It does differ from a tablet of paper in a couple of ways: Firstly, it costs about $3,400...

Yes, that's a staggering sum, but for this you're getting a specialized piece of equipment, a ruggedized field computer designed to be reliable from the arctic to the Sahara. Not only can it withstand being dropped, it can withstand being dropped into burning sands or frozen oceans. And unlike most rugged computers, the CF-18 is powerful enough to run mainstream software without pain.

Secondly, it weighs 2 kilos (4.4 pounds). Considerably more than paper...

Yes, but you can't compare it to a blank pad. This pad can contain everything you ever wrote and every document you'll ever need - plus all your applications, a copy of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, your entire music collection and several movies. It can be all the paper you ever need and all the computer as well, in a device lighter than any briefcase and tougher than any PC. Further, Panasonic came up with a brilliant technological breakthrough that makes all the difference between the Tablet PC as theory and as practice:

The strap.

The CF-18 comes with an integral shoulder strap. It's a simple idea, you could even say it's obvious. But nobody else thought of it. With a strap, the Tablet is something you throw over your shoulder and just have about you. It might not quite fit the pen-and-paper metaphor, but it makes sense. All Tablets should at least come with optional shoulder straps. The CF-18's is particularly flexible as it can convert to a handstrap, as well as be mounted on whichever corners you choose. (Panasonic are that rare thing among laptop manufacturers: one that appreciates their customers can and will use screwdrivers.)

News

The CF-18 is now the world's highest computer - the first laptop PC to reach the top of Everset and stay functioning!

Full story in Gizmag

Climber Rex Pemberton's own words