Durability and ruggednessDo you need a terminal which will be used in harsh environments and which should be capable of withstanding being dropped? Does the mobile computer need to be sealed and IP-rated? Ruggedised hand-held mobile computers are available with IP ratings starting from IP54 (sealed against wind blown rain and dust).Why Rugged "they seem to cost more" !As companies make decisions on IT investments, one of the chief, and seemingly simple questions, is how much does it cost? How do you differentiate the features and resulting value derived from various vendor offerings? How do you assess the cost of deploying and sustaining these products in a mobile enterprise environment? Most of the time, it is easy to calculate the purchase price of the hardware and license fees. However when the initial cost analysis is complete, companies often find themselves wondering why, even after successful project implementations, their IT operations, support and software maintenance costs keep going up. Many hidden and ongoing costs are not factored in when a project is originally evaluated.Because this scenario is all too common, a methodology for assessing total cost of ownership (TCO) has been designed to properly state the costs of an IT investment. When evaluating your mobile workforce automation project, conducting a complete TCO analysis will show the hidden costs inherent in selecting a low-cost, non-enterprise class device. It will also demonstrate how an industrial mobile computing solution designed for everyday mobile environments prove to have value beyond durability.To begin, enterprises that use low-cost non-rugged mobile computers pay a high price in repairs, increased support needs and lost productivity. These costs exceed any purchase price savings within just two years according to an important 2004 study by Venture Development Corporation (VDC). Over the life of the system, down time typically costs enterprises that use non-rugged computers approximately four to five times more than the purchase price of the devices.Devils advocate....Although PDA devices can still make sense and TCO is great although a small real world pilot still gives the best indication on suitable device!!!!!