IntelliQuilter Manufacturer Uses Tablet PCs as Embedded Controllers in CNC Quilting Machines to Improve Accessibility and Usability

New TabletKiosk Case Study published which describes TabletKiosk’s partnership with IntelliQuilter to provide them with Tablet PCs used as CNC Controllers.

In 2005, TabletKiosk established a long term strategic partnership with IntelliQuilter, a  computerized quilting system which assists professional quilters automate and gain better control of their long-arm or mid-arm industrial sewing machines. The IntelliQuilter is sold as an after-market add-on for all of the major brands of industrial quilting machines including APQS, A-1, Gammil, Nolting and Innova.

The 12.1” Sahara Slate PC All-In-One Tablet PC is used as the private label, embedded controller for the IntelliQuilter to accomplish the following goals put forth by IntelliQuilter company owner and developer, Zoltan Kasa:

1. Efficiently run his software application on a custom configured Linux O/S

2. Possess a form factor that is lightweight, portable, and provide for the ability to easily mount and dismount from the sewing machine
3. Run on an x86 compatible microprocessor which is powerful enough to execute complex real-time graphic operations and control the sewing machines’ two actuator motors simultaneously
4. Possess a responsive LCD touch screen at least 12” or larger

Click here to download the full case study of the history between TabletKiosk and IntelliQuilter and how this B2B relationship as grown over the years.

Technorati Tags: TabletPC,Tablet PC,CNC Controller,Case Study

TabletKiosk® Upgrades Sahara NetSlate® 12.1” Enterprise Tablet PC

Torrance, CA, July 30, 2013 — TabletKiosk, a leading provider of slate-style Tablet PCs and customized mobility solutions for the enterprise, today announced the newest addition to its family of 12.1” Tablet PCs, the Sahara NetSlate® a525.

The Sahara NetSlate a525 is a business focused Tablet PC powered by the Intel® Atom™ N2800 processor. Designed to

Technorati Tags: tablet pc,tabletpc,enterprise tablet,embedded,windows 7 tablet

deliver superior value and productivity as well as the ability to run embedded applications, the Sahara NetSlate a525 features 4GB of DDR3L RAM, over 300% better battery life than the previous model, integrated front and rear facing cameras and a true RS-232 serial port as a build-to-order option.

As an enterprise-grade Tablet PC, the Sahara NetSlate a525 effectively bridges the gap between consumer grade tablets and more powerful rugged Tablet PCs. Unlike most consumer tablets powered by the Intel® Atom™ processor that can only run Windows 8 or Android, the Sahara NetSlate a525 offers complete user flexibility by running Windows 7 Professional, Windows 8 Pro, Windows Embedded or Linux.

Additionally, the Sahara NetSlate a525 features dual hot swappable batteries, Gigabit Ethernet (RJ45), WiFi 802.11n, universal 3G WWAN, Bluetooth 4.0, two full-size USB 2.0 ports, and full compatibility with the Business Smart™ accessory ecosystem created for the company’s flagship Sahara Slate PC® line of Tablet PCs.

“The new Sahara NetSlate a525 is an excellent choice for companies looking for an entry level tablet with a long product lifecycle to maximize their return on investment,” said Martin Smekal, President and CEO of TabletKiosk. “We purposely designed the new a525 with the same body chassis of the previous Sahara NetSlate to ensure that our legacy customers can continue to use their existing accessories and peripherals after transitioning over to this new model.”

Availability

The Sahara NetSlate a525 is shipping now. For additional details, pricing, or to place an order please visit www.tabletkiosk.com.

About TabletKiosk

TabletKiosk is an early innovator of business Tablet PC solutions for the enterprise and was one of the first to offer touch screen enabled Windows tablets. The company regularly integrates modern technology with key legacy components to create forward thinking mobile systems, while still providing backwards compatibility and long product life cycles.

As a manufacturer and distributer of proven mobile computing solutions since 2003, the company’s line of Tablet PCs, including the Sahara Slate PC, has been widely used in Healthcare, Hospitality, Government and Manufacturing both as TabletKiosk branded and OEM / private label deployments. For more information about TabletKiosk, visit www.tabletkiosk.com.

