very little brightness to speak of.

The new motion J3400 is by far the best example of this. As we demonstrated in our product video, you can actually read this display in direct sunlight on the ZERO brightness setting.

That means that you can go out into the field and run much, much closer to the manufacturers claimed battery life of 7.5 hours.

The J3400 is actually the best outdoor readable screen that we’ve seen on a Tablet PC by far and it sports only 320nits. 

A display that has to run at 1000nits to be viewable will of course, not be so good on batteries. So if you have to sacrifice hours in the field just to be able to read the screen, how daylight readable is it really?

Viliv S5 – Our Impressions of this Tiny Atom Based UMPC

We’ve been lamenting the lack of slate UMPC options lately, but finally the gods of UMPC have answered our call with the Viliv S5.

We got up to CeBIT in Sydney last week and got our hands on the Viliv S5 and lots of other goodies.

Our first impression was of the size of the device. Not much bigger than its 5” screen, the Viliv is very “pocketable”, at least for a suit pocket.

It includes 3G and a built in GPS (Sirf Star III) which is going to open up lots of Mobile computing horizons. The screen is not too hard to read, even with the 1024 x 768 resolution on such a small screen. We didn’t get to try it outside yet though.

Viliv ship this unit with Windows XP home and not the XP Tablet Edition. We find that resistive touch screens are pretty poor at handwriting recognition anyway, so the Tablet Input Panel is not really missed on this.

Viliv’s on screen keyboard software with haptic feedback was very easy to use. I found that with about 5 minutes of practice I was happily typing away. For users with specific key entry requirements there are dozens of on screen keyboard applications that will work well on this device.

The Atom processor on the S5 was very capable. We didn’t notice any slowness or lag during our demo. The unit comes with 1Gb RAM which we assume could be expanded to 2Gb. Battery life is exceptional at 6 hours.

Best of all, we think the pricing is awesome!

Pricing:

Stock is arriving very soon, so get your orders in now.

Ballarat Nurses use Tablet PCs for home visits

According to an article in the Ballarat Courier yesterday, Ballarat District Nursing is deploying Tablet PCs with a local software program called UNITI.

This would allow nurses to access patient information and make requests in real time while visiting clients.

UNITI manager Dean Parish said in the article:

By removing the need for field nurses to return to the office after visiting patients to complete associated paperwork saves time and could make some nurses feel more independent in their job.

This is another example of Healthcare leading the adoption of new technologies in Australia thanks to government and corporate leadership.

While there will undoubtedly be change required and some short term pain with it, initiatives like this will result in better care for patients and less stress for nurses!

We’re excited about this UMPC: Viliv S5

The Viliv S5 is on its way to Australia for CeBIT next month. Our UMPC partner Tegatech Australia will be launching the device at stand V70.

Look out for great features:

• Pocket sized slate form factor
• Awesome battery life
• 5” screen – 1024 x 600 resolution
• Atom 1.33Ghz - Runs windows
• Integrated 3G option
• Great pricing

UMPC Portal preview:

 JKK Mobile review:

This is a brilliant device. Whilst UMPCs have not gained widespread adoption, devices like this one will certainly help the cause. As a mobile computing device for eBook reading, digital media, web browsing and basic data capture this UMPC will beat any netbook hands down for 2 reasons:

1. It fits in your pocket
2. You can *practically* use it while you are standing, walking and sitting.

Lenovo X200T Second Hand in Melbourne

If you come across a second hand Lenovo X200T for sale in Melbourne over the next couple of weeks, check out the details because it could be stolen.

We had one stolen from home on Thursday 30th of April along with our video camera. Details are as follows:

Lenovo X200T Tablet PC

Part number:  7448 CTO

Serial number: L3AAB2C

If you come across this Tablet PC, please don’t buy it. Rather call us on 03 9012 6602, 0400 687 887 or crime stoppers on 1800 333 000.

It was the personal laptop for one of our staff so we are keen to recover it.

Video details below:

Your assistance in tracking it down would be greatly appreciated.

Also, if you ever have a Tablet PC stolen, let us know about it and we’ll do what we can to track it down via the web.

Press Release: “Go Green” while Streamlining Business Processes

Capitaleyes Business Technologies Helps Customers “Go Green” while Streamlining Business Processes

New Software Launch Provides Tablet PC Powered ‘Green’ Mobility Solution

CANBERRA, ACT – April 22, 2009 – Capitaleyes Business Technologies, a leading provider of document driven process improvement solutions, in conjunction with its strategic partner, www.TabletPC.com.au has announced the release of a low cost, high value software suite to the Australian market in support of Earth Day 2009.

The solution suite is centred on bridging the gap between the collection of vital information on paper forms and how and where that information is subsequently stored and then made available throughout the organisation. The use of a true Digital Ink e‐Forms technology, together with the handwriting recognition capabilities of a new generation Tablet PC or UMPC, provides a capability that not only does away with the need for additional data entry but also helps minimise a company’s environmental footprint.

In migrating from traditional paper to electronic business processes, organisations can generate numerous benefits and significant return on investment through more efficient digital workflows and reduced costs. The adoption of electronic processes to exchange information both internally and externally decreases and often eliminates paper, reducing the impact organisations have on the environment by conserving land and water resources as well as decreasing fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

For example, an employee filling out 20 paper forms each month (10 pages each) during site visits could save the following each year by converting just half of these to electronic transactions:

“Enabling streamlined business process through migration from paper to electronic is a central component of the value we bring and is a common theme across our entire product and service portfolio,” said Kevin Burdette, Principal of Capitaleyes Business Technologies. “By deploying our solutions, organisations can leverage mature technology to drive environmentally‐friendly business practices, lower their carbon footprint and achieve their environmental and business goals.”

About Capitaleyes Business Technologies

CAPITALEYES BUSINESS TECHNOLOGIES provides software and consulting services to improve the outcomes of an organisation’s business process improvement strategies through the use of mature, innovative information exchange technologies. Founded in 2008, CAPITALEYES BUSINESS TECHNOLOGIES is headquartered in Canberra with partners in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and the USA. For more information, please visit: www.capitaleyesbt.com.au.

Federal government stimulus package gives you 30% tax break on your Tablet PCs

The federal government has announced an incentive for Australian businesses to purchase new capital equipment. Until June 30, businesses with under $2 million turnover will receive an up front tax deduction of 30% for hardware purchased over $1000.

The tax deduction will be available for any business with a turnover of $2 million a year or less. It will fall to 10 per cent for equipment bought from July until the end of December for installation by the end of 2010.

Bigger businesses will be eligible for the same tax deductions but will have to spend at least $10,000 on new equipment to qualify.

You only have till June 30 to receive the full deduction though, so it’s time to act now.

Read more over at The Age Small Business section.