MWC 2011: SwissQual's Diversity Ranger Is The Backpack Of The Future

Looking to do some network benchmarking in the Swiss Alps? Want to test which wireless network gets the best signal in isolated volcano islands? Probably not. But it's nice to know the option exists. After a few hours of playing with tablets and playing with more tablets, I decided to drop by SwissQual's booth to see just how tough their new Diversity Ranger network benchmarking pack was.

Normally, network benchmarking solutions like this are unwieldy and fragile. But the new Diversity Ranger has a slick, hiking backpack form-factor. It packs a GPS unit and scanner options, plus dual hot-swappable batteries. The PR folks at the SwissQual claim it can get ten hours of use with both batteries charged.

This is what the Diversity Ranger looks like on the inside:

This is how it looks folded closed:

And this is it in "backpack mode" completely hidden and looking pretty much like every other hiking pack in the world. SwissQual claims it can survive being sprayed with 50 liters of water per minute and drops of 30 cm while running.