# # #

Web Resources:

LinkedIn:  www.linkedin.com/company/tabletkiosk
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/TabletKiosk
Twitter:  twitter.com/TabletKiosk

TabletKiosk and SMI Collaborate to Produce the Sahara EyeSlate™ the First Tablet PC with Market Ready Eye Tracking Integration

Technorati Tags: TabletKiosk,SMI,Eye Tracking Tablet PC,Sahara EyeSlate

TORRANCE, CA, June 25, 2013 —

TabletKiosk®, a leading manufacturer of enterprise-grade Tablet PCs and accessories for business, today announces a new collaboration with SensoMotoric Instruments GmbH (SMI), a leader in eye tracking, eye control, guidance and registration technology, to cooperatively develop the Sahara EyeSlate™, the first Tablet PC with market ready eye tracking integration.

TabletKiosk and SMI plan to market the Sahara EyeSlate™ both as an augmentative/alternative communication device (AAC) and also as a powerful Windows 7 or Windows 8 PC that can be controlled via eye gaze, touch, voice or handwriting recognition in lieu of a physical keyboard and mouse.

The Sahara EyeSlate™ adds eye tracking functionality to TabletKiosk’s signature line of Tablet PCs, the Sahara Slate PC i500 without requiring oversized and expensive add-on modules or awkward brackets as with most traditional augmentative computing devices.

In-use demonstration of the Sahara EyeSlate Tablet PC with Eye Tracking software from SMI

“We are excited to partner with SMI to announce the Sahara EyeSlate™ Tablet PC with eye tracking technology,” said Martin Smekal, President and CEO of TabletKiosk. “As a specialty hardware manufacturer, TabletKiosk strives to align itself with cutting edge technology partners like SMI to jointly create customized and purpose-based hardware computing solutions.”

When TabletKiosk originally launched in 2003, it was one of the first Tablet PC manufacturers to incorporate touch screen technology into its entire line of computing solutions. Now, ten years later, TabletKiosk is once again transforming the Tablet PC platform by incorporating SMI’s gaze tracking technology. Included with the system will be SMI’s powerful Eye Tracking Software Developer’s Kit (SDK) so that developers can integrate the Sahara EyeSlate™ Tablet PC’s eye tracking functionality with their existing software solutions.

Christian Villwock, Director of SMI´s OEM Solutions Business: “The use of eye tracking technology is gaining momentum in many application fields ranging from AAC, gaming and medical screening to gaze interaction in other industry and prosumer applications. We are proud to work with TabletKiosk and are convinced that this new all-in-one tablet PC provides tremendous customer value in many of these fields.”

About TabletKiosk®

TabletKiosk is an early innovator of business Tablet PC solutions for the enterprise and was one of the first to offer touch screen enabled Windows tablets. The company regularly integrates modern technology with key legacy components to create forward thinking mobile systems, while still providing backwards compatibility and long product life cycles.

As a manufacturer and distributer of proven mobile computing solutions since 2003, the company’s line of Tablet PCs, including the Sahara Slate PC, has been widely used in Healthcare, Hospitality, Government and Manufacturing both as TabletKiosk branded and OEM/Private Label deployments. For more information about TabletKiosk, visit www.tabletkiosk.com.

About SensoMotoric Instruments GmbH (SMI)

SensoMotoric Instruments GmbH (SMI) is a world leader in dedicated computer vision applications, developing and marketing eye & gaze tracking systems and OEM solutions for a wide range of applications such as marketing, human-computer-interfaces, ophthalmology, neurology, psychology, ergonomics and usability. SMI serves customers around the globe from offices in Teltow, near Berlin, Germany and Boston, USA, backed by a network of trusted local partners in many countries. For more information visit www.smivision.com.

Contact: SensoMotoric Instruments GmbH, Stefanie Gehrke, stefanie.gehrke@smi.de

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TabletKiosk
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/tabletkiosk
Twitter: http://twitter.com/TabletKiosk

Facebook: www.facebook.com/smieyetracking
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/smi-sensomotoric-instruments-inc.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/smieyetracking
YouTube: www.youtube.com/smieyetracking

# # #

As Seen Today on Venturebeat. Doesn’t this Tablet PC Look Familiar?

http://venturebeat.com/2013/06/04/softkinetic-to-provide-gesture-tracking-3d-camera-to-intel/More information to come shortly regarding the strategic partnership between SoftKinetic and TabletKiosk.

• Dean Takahashi

Technorati Tags: Tablet PC,perceptual computing,Intel,SoftKinetic,TabletKiosk

• SoftKinetic to provide gesture-tracking 3D camera to Intel

June 4, 2013 10:24 AM

• Twitter
• Profile
• Intel Capital creates $100M fund to invest in perceptual computing
• SoftKinetic to provide gesture-tracking 3D camera to Intel

Add a Comment

inShare2

SoftKinetic has teamed up with Intel to enable “perceptual computing,” or using more senses to interact with computers. To that end, it is providing a 3D gesture-recognition camera for Intel to integrate into its collection of perceptual computing technologies by the end of next year.

