Review: GammaTech's Durabook D15RP

Similar in both design and specs to its predecessor, the D15TS, the D15RP has a 15.4-inch WXGA LCD display with resolution up to 1280 x 800. Although it is not the brightest screen we've looked at, the color reproduction and clarity is top notch, driven by the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator (GMA) 900.

There are three USB 2.0 ports, a Firewire IEEE 1394 port, one Type II Express Card slot and an RS232 serial port. The notebook also has a Media Card Reader, Web cam, Bluetooth and Wireless LAN 802.11 a/b/g support, as well as an Ethernet port and V.90 Fax Modem. An optional Smart Card Reader and 3G Card support is also available.

Our review unit was built with an Intel Core 2 Duo T9300 processor (2.50 GHz), 2GB of RAM (expandable up to 4GB), and a 250GB hard drive, running Windows Vista Business Edition. Vista Home Basic Edition is also offered.

With a CPU just a hair faster than the D15TS, the D15RP scored a tiny bit better when tested with the Primate Labs' benchmarking utility, Geekbench2, tallying a 2,698. This is on average with other systems that have similar configurations, and did not come as a surprise.

To test the battery life, we turned all the power-saving settings off, and played a Windows Media File movie off the hard drive repeatedly until the unit shut down. A fully-charged battery lasted 2 hours and 52 minutes before calling it quits. Similarly, it took just under 3 hours to charge the dead battery back up to 100 percent. When it came to drop tests, the D15RP held up better than the D15TS. Reviewers dropped the computer from a height of approximately 3 to 4 feet, both straight down and diagonally (as if being pulled off a desk from its cord) and the unit showed no signs of damage or reduced functionality.

The top of the magnesium alloy case snaps tightly into the bottom with a satisfying click, and although it doesn't require a release to open it, the door stayed shut through all the drops. We had one minor complaint with the small rubber cover that pops into the LAN and modem jacks. Although it fits snugly and makes a nice seal to keep out dust and moisture, it can, and most likely eventually will, be lost since it is not tethered to the unit.

With prices starting around $1,700 (our evaluation unit sells for a little over $2,100), the D15RP holds its own in design and functionality and is worthy of consideration as an alternate to the more popular durables available.