Panasonic Toughpad FZ-N1 Comes Out Top In Productivity And Ergonomic Benchmark Test For Barcode Scanning Devices

Half the respondents who took part in the test said the Panasonic Toughpad FZ-N1 was the fastest and half said they liked it most for reasons such as speed, ease of use and the ergonomic design.

Logistics, delivery and mobile workers favoured the Panasonic Toughpad FZ-N1 over and above the two market leading handheld tablets when invited to take part in a benchmark test for three different handheld devices including the Panasonic device.

Half the respondents said the Panasonic Toughpad FZ-NI was the fastest and half the respondents liked it the most for reasons such as speed and ease of use, the distance from which you can scan from, its design and weight, and that the barcode reader which is on the rear of the device made it the most ergonomic of the three devices.

The Productivity and Health Benchmark Test for Mobile Barcode Scanning Devices was undertaken by independent market research company Opinion Matters and commissioned by Panasonic Business. Eight mobile workers who use mobile scanning devices as part of their daily activities were invited to benchmark three different handheld tablets. Under test conditions participants were given one of each of the different handheld devices and asked to rate the devices against various criteria such as ease of use, weight, and how fast the devices scanned. Participants were also asked to rate the ergonomic design and how easy each tablet was to hold and to view the bar code reader in various different conditions including under bright lights and at different angles.

Small and incredibly light, the Panasonic Toughpad FZ-N1 was voted the easiest to use with three quarters stating this to be the case.

The angled rear barcode reader on the Panasonic device meant that respondents favoured this handheld when it came to scanning bar codes at different levels. On all three tests at a high, medium and low level, the Panasonic handheld came out ahead of the other two devices in terms of both speed and how fast respondents were able to scan, as well as ease of scanning. The angled rear barcode reader also made it easier for respondents to read the scan on screen. Panasonic was voted the easiest with three respondents saying they could see the screen very easily and the other five saying they could see it easily. Equally, when asked how easy or difficult is it to read the scan input on the screen when the device is flat or at an angle, the Panasonic device was unanimously voted the easiest to use.

When participants were asked which device they thought would help most to reduce the risk of repetitive strain injuries five out of eight respondents chose the Panasonic device. A medical expert on repetitive strain injury (RSI), Bronwyn Clifford, Chartered Physiotherapist and Ergonomic Consultant also observed the benchmark test and provided her view on the Panasonic handheld tablet: “I do think the Panasonic handheld will help prevent RSI because you are not constantly having to deviate your wrist to scan and see what is on the screen. For example, the Panasonic device allows you to keep your arms in a neutral position which means you do not have to use other major muscles like your shoulder or upper arm to help out. Long term, this makes the Panasonic device easier to use."

Jan Kaempfer, General Manager for Marketing for Panasonic Computer Product Solutions commented on the findings: “It was gratifying that overall our device came out top. What was most important though was that these results and all the feedback that we gained came from real users. I was particularly keen to understand the health benefits this product brings and was delighted that five of the eight respondents felt that our device would help most to reduce the risk of repetitive strain injury.”

About Panasonic System Communications Company Europe (PSCEU)
PSCEU is the European branch of Panasonic Systems Communications Company, the global B2B division of Panasonic. PSCEU’s goal is to improve the working lives of business professionals and help their organisations’ efficiency and performance. We help organisations capture, compute and communicate all sorts of information: image, voice, and textual data. Products include PBX telephone switches, document printers, professional cameras, projectors, large visual displays, rugged mobile PCs and fire alarms solutions. With around 400 staff, engineering design expertise, global project management capability and a large European partner network, PSCEU offers unrivalled capability in its markets.

PSCEU is made up of four product categories:

• Communication Solutions, including professional scanners, multifunctional printers, telephony systems and SIP terminal devices.
• Visual System Solutions, including projectors and professional displays. Panasonic offers the widest range of Visual products, and leads the European projector market with 28% revenue share (Futuresource B2B market tracking, Q1/2014).
• Professional Camera Solutions, including Broadcast & ProAV products, security, fire alarm systems and industrial medical vision (IMV) technology. Panasonic is one of the top two professional camera vendors in Europe.
• Computer Product Solutions helps mobile workers improve productivity with its range of Toughbook rugged notebooks, Toughpad business tablets and electronic point of sales (EPOS) systems. As European market leaders, Panasonic Toughbook had a 66% revenue share of sales of rugged and durable notebooks and Panasonic Toughpad held a 59% revenue share of sales of rugged business tablets in 2015 (VDC Research, March 2016).