Belgium-based SoftKinetic is building what it calls the world’s smallest 3D camera that recognizes gestures. It is based on time-of-flight technology, where it maps a room in three dimensions by sending out signals into the space and measuring how long it takes them to bounce back. SoftKinetic showed the tiny camera off in an ultrabook computer at the Computex trade show in Taiwan. The depth cameras are expected to debut in the second half of 2014.

Intel will license technology from SofKinetic, including the Iisu middleware for close-range gesture tracking. Intel will include the SoftKinectic technology in the Perceptual Computing Software Development Kit, which will make it easy for computer makers to integrate perceptual computing into their PCs, notebooks, desktops and other devices.

The depth technology in the SDK works with the Creative Interactive Gesture Camera that uses the SoftKinetic DepthSense 3D time-of-flight technology. The kit enables gesture recognition, voice recognition, and face tracking as close as six inches from the screen.

“We are excited to contribute our technology to the Intel Perceptual Computing Program not only toward the developer community but also to manufacturers of Intel platforms,” said Michel Tombroff, CEO of SoftKinetic. “This expanded collaboration with Intel will accelerate the adoption and proliferation of intuitive, engaging and personalized experience to the consumers.”

SoftKinetic has been working on hardware and software related to gesture recognition for eight years. The company also announced that it has integrated its 3D camera into a tablet.

Read more at http://venturebeat.com/2013/06/04/softkinetic-to-provide-gesture-tracking-3d-camera-to-intel/#E2ECqZAuWJSPG52a.99

Sahara Slate PC Seen on TV

Technorati Tags: Tablet PC,TabletKiosk,Sahara Slate PC

Our warehouse manager, Grant B, is a huge car buff and this week he discovered this great product coverage of the Sahara Slate PC on the TV show, Fifth Gear!!  

Fifth Gear TV Show. Sahara Slate PC from TabletKiosk is shown at the 4.53 and 8.38 marks

(Our footage is shown at the 4.53 and 8.38 marks) 

How cool is it that he unexpectedly found the Sahara Slate PC really being used on TV as a diagnostic testing report for automotive crash tests.  It’s especially exciting because our machines are really being used as diagnostic equipment and are not showing fabricated screenshots (which were used on CSI NY). 

No paid product placement here!
This is the real deal!

Have you accidentally discovered any TabletKiosk products in your daily life?  We love unexpectedly finding our products being used “in the wild” and welcome photographs and videos of our products in use.

Military Drug Trials Group Eliminates Errors and Inefficiencies using Electronic Data Capture and Tablet PCs Infectious Disease

Technorati Tags: Clinical Trials Tablet,TabletKiosk,Sahara Slate PC,IDCRP,Tablet PC,enterprise tablet

 

Federal Government Organization Achieves Cleaner and Faster Clinical Study Data Using Tablet PCs From TabletKiosk®

Torrance, CA, April 16, 2013 —

Infectious Disease Clinical Research Program (IDCRP), a worldwide network of Department of Defense (DoD) clinical and research centers that have collaborated to investigate infectious diseases challenges facing the military, revealed that it is using Tablet PCs from TabletKiosk to conduct a completely paperless clinical study resulting in 50% time savings and 100x fewer queries.

The clinical trial process was previously paper-based and involved almost 20,000 paper forms, which resulted in slower data capture into back-end systems for reporting, and more errors/queries.

IDCRP’s current electronic data capture (EDC) solution, deployed in Afghanistan, Kenya and Djibouti, incorporates the Sahara Slate PC® i500 running Mi-Forms mobile-forms technology from Mi-Co to create a comprehensive, all in one data collection unit.

The Sahara Slate PC® i500 is a slate Tablet PC powered by the Intel® Core™ i7 processor. This robust 12.1” Tablet PC solution features both a capacitive touch screen and an active digitizer (pen) panel to allow for highly accurate handwriting input and recognition used in the Mi-Forms software.

According to Josh Kumpf from IDCRP, “Missing or incorrect data is by and large a thing of the past as we can now mandate entry of key information into digital forms. We couldn’t direct attention, highlight blank fields, or ask CRCs to confirm suspect data on traditional paper forms, but we can in a robust computerized system like the one we have built around the Tablet PCs.”

