Glacier Computer announced that its ruggedized panel PCs are now available with Windows 7. The e4000 and e5000 offer 10.4-, 12.1-, or 15.-inch touchscreen displays, plus a choice of Celeron or Pentium processors, according to the company.
Glacier's e5000 was first introduced in 2007, at which time it ran Windows XP Professional, Windows XP Embedded, or Vista and offered a 800 x 600 pixel display. The revised version now offers up to 1024 x 768 pixels and runs Windows 7, according to the company.
Also upgraded to Windows 7, the e4000 (below) is a slightly stripped-down version of the same device. Like the e5000, it may be purchased with 800MHz or 1.0GHz Celeron CPUs or a 1.4GHz Pentium M processor, with up to 1GB of DDR SDRAM. Typical applications for both devices are said to include onboard forklift computers, warehouse walls, and shop floor data collection stations.
Both units ship with 10.4-, 12.1-, or 15-inch resistive touchscreens. These are available in optional sunlight-readable versions, and an optional heater keeps the screens clear even when the panel PCs are wheeled in and out of freezers, according to Glacier.
Glacier says the e4000 comes with a shock-protected 2.5-inch solid-state disk (SSD) that is available in capacities from 4GB to 16GB. The e5000, meanwhile, is available either with an SSD or with hard disk drives, the company adds.
Peripheral interfaces on each include an Ethernet port, two USB 2.0 ports (the e5000 has a third USB port internally), and serial ports (two on the e5000, one on the e4000). Audio I/O and dual PS/2 ports are provided on both, but only the e5000 has a VGA port, says Glacier.
As for expansion, both panel PCs have Mini PCI expansion slots, and the e5000 adds dual PCMCIA slots and a CompactFlash slot, according to Glacier. The e5000 is also orderable with a built-in lithium-ion battery that can provide up to 40 minutes' worth of operation if power fails, adds the company.
The e5000 and e4000 each include three programmable function buttons and status LEDs. A custom diagnostic and configuration utility enables data logging and real-time monitoring of processor temperature and other critical system statistics, according to Glacier.
Further information
Glacier did not cite pricing for the Windows 7-equipped e4000 and e5000, but the devices are available now. More information on the e4000 and e5000 may be found on the company's website, here (
http://www.glaciercomputer.com/products-e4000.html) and here (
http://www.glaciercomputer.com/products-e5000.html), respectively.
