Review: Xplore XSlate B10 Rugged Tablet

With its XSlate B10, rugged tablet maker Xplore Technologies brings to market an affordable and versatile 10.1-inch Windows tablet that can withstand the harshest of environments, including exposure to extreme temperatures, dust, salt water, vibrations and drops. Xplore, a rising star among rugged tablet makers, introduced the B10 this week. CRN had a chance to take the device for a spin.

For the price of $2,800, XSlate impresses with its no-compromise specs and expandability via eight standard ports and delivers a truckload of features.

As with most rugged tablets on the market, the B10 is less svelte and a bit bulky. It’s a capable tablet that meets military 5-foot drop specs and is ready to keep workers in the field productive under less-than-ideal computing conditions.

id
unit-1659132512259
type
Sponsored post

The chassis is made of a magnesium alloy internal frame complemented by an external rubber skin. Thanks to a unique seal-from-behind design, four of the eight B10 ports on the tablet can be open and in use, and still keep water and moisture from seeping inside the chassis.

The tablet itself weighs in at 2.4 lbs., which is a lot to handle, but thanks to the its slightly raised rubber edges, it feels extremely easy to grip and comfortable to hold in one hand.

As with all Windows-based tablets, the biggest boon over competing Android and iOS-based slates is the Windows platform and its gigantic ecosystem of compatible peripherals and software. If it's that type of peripheral support you’re after, then the B10 and its seven ports is definitely the tablet for you.

Ports include: power, two USB ports, a Micro HDMI, Micro SIM, Micro SD, serial, audio and RJ-45 Gigabit Ethernet. No dongle is needed for this tablet.

Rounding out the B10’s top external features are a front-facing HD camera, rear-facing 8-megapixel camera with flash and a standard fingerprint scanner.

In our review of the B10, we like the tablet's chassis design and highly grippable skin. However, the device did begin to see some wear and tear when we put it through informal drop testing from heights of 4 feet.

The tablet held up nicely when dropped on carpeted concrete. But when we dropped the tablet face down from 4 feet on a hardwood floor, the display suffered a tiny imperfection.

While we loved the Wacom stylus, we would have hoped for a more secure cord connecting the pen. When we dropped the tablet with the stylus in our hand, the slinky-style cord ripped off the tablet without much of a fight.

Overall, the XSlate B10 is a stellar addition to Xplore Technologies' tablet lineup, reflecting a best of tech when it comes to integrating its capabilities with recently acquired tablet manufacturer Motion Computing.

PUBLISHED SEPT. 16, 2015