Mr. Kumpf will be discussing the success of their mobile forms solution on April 16th at the Mi-Co PartnerEd Conference 2013 in Durham, NC.

Interested parties can download and read the entire case study by visiting www.tabletkiosk.com/mediaroom/casestudy/cs-idcrp.asp.

About TabletKiosk®

TabletKiosk is an early innovator of business Tablet PC solutions for the enterprise and was one of the first to offer touch screen enabled Windows tablets. The company regularly integrates modern technology with key legacy components to create forward thinking mobile systems, while still providing backwards compatibility and long product life cycles.

As a manufacturer and distributer of proven mobile computing solutions since 2003, the company’s line of Tablet PCs, including the Sahara Slate PC, has been widely used in Healthcare, Hospitality, Government and Manufacturing both as TabletKiosk branded and OEM/Private Label deployments. For more information about TabletKiosk, visit www.tabletkiosk.com.

LinkedIn:  www.linkedin.com/company/tabletkiosk
Twitter:  twitter.com/TabletKiosk
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/TabletKiosk

Sahara NetSlate® a510 Certified by Konami Gaming, Inc. as Preferred Hardware Upon Which to Deliver SYNKROS™ Table Management

TORRANCE, CA March 5, 2013 — TabletKiosk®, a Torrance, CA based manufacturer of mobile touch screen computing solutions, announced today that Konami Gaming Inc., a leading provider of slot machines and casino management systems has selected the Sahara NetSlate a510 Tablet PC as a recommended hardware platform upon which to run the table management module of SYNKROS, its casino management system.

The Sahara NetSlate a510T is a 12” resistive touch screen Tablet PC which features high speed data transfer and connectivity via SuperSpeed USB 3.0, Gigabit Ethernet and dual-stream 802.11n wireless networking. The Sahara NetSlate a510T, with its integrated magnetic stripe reader module, can be easily mounted to any blackjack, poker or baccarat table, as well as the central console in the pit, to provide easy access to the casino management system .

“We are pleased that Konami Gaming, Inc. has certified the Sahara Slate PC i510 as a recommended hardware platform,” said Martin Smekal, president of TabletKiosk. “This partnership between TabletKiosk and Konami will offer casino IT professionals a proven solution to run their casino management system for years to come. The Sahara NetSlate a510 offers flexibility, robust performance, increased durability and a longer product life cycle than many comparable tablet-based solutions.”

“After testing and comparing various tablet and touch screen PCs to provide access to the SYNKROS Table Management module, we selected the Sahara NetSlate a510 as a recommended hardware solution due to its durable construction, large 12” resistive touch screen and ability to run Windows® 7 Professional,” said Michael Ratner, director of product management for systems at Konami Gaming, Inc. “Additionally, because the device offers an integrated Gigabit Ethernet port, our casino partners can easily connect to their wired or existing casino-managed wireless networks to quickly and securely transfer player data and tracking information.”

The Sahara NetSlate

Technorati Tags: Tablet PC,TabletKiosk,Konami Gaming,Casino Management System

a510T and accompanying gaming peripherals are available from select TabletKiosk resellers.

About TabletKiosk®

TabletKiosk, based in Torrance, CA, offers the latest developments in Tablet PC enterprise computing. As one of the early innovators of slate Tablet PCs, TabletKiosk offers an established and vetted computing solution which has been utilized by professionals worldwide for proven reliability, dependability and security. The company’s line of streamlined Tablet PCs are widely used in the Healthcare, Hospitality and Field Force Automation vertical markets for both TabletKiosk branded and OEM private label deployments.
For more information, visit www.tabletkiosk.com.

About Konami Gaming, Inc.

Konami Gaming, Inc. is a Las Vegas based subsidiary of KONAMI CORPORATION (NYSE: KNM). The company is one of the largest providers of slot machines and casino management systems for the global gaming market. For more information about Konami Gaming, Inc, visit www.gaming.konami.com.

80% of our Products Sold are used as Non-Mobile Touchscreen Input Devices

In today’s super competitive world of consumer-based, media consumption tablets, there still exists a defined niche for our enterprise-based Tablet PCs.  Would you believe that nearly 80% of TabletKiosk products sold are used as non-mobile touchscreen input devices for various industries including Healthcare, Factory Automation, Hospitality and Augmentative Communication?

