Why You Can Trust CNET Dell Latitude XT2 XFR review: Dell Latitude XT2 XFR
You could probably hit the XT2 XFR with a cricket bat and only damage the cricket bat. The asking price might give you pause for thought, however.
Dell Latitude XT2 XFR
The Good
The Bad
The Bottom Line
Design
Some laptops are sleek, sexy beasts, with delicate patterns, often adorned with works of art from acclaimed artists or industrial designers. Companies work for years to achieve design nirvana in machines that look as good as possible.
Then there's the Dell Latitude XT2 XFR, which looks like it's been carved out of a block of concrete.
The XFR is the ruggedised version of Dell's XT2 tablet line, and everything — and we do mean everything — has been sealed, screwed down or locked away, and the aesthetics do suffer as a result. Let's put it this way — we suspect the R in the XFR stands for rugged, and we've got sneaking suspicions about what the F stands for, but can't mention that word in polite company.
Features
The core system specifications of the XT2 XFR aren't that stunning in laptop terms, but in case you missed the introduction, this is a tablet that's all about utility in being tough rather than being a multimedia powerhouse. An Intel Core 2 Duo ULV SU9600 1.6GHz processor powers the XT2 XFR and its 12.1-inch WXGA display screen. Our review sample had 3GB of RAM and an on-board 160GB 5400rpm hard drive, although there are options available for 64 or 128GB SSD drives. Networking is via gigabit Ethernet or 802.11b/g, although again 802.11n is an optional upgrade. The standard installation is Windows 7 Professional Edition 32-bit, although 64-bit can be selected when ordering at no additional cost. Overall, the XFT doesn't have a terrible system specification for a tablet, but it's not revolutionary either. Again, though, the XFR is all about being tough.
How tough is tough? Dell states that the XT2 XFR is rated at IP54 and meets US military standard MIL-STD-810G. For those not into toughness ratings, the IP5 level means it should be effectively dust proof — dust isn't entirely prevented from entering, which would be level 6, but it's dust contact proof and dust shouldn't be able to enter the unit in a way that stops it working. The 4 in the IP54 rating relates to water, and means it's protected against water splashes, but not against direct water jets or immersion. This isn't an underwater laptop, but for heavy industrial applications it should work quite well. As for the military specification, Dell lists it as being tested to survive a 91.4cm drop, rain, blowing dust, vibration, functional shock, humidity, altitude and temperature extremes (operating: -23°C to 60°C; non-operating: -40°C to 70°C). If it's -23°C or 60°C we'd probably be more concerned with our immediate survival rather than whether we could access an Excel spreadsheet, but these things shouldn't fuss the XFR. Lacking the necessary lab equipment to test these extremes, we'll have to take Dell's word on it.
Performance
Ruggedised notebooks are rarely the most comfortable creatures to work with and the XFR is no real exception. The inclusion of touch capability — including multi-touch and the option to either use your fingers or the stylus attached to the right-hand side — does ease matters a little, but with a tiny touch pad and stiff keys, this isn't the most comfortable laptop to use. With ruggedness in mind, there's even an option for a sealed rubber keyboard. All of the system ports are locked down behind stiff rubber doors with individual lock panels, making them difficult to access in a hurry. Again, that kind of convenience is sacrificed in the name of ruggedness, and it's unlikely anyone buying the XFR is going to miss that point. It's also noticeably uncomfortable on the lap for extended periods of time compared to other laptops.
Given the internal components within the XFR, we expected low to mid-range performance in our benchmark tests and that's exactly what the system delivered. It scored a PCMark05 test score of 2967 and a 3DMark06 score of 536, entirely in line with its role as a business-centric machine. Battery life in our looping video test (with all power-saving measures disabled) was two hours and 25 minutes, which is adequate but not exceptional. That's down to the standard four-cell battery on our test unit, and those after extra power should invest in the optional six or nine-cell battery upgrades.
Conclusion
We really wanted to test the XT2 XFR's ruggedness by, say, dropping it down a set of stairs to see what happens. We didn't, but for one real reason only, and that's the asking price. The XT2 XFR currently sells for one dollar and one cent short of AU$5000, and we weren't feeling quite that rich.
To give that some perspective, the non-rugged version of the XFR is AU$1399 cheaper for the same components, or the price of a couple of cheap Dell laptops in itself. That price differential marks the XFR out as a particularly niche machine; one that'll theoretically survive in the harshest conditions where a cheaper system would simply pack up.