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Dell Rugged Laptops Not Quite Tough Enough

An anonymous reader writes "Trusted Reviews has put the new Dell XFR rugged laptop through the grinder and it hasn't fared as well as expected. Considering that these guys drove a car over a Panasonic Toughbook, they went pretty easy on the Dell, but it still couldn't take the punishment. It looks like Dell still has a way to go to steal the ball from Panasonic when it comes to all terrain computing."

12 of 225 comments (clear)

  1. I see... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    So the Dell blends after all!

  2. Laptops should be able to defend themselves by BetterThanCaesar · · Score: 5, Funny

    Laptops are weak. They should be able to defend themselves against dangers such as smashing into the ground, like this experimental Lenovo model.

    --
    "Stop failing the Turing test!" -- Dilbert
  3. Re:Does anyone use these? by semargofni · · Score: 2, Funny

    Coffee crumbs?

  4. Re:What about Thinkpads? by sjbe · · Score: 5, Funny

    FWIW, somebody picked up my MacBook to see how heavy it was, and managed to drop it off the desk.

    How long did it take you to remove your hands from their throat?

  5. Re:In my case, temperature tolerance... by koxkoxkox · · Score: 2, Funny

    Well, you have a right to use an idiosyncratic unit of temperature, but please at least specify it, ok ?

  6. Re:Interesting... by bdsesq · · Score: 2, Funny

    ...and my aging cat urinated on the keyboard...

    Some years ago my cat urinated on my Apple powerbook. It never worked again. There were no Apple stores then so I had to take it to CompUSA, again and again and again.
    It was Toast!

    Looks like Dell wins the pissing contest!

  7. Re:Interesting... by aicrules · · Score: 4, Funny

    my aging cat, may he rest in peace, urinated on the keyboard

    That is how that line should have read.

  8. Re:Does anyone use these? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    That's how you can tell it's good coffee.

  9. Re:What about Thinkpads? by jo_ham · · Score: 4, Funny

    No need - a little red light comes on somewhere in Cupertino and Steve picks up a phone and calls a team of highly trained ninjas to deal with it.

    Steve: Hello ninjas?
    Ninjas: Yes?
    Steve: A non-Apple user just dropped one of our brethren's Macbooks.
    Ninjas: Again?
    Steve: Yup.
    Ninjas: We're on it. You want the head in a jar again for your collection?
    Steve: Sure, can you maybe grab his liver too... you never know...

    Disclaimer: I am an Apple user, so this is probably not accurate. I'll bet Phil Schiller handles the ninja calls.

  10. Re:Hey mods?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny
    The cat modded it down. She prefers being referred to as "mature" rather than "aging."

    And lest you forget, there's always more pee where that came from.

  11. Re:What about iBooks by An+anonymous+Frank · · Score: 2, Funny

    some years ago, my backpack's zipper failed and thus unloaded my 15" iBook down a whole flight of stairs; my heart stopped as I watched it bounce up and down every couple of steps (on its edges), all the way to the ground floor!

    Once I unbent the hook that would normally lock it when closed, it worked just like new!

  12. Re:In my case, temperature tolerance... by sexconker · · Score: 5, Funny

    My home town nearly went to zero Kevins back in 1978.

    It was a particularly cold winter, and we were already down to 3 Kevins (due to their low popularity at the time).

    Kevin Thomas had flown out to be with his son's family for a wedding and got stuck in Boston for a whole week due to the weather. 2 Kevins left.

    Kevin Lemmer was rushed to the hospital during my shift. I still remember the call from the EMTs as the ambulance was rushing toward us. "It's Lemmer. He's in bad shape. Drove right into the fucking ditch." We called the time of death at 6:15 PM.

    At 6:16, all eyes turned to room 2217. Kevin Spencer was 82 and on his death bed with leukemia. His family being Catholic, he had already been given his last rights. If he couldn't hold out until Kevin Thomas returned, we would be at zero Kevins. Sure, we had 4 perfectly healthy Calvins, but they're just not the same.

    It was 7:15 when Carla Brooks and her husband James burst through the main entrance. "She's not due for 2 weeks!", James exclaimed. As the staff bustled around getting the Brookses settled, they exchanged darting glances with each other. This was their first child, and they wanted to keep the baby's sex a secret. Of course, in a small town, secrets don't get kept. Nearly all of the hospital staff new that the child about to rip open Mrs. Brooks was indeed a boy.

    The delivery was routine, and Kevin Brooks was born healthy, if a tad underweight, at 10:52 PM. Kevin Spencer was pronounced dead at 10:54.

    It was, as they say, a close one. Kevin Thomas arrived two days later, the weather having finally cleared up. To this day, we still rib him about it.

    Cedar Falls is currently at 5 Kevins.