Business is tough, which is why Panasonic wants the company you work for to invest in its Toughbook laptops for field work, with the newly announced CF-54 heading up the range.

In an attempt to shed the considerable bulk and weight associated with such hardcore products, the CF-54 hits the scales at 1.99kgs, making it 700g lighter than its CF-53 predecessor, thanks to a 25 per cent reduction in thickness. And when you’ve got to lug about a rugged laptop all day long, that’s no small point.

Available in three primary configurations (plenty of modular customisation is available too) - HD screen (1366 ×768 resolution), Full HD screen (1920 ×1080 resolution), and Full HD touchscreen - the 14-inch semi-rugged CF-54 will suit a variety of needs, including stylus-based input in the case of the touchscreen model.

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Crafted from the inside out, the Toughbook CF-54 has a four-side magnesium casing, with concave structure for extra toughness - that’s why there’s the honeycomb arrangement. It can withstand a 100kg weight or 20kg point pressure to avoid any internal damage.

As the Toughbook name might suggest, the CF-54 is also freezeproof to -10C, and splash-proof too, including the full front screen and keyboard area, and drop-proof from heights of 76cm. It’s one tough cookie.

The keyboard is leaf shaped to offer a better typing experience when wearing gloves, and offers a four level backlight for seeing keys in the dark with ease.

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Under the hood the CF-54 utilises the fifth generation Intel Core i5-5300U vPro chip, paired with 4GB Ram, configurable to Core i7 with more memory options as required.

The modular nature of the Toughbook CF-54 means options for a second battery for 18-hours life (up from 11-hours), dual LAN (for parallel diagnostic work), Rugged USB, dedicated GPS, or a fourth USB port are also possible.

Available end of February, the Toughbook CF-54 HD will start at £1142 with 500GB HDD; Full HD with 128GB SSD at £1325; and touchscreen version from £1662. All prices exclude VAT, minimum order volume requirements apply.