So if these mobile form factor tablets are being used for non-mobile scenarios, how are they being used and what type of business professionals are using them?  Consider these business scenarios…

• Attached to a medical cart to access and input EMR records
• Mounted on a self-contained pedestal in a factory to control the assembly line
• Permanently affixed to a rolling cart in a school cafeteria for cashless POS
• Fastened to an electric wheelchair as an augmentative communication device
• Secured to a forklift to run order fulfillment software
• Attached to a blackjack or poker table in a casino to run table management software
• Affixed to a desk in a blood donor center admissions area to run donor questionnaire
• Secured to a long arm or short arm industrial quilting machine
• Permanently mounted to a wall for conference room scheduling management
• Affixed to a cockpit as an electronic flight book
• And the list goes on…

All TabletKiosk Tablet PCs are designed for business use, and we’ve been manufacturing and distributing enterprise-based Tablet PCs for over 10 years.  We have a long list of legacy customers who have continuously purchased the Sahara Slate PC line (consistently through 4 product generations) since its introduction in 2003.

When our enterprise customers spec out a Tablet PC for their business functions, they require power, speed, reliability and flexibility as well as a full ecosystem of business accessories, to ultimately get the job done. For these TabletKiosk customers who cater to the enterprise marketplace, a consumer-oriented, media consumption device (like an iPad or Android tablet) just isn’t cut out for their business functions.

As the editor of this blog, I use my Sahara Slate PC i550CAD for everyday general computing functions including MS Word, PowerPoint, Excel, administration of the company’s Salesforce database and social media.  When I’m sitting at my desk, I put my Tablet PC in its docking station and use an external mouse, monitor and keyboard and dock in order to get my work done.  But as one who uses the Sahara Slate PC i500 for everyday computing functions instead of running specialized purpose-based software programs, I know I’m in the minority…  

How do you use your Sahara Slate PC?  All responses welcome and we love hearing different scenarios about how are Tablet PCs are being used in the field.

What’s the difference between Resistive and Capacitive Touch Screens?

Here's a well written article from the PC Pro website that describes the differences between Resistive and Capacitive touch screens.  Although this article focuses on the screens used in smartphones, we all know that the screen differences apply to Tablet PCs as well!












Not to complicate matters, but the Sahara Slate PC i500 is available with four "flavors" of screen inputs  

1)  Resistive Touch Screen

2) Capacitive Touch Screen

3) Dual mode Resistive / Wacom Active Digitizer (for handwriting recognition)
Automatically switches between Touch and Pen

4) Dual mode Capacitive / Wacom Active Digitizer (for handwriting recognition)
Automatically switches between Touch and Pen

http://www.pcpro.co.uk/realworld/357325/capacitive-or-resistive-whats-the-best-type-of-touchscreen/2

www.tabletkiosk.com

360⁰View of the Sahara Slate PC i500

To provide you with an in-depth, 360⁰view of the Sahara Slate PC i500, we have just added an all new interactive 3D image on the TabletKiosk website.   Check it out!!

Sahara Slate PC i500 Connects in More Ways than with Any Other Tablet PC

As a true PC, the Sahara Slate PC i500 features an array of standard Input/Output ports that are critical for real-world business productivity.

 

These include two full-sized USB 2.0 HighSpeed ports, a 6-pin Firewire IEEE 1394a port, a combination eSATA (300 Mbps) + USB 2.0 Highspeed port, Gigabit Ethernet, standard 3.5mm stereo audio in and separate 3.5mm audio out, and a DisplayPort++ digital video port with optional embedded LPCM audio for the highest resolution and highest quality digital video signal possible. Cameras, smartphones, HDTVs, video projectors, audio microphones, stereo headphones, external hard drives, media card readers, networking switches, and even 30 inch computer monitors, can all be hooked up to the Sahara Slate PC i500... many simultaneously

Sahara Slate PC i500 – the 4th generation of 12” Tablet PCs from TabletKiosk

Did you know that the Sahara Slate PC i500 represents the fourth generation of the Sahara Slate PC Brand from TabletKiosk?
We’ve been manufacturing and distributing touch screen Tablet PCs running full Microsoft Windows Operating Systems since 2003!

How to Recommend the Right Tablet PC for your Customer?

This morning, I conducted what I think was a very productive training session with one of our new VARs (Value Added Resellers) entitled  “How to Recommend the Right Tablet PC for Your Customer”.

I’ve given this training presentation numerous times, and each time I am surprised by the detailed questions asked by the reseller partners.  Some of our resellers have been selling rugged tablets for years, but are new to the enterprise grade models while others are entirely new to the tablet platform. This always makes for an interesting conversation and it helps me learn about their businesses.

