Panasonic Toughpad 4K UT-MB5 review

When it comes to exotic, “out there” technology, there isn’t much that comes close to Panasonic’s new Toughpad 4K UT-MB5. Targeting architects, designers, photographers and businesses in need of a swanky presentation tool, it’s an enormous 20in tablet with a 4K display that displays pin-sharp images at A3 size, while also offering a degree of portability.

Panasonic Toughpad 4K UT-MB5 review: Features & design

In reality, the Toughpad is less of a tablet than it is an all-in-one PC. Although there’s a battery inside, it’s small (3,180mAh) and doesn’t give you much runtime; in our light-use test the Toughpad lasted a mere 1hr 35mins. The device itself is also too heavy and unwieldy to be hefted far from its home on your desk or in the boardroom. The docking station – which features three USB 3 ports, Gigabit Ethernet and an HDMI output – is an essential accessory, but we were surprised to find it’s a £239 inc VAT optional extra.

The Toughpad’s pixel-packed 3,840 x 2,560 IPS panel is the star of the show, though, and that’s clearly where the majority of your money is going. With a contrast ratio of 860:1, images are dynamic and contrast is superb. On greyscale fades, the screen shows up a clear difference between black and even the darkest shades of grey, and it’s just as accomplished at distinguishing between the lightest of greys and white. It’s bright, too, with the LED backlight topping out at a respectable 301cd/m², but the screen’s real strength (aside from its eye-popping resolution) is its colour accuracy.

Tested with our X-Rite i1Display 2 colorimeter, the Toughpad achieved an average Delta E score of 1.4 and maximum score of 3.5. The panel also covered every inch of the sRGB colour gamut, and served up rich, saturated hues and natural-looking skin tones in every one of our test images. Panasonic supplied a series of short videos to showcase the tablet’s 4K capabilities, and without exception they looked absolutely sumptuous.

The only caveat is that the high pixel density does mean buttons and menus on some legacy apps may be unusably small, if they haven’t been redeveloped with high-resolution displays in mind. With that in mind, if you do have any mission-critical software you plan to run on the Toughpad, it’s well worth seeing if you can try one before you splash out.