Many tablets are designed for casual gaming and web browsing, but here’s a tablet that can do more than play Angry Birds. Panasonic’s new ToughBook Tablet provides business solutions with security, functionality, and reliability in mind. Designed to appeal to users like SMB’s, government personnel, and field forces, I can see the ToughBook tablet being an important business tool once it hits the shelves.

In terms of functionality, the ToughBook tablet won’t have the glossy screens that most tablets have. They may look nice, but the screen becomes virtually unreadable outdoors or under natural lighting. Instead, its screen will be viewable under day light, allowing mobile workers like home healthcare and public safety officials to view important data and operate the tablet. It will also have an active stylus so that users in customer service and sales to get signatures on its 10.1-inch multi-touch display. Other features include full-shift battery life, satellite-based GPS, professional-grade accessories, and mobile broadband connectivity. No news on pricing and availability yet, but full details on the device will be available later this year.

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Those of you who have been looking for a Panasonic Lumix LX3 without much luck can now rejoice, because they just released its successor. The Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5 builds upon the success of the LX3 with a new 3.8x 24-90mm zoom lens, 10 megapixel sensor, a large 1/1.63-inch 10 megapixel CCD sensor and HD movie recording. Other new features of this model include a Power OIS anti-shake system, an optional electronic viewfinder, and a redesigned user interface. It’s available in black or white for around $499.99. Photography Blog has a more comprehensive review on the LX5 if you want to find out more.

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The ridiculously high electric bills we experienced in the summer could have been avoided if our air conditioners were equipped with Panasonic’s trademark Inverter technology. Panasonic’s flagship intelligent Envio range of air conditioners have remarkable energy-saving features; its Inverter Technology allows you to save as much as 60% from your energy bills.

Panasonic’s Inverter Technology provides nothing more or less than the right temperature by changing the compressor speed according to the room’s environment. Once the unit has achieved the target temperature, it lowers the power output for lower energy use. Aside from that, the Inverter Technology provides just the right amount of power needed to rapidly cool a room. The target temperature is achieved 1.5 times faster than the typical air conditioner, meaning you use less energy to reach the desired temperature.

Panasonic even did a comparative test on two of its air conditioners – one with the Inverter Technology and another without. The unit with Inverter technology showed as much as 50% reduction on cumulative energy consumption. Not only does this mean more savings for home owners, but it also has lower carbon dioxide emissions than the typical unit.

Aside from the energy savings, the Panasonic Envio purifies the air as it cools because of the built-in e-ion Air Purifying System with Patrol Sensor. Simply activate this feature by pressing a button, and it will measure the amount of dust particles in the room. Once the dust particles reach an unhealthy level, 3 trillion e-ions are released into the air to catch and deactivate the negatively-charged micro-organisms to dust, which are then sent to the positively-charged e-ion filter. This releases only clean air, allowing you to breathe easy and avoid allergies triggered by dust.

The Panasonic Envio Air Conditioner is available at all Panasonic retailers.

I never did get around to writing a review for my Panasonic Lumix LX3, which is a shame because it’s such a good camera. I’ll get around to doing so one of these days, I swear! For now, feast your eyes on the latest in the Panasonic Lumix line – the ZR3. This sleek camera is only an inch thick and packed with all sorts of amazing features – a 25mm ultra-wide angled lens (the LX3 has a 24mm wide-angled lens), an 8x optical zoom, and the ability to record HD video in ACVHD Lite HD format. It’s also got happy mode, face recognition, and other iA features; in fact, Panasonic says that it only has a 1.1 second start-up speed and can focus in just 0.26 seconds. The LCD screen is about 2.7 inches wide and automatically adjusts the brightness for optimum viewing. Finally, you can use SD/SDHC cards and SDXC cards to store your photos and videos. SDXC cards, in case you don’t know, can occupy terabytes of storage!

Availability and price is not yet known, but the Lumix ZR3 seems to be a fairly solid camera – not to mention compact. I suggest you get it when you can!

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