http://www.ruggedpcreview.com/3_slates_panasonic_fz_x1.html
I still think the 7 inch tablets, neat as they must be, are too big - but this thing...could put my aging Carlson Mini out to pasture.
Seems to have long range Bluetooth built in, looking good except it runs only Windows Mobile 8.1, which is incompatible with any older version - or Android...
So why can't Carlson, or anyone else port their software to Android? Is there a technical/incompatibility issue?
Or they just don't wanna?
I asked Bruce Carlson that question last week. He said they do have a couple of their best guys working on the Android platform, but it will not be ready soon. They are on SurvCE4 now, and 5 is heavily in development. It sounded more like the SurvCE6 timeframe.
there is a move toward the Panasonic FX-M1 with the Windows 7 downgrade for compatibility with the Windows-based versions of some of the software like Carlson SurvPC or Topcon's Magnet for PC.
SO far they are hard to get.
They have been discussed on here. You would want to be certain to avoid the one with the Celeron processor and get the model with the i5 processor. More expensive but better performance.
and even though pricey, they are less than the high-end Windows Mobile based handheld computers.
Is the Panasonic FZ-X1 compatible with Carlson SurvPC, provided it is ordered with a particular build?
Porting app written in native language for WIndows Mobile isn't very easy. For Android you have to use other programming language (C++ in WM, Java for Android), rewrite app from scratch. So it is generate costs, big costs..
Look at our project RTK PowerGPS(powergps.pl or in Google Play). We didn't have funds as companies like SurvCe, Trimble..etc
We work in small two-developers team and it takes over 4,5 years and thousands hours of work to do the current version, from which 2 years for Android part. From this time we can see that there is a strong need to do another improvements (for example to enter new coordinate system support, new geoids, other languages support..etc) but after this years i see that Android can be better solution than Windows Mobile. So having this app you don't have to use SurvCE to do the RTK/RTN measurement and stakeout. And you can make GPS reports just from field (or sent project over GSM to the cloud from you can download it to app, which allow to process data and form more detailed GPS report).
Despite of we're testing some Nautiz devices (X1 and X8), which can be (X8) equipped in Windows Mobile or Android. Unfortunatelly screen made for WM in X8 doesn't support multitouch, but it in final - works nice as a controller, because has a fast processor and relative big screen among with numerical keypad.
For me having common phone like Samsung Core LTE is also good don't have to own typical (expensive) controller to do the RTK survey. So when I take RTK unit for tests and use NTRIP services for correction, ordinary phone can be used to precise measurement and to control the RTK board by Bluetooth. Sample movie from that process -
