Advantech announced two fanless panel PCs whose front panels are said to withstand outdoor use. The 12.1-inch TPC-1251H and 5.7-inch TPC-651H include 1.33GHz Intel Atom processors, up to 2GB of RAM, dual isolated serial ports, and CompactFlash storage.

There's nothing trendy or up-to-the-minute about Advantech's TPC-1251H and TPC-651H, since they employ resistive touchscreens — no capacitive multi-touch here — and Intel's "eMenlow XL" Atom (the 1.33GHz Z530P, with SCH US15WP northbridge/southbridge). But the fanless systems boast a wide operating range (-4 to 140 deg. F) and sealed (NEMA4/IP65-compliant) front panels, making them durable and reliable for industrial automation applications, the company says.

Advantech's TPC-651H

Advantech notes that the TPC-1251H and TPC-651H use identical backplanes, making the devices exactly the same except for their displays. Specifications for the resistive touchscreens are as follows:

• TPC-1251H: 12.1-inch, with 800 x 600 pixel resolution, 450-nit brightness ratio, and 700:1 contrast ratio
• TPC-651H: 5.7-inch, with 640 x 480 pixel resolution, 700-nit brightness rating, and 800:1 contrast ratio

Screen size apparently makes quite a difference in power consumption here. Advantech says the TPC-651H typically consumes just 17 Watts, while the otherwise-identical TPC-1251H consumes 30 Watts.

Both devices provide 1GB of DDR2 RAM, expandable to 2GB, and a CompactFlash slot for persistent storage. The backplane, shown below left on the TPC-651H and below right on the TPC-1251H, provides access to two isolated serial ports (1 x RS232, 1 x RS422/485), two USB 2.0 ports, two gigabit Ethernet ports, and a power input that accepts from 18 to 32VDC, according to Advantech.

Advantech's TPC-651H (left) and TPC-1251H (right)
(not to scale; click either to enlarge)

Specifications listed by Advantech for the TPC-651H and TPC-1251H include:

• Processor — 1.33GHz Intel Atom Z530P
• Chipset — SCH US15WP
• Memory — up to 2GB of DDR2 RAM
• Storage — CompactFlash slot
• Display:
  • TPC-1251H: 12.1-inch, with 800 x 600 pixel resolution, 450-nit brightness ratio, and 700:1 contrast ratio
  • TPC-651H: 5.7-inch, with 640 x 480 pixel resolution, 700-nit brightness rating, and 800:1 contrast ratio
• Networking — 2 x gigabit Ethernet
• Other I/O:
  • 1 x RS232
  • 1 x RS422/485
  • 2 x USB 2.0
• Operating temperature — -4 to 140 deg. F (-20 to 60 deg. C)
• Dimensions:
  • TPC-1251H — 12.24 x 9.33 x 2.12 inches (311 x 237 x 54mm)
  • TPC-651H — 7.67 x 5.82 x 2.28 inches (195 x 148 x 58mm)

Further information

Advantech says the TPC-651H and TPC-1251H run Linux, as well as Windows XP Embedded, Windows CE, Windows Embedded Standard 7, and Windows Embedded Standard 2009. Pricing and availability were not cited, but the devices appear to be available now.

More information on the TPC-651H and TPC-1251H may be found on the Advantech website here and here, respectively.

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