This training focuses on Recommending the RIGHT TabletKiosk Solution for the project; and the overview is that the key to selling our Tablet PCs is to understand how the hardware will be used as well as the end customer’s Requirements, Wants and Needs so that you can easily direct them to the right TabletKiosk hardware solution. 

Interested in learning more or scheduling a personal training session webinar about how to increase your sales of Tablet PCs?  Please feel free to Email me to schedule a Reseller Training session.

TabletKiosk® Introduces World's Most Powerful Slate Tablet PC Next Generation Sahara Slate® PC i500 Powered by Intel® Core™ i7 Processor, Runs 64-bit Microsoft® Windows® 7 Operating Systems

TabletKiosk, a leading provider of slate-style Tablet PCs and customized mobility solutions for the enterprise, today announced the availability of the Sahara Slate PC® i500 series, the newest generation in the company’s flagship line of Tablet PCs. The new line features an unparalleled array of user configurable options that provide flexibility in terms of user input, functionality, performance and price. Now shipping, the Sahara Slate PC i500 will be on display at Computex Taipei (Microsoft Booth, Nangang Hall #L108)

Designed for professional use in the field or at the office, the Sahara Slate PC i500 offers a robust, yet highly mobile computing solution in a new sleek, streamlined design. Capable of running 64-bit Microsoft® Windows® 7 Professional, the Sahara Slate PC i500 is the only slate-style Tablet PC currently powered by an Intel® Core™ i7-640LM vPro™ processor, making it the most powerful Tablet PC on the market today. It also is equipped with a 12.1” dual mode screen that intuitively switches between a Wacom® active digitizer (pen) and two different touch options, including traditional resistive and new, multi-touch capacitive screens. Flexible input options allow users to leverage the precision of Microsoft's Digital Inking technology for superior handwriting recognition.

“We really hit the mark with the Sahara Slate PC i500 by offering an even more enhanced user experience at a price point starting below the previous generation,” said Martin Smekal, president and CEO of Torrance, CA-based TabletKiosk. “Like all of our products, the Sahara Slate PC i500 is built with a designated purpose emphasizing productivity and speed. With its enormous power and modular expansion capability, the i500 allows an enterprise the flexibility to choose add-on functionality to support a highly specialized business application, minimizing the need to pay for superfluous options.”

TabletKiosk offers mobile solutions for industry sectors including healthcare, gaming and hospitality, government, industrial control systems and field force automation. The Sahara Slate PC i500 gives users the flexibility to choose different functionality solutions, ranging from basic to add-on modules for highly targeted business applications, such as a bar code scanner for inventory management or a magnetic stripe reader, creating a mobile point-of-sale device.

The Sahara Slate PC i500 is manufactured with dual hot swappable, rechargeable Lithium-Ion batteries, which allows users to essentially operate the Tablet PC 24/7 without any system down time. As with all TabletKiosk products, the new Tablet PC features an extended life cycle of more than 24 months, as well as compatibility with existing accessories.

“Intel is excited to see the strength of mobile Intel Architecture come to market through one of our innovative, long time customers,” said CJ Bruno, VP, GM, Intel Americas. “TabletKiosk has a long history of providing breakthrough Tablet PCs to business customers. The combination of TabletKiosk's creative product design and Intel's energy efficient performance will enable businesses to implement tablet technologies that will deliver growth and business success.”

Enhanced Security

To address on-going concerns in the enterprise marketplace regarding mobile security and remote management, the new Sahara Slate PC i500 features an Infineon Single Chip TPM (trusted platform module) with high-level encryption capability; Intel® vPro™ technology with BIOS level remote management; and Intel® Trusted Execution and Intel® Anti-Theft Technologies. Together, these security measures keep critical data safe from external attacks or physical theft, provide for secure remote access with field upgradeability, and enable safer electronic transactions and wireless communication.

“We are delighted to see TabletKiosk, one of our strategic OEM partners, launch the new Sahara Slate PC i500, here at Computex,” said Eddie O’Brien, Vice President US OEM, Microsoft Corporation.  “This high-end device, when brought to life by Windows 7, is clearly designed to meet the needs of serious business professionals who seek to leverage the power of productivity, security, and digital inking capabilities in a single device.”

About TabletKiosk®

TabletKiosk is a registered trademark of TabletKiosk, LLC. The company's line of quality enterprise-grade to rugged Tablet PCs and accessories are designed to optimize mobile productivity in key vertical markets while offering power, flexibility and security. For more information, visit www.tabletkiosk.com.

Just for fun...

My very first experience with a tablet and stylus

As a child of the 70s, I remember the hand/eye coordination it took to move the metal shavings onto Wooly Willy's face via the "magic wand".   Who would have predicted that 30 years later I'd be using a using a similar magic wand, aka stylus, to make things happen on a slate.

      photo credit: James R. Herzog collection

For the sake of nostalgia, here's a link to a Wooly Willy as an online online flash game.
Enjoy

Paint the town RED!

Flickr Tags: Tablet PC,custom computer,TabletKiosk

Would you like to own a One-Of-A-Kind exclusive Sahara Slate PC Tablet computer?

Our R&D team in Taiwan has been having fun experimenting with all different case colors, and shortly, we will be offering these "one-off" computers via auction on the TabletKiosk website.

This first model, the fire-engine red Sahara i440D has already been claimed by Martin Smekal, TabletKiosk president.  This means that unfortunately, that no one else will be able to claim ownership to this tablet that matches perfectly to the Acer F-20 widescreen LCD monitor.  I've seen the red tablet and I know that it is going to attract a lot of attention.

We're still working out the details, but we anticipate that individual colors will be available sporadically through the year.  So stay tuned for details.

What color tablet would you be willing to bid on?  Remember that these will be one of a kind devices we are going to have a lot of fun with the color choices.

Sahara Slate PC Extended Life Battery (SELB) Hits the Streets

Technorati Tags: tablet pc

Late last week, we began shipping the long awaited Sahara Extended Life Battery (SELB) for the i400 series of Tablet PCs.   You may recall that we originally showed a prototype of this Extended Life Battery at CES in January.  However, since then, we have retooled and refined the product to make it a real standout addition to our line.  

Over the holiday weekend, I got a chance to use the SELB and I think that it's an absolute winner for TabletKiosk.  Our R&D team in Taiwan really took their time to develop a well-designed and functional accessory that really represents design, innovation and forward thinking.   It's a great add-on accessory to use when you don't have access to a power source to provide up to 8 hours of battery life.

Sahara Extended Life Battery Fast Facts

1)  High capacity Lithium Ion battery provides up to 8 hours of battery life when used in conjunction with existing tablet battery.  Note that the actual battery results are dependent upon how the tablet is used.).

2)  Offers additional USB and IEE1394a (FireWire) Ports.  Both of these ports are located on the back of the tablet facing down so that peripherals can be attached without having cables coming out of the sides of the tablet

3)  The pass-thru DC power port allows you to charge the SELB without having to remove it. 

4)  Comes with a detachable, 3-way adjustable legs to hold the unit upright while maximizing viewing angles.   The legs can be easily removed for flat-down desktop use.

5) Features LED Indicator lights on the back which show the unit's charging status as well as the remaining power level (in 25% increments)

6)  Includes an AC Adapter for on-the-go charging

7)  Weighs 2.2 lbs.  Depth = 14 mm 

8)  For quick changes, the SELB attaches to the back of the unit with oversized, easily removable thumb screws.

9)  SELB fits flush to back of the tablet which leaves all functions keys, power switches and I/O ports unobstructed and available for use.

10)  Features built- in MIS-D 100mm VESA mount holes

11)  Price $369

 

If you are a the type of person who needs a really full battery charge to get all your work done, then this is a must-have accessory for you.

Singing Do Re Mi with a Tablet PC

Have I mentioned that I sing with a choir?  If you knew me personally, you would definitely know it because I talk about it a lot, but I don't believe I have  blogged about it.  I am a first soprano in the Angel City Chorale, a 120 member volunteer choir based in Los Angeles.  We have performed with appeared with Stevie Wonder, Luther Vandross and Mary Chapin Carpenter at venues ranging from The Kodak Theater to the Los Angeles Convention Center and the Dorothy  Chandler Pavilion.  In my spare time, I edit the choir's MySpace page and spend a lot of time helping them with publicity and marketing.  (pretty cool how I snuck in those links...).  In fact, this past weekend, we performed two concerts and officially launched our newest CD entitled The Road Home.

So besides me shamelessly plugging the choir, how could this my choir experience possibly relate to Tablet PCs?  

Well in my quest to incorporate my Tablet PC into various facets of my life away from work, I loaded  MusicReader, a Tablet PC based music reading software program that addresses many of the challenges that musicians face, including easy page turning, convenient music library and the ability to take notes.  Although not specifically designed for choral music, I adapted the features of MusicReader which worked best for choral singing so that I could use it during rehearsals and recording sessions. 

According the choir rules, we have to return all of our music at the end of the season in pristine condition. For this reason we have to take all of our notes in pencil -  which really does not pop from the page and I wind up missing half of my notes and cues.  Using MusicReader, however, I can take all of the notes I want and highlight parts without worrying about destroying the music or making extra copies. I'm having a ball using MusicReader to create some really colorful musical masterpieces.  I can import musical symbols including rests, breath notes, pianissimo and forte notations so that my notes really stand out.

The most major area for improvement with MusicReader is the note-taking experience.  The annotation mode is not as seamless as I am used to using OneNote or Journal.  I have been communicating with Marco Leoné, the creator of MusicReader and he informed me that he is working improving the inking experience and that I will see improvement in the next few months.

Having the tablet in rehearsal is definitely more fun than using my standard music loose leaf binder.  Granted, I'm not a great site-reader.  I certainly read well enough to follow with the music, count measures, recognize rests and follow note patterns, but I couldn't sit down and site-read if my life depended on it.  However, the touch screen really responds well to page turns and highlighting.  I've also been known to answer a few emails or play a few games of spider solitaire when our conductor is working with the other sections.

The bad news is that I couldn't use my tablet during the actual concert because the backlit screen is stands out and it is too bright for me to hold it onstage.  I also need to hold my matching choir binder so that I blend in with the rest of the group.

Overall, I have enjoyed using my Tablet PC with MusicReader in rehearsals and will definitely continue using it for future choir seasons.

Remembering Sydney Pollack

                      

Sydney Pollack, the Academy Award-winning director of "Out of Africa" who achieved acclaim making popular, mainstream movies with A-list stars, including "The Way We Were" and "Tootsie," died yesterday. He was 73.

Linda A. Epstein, Tablet PC enthusiast and editor of TabletPC.com had the pleasure of teaching Mr. Pollack to use a Tablet PC.  This photograph shows him using a Sahara Slate PC from TabletKiosk, one of the two devices he owned.  According to Linda, Pollack loved technology and filled his office with all types of techie gadgets. She told me that Pollack was an amazing man who was full of life and a great deal of fun to work with.

On a personal note, “Tootsie” and “The Way We Were” are among my favorite movies of all time. His exceptional talent and vision will be missed by me and moviegoers everywhere.

Tablet PCs and UMPCs - Coming Soon to a Restaurant or Hotel Near You!

As many people know, I have always been one of the most ardent supporters of using a Tablet PC or UMPC for different functions in the hospitality industry. Over the past 2 years, I’ve spent considerable time doing research about the hospitality market, finding perspective partners and attending various industry seminars and trade shows.

Basically, I’ve been the initial hospitality contact for TabletKiosk, so it made perfect sense for me to take on a special project of handling all hospitality sales for TK in addition to my marketing duties. I started the project in the beginning of April and it is amazing how much knowledge I’ve gained over the past 5 weeks.

So with my Hospitality Sales hat firmly in place, here are some of my findings.

1) One of the new buzzwords for restaurants is handheld Point of sale (POS) and the eo works great as a mobile terminal.

2) POS dealers talk. Once one Aloha POS (one of the top selling restaurant software) dealers discovered the eo as a mobile handheld POS device, word spread quickly through the dealer community via industry user groups and forums. I’m now receiving daily inquiries from new Aloha dealers.

3) Accessories are key. People are “discovering” TabletKiosk because of our wide range of business accessories including magnetic stripe reader with a specially designed bracket, VESA mounting plate, docking station and bump case. These accessories really help set TabletKiosk apart from the other Ultra-Mobile PCs on the market.

4) Our partnership with Citizen Systems, a leading manufacturer of mobile receipt printers, helps us provide a full POS solution to take order, swipe credit cards and print receipts without even leaving the table.

5) I'm also beginning to hear interest from restaurant groups interested in the 12" Sahara Tablet PCs. They are interested in providing their managers with a mobile solution to access the full restaurant suite of software including labor management and staffing, inventory control, reporting, communications, and guest relationships. Having a mobile touch screen terminal to access this key information keeps restaurant managers out on the floor where the action takes place instead of in a back kitchen office.

6) Exhibiting and attending industry trade shows HITEC, FSTEC, and Global Gaming Expo hare really helped us gain key exposure in the market. Next year I also want to start attending industry software dealer conventions.

It's amazing how joining the sales team for this project has given me a whole new perspective of our business. I've never officially acted in a sales role before, although I've supported sales teams for years, and it's really helpful for me to see our business from a sales perspective.