Jul 04
Jul 04
Dell is “exploring” wearables designs, with hints that a Dell smartwatch could be in the pipeline as the company again tries to tackle the competitive mobile market. “Looking ahead five years, we expect devices and form factors to continue to change” Dell global VP of personal computing, Sam Burd, told The Guardian, echoing recent research which suggested desktop sales would continue to pale while ultrabooks, tablets, smartphones, and other form-factors rose in prominence. “There’s a lot of discussion about how that fits into wearable devices like we’ve seen with Google Glass and watches.”
Burd would not be drawn on any specific R&D projects within Dell, though hinted that the smartwatch form-factor – rather than, say, the headset approach Google has taken with Glass – would likely be the first the company might follow. “There are challenges in cost, and how to make it a really good experience,” Burd explained, “but the piece that’s interesting is that computers are getting smaller. Having a watch on your wrist – that’s pretty interesting, pretty appealing.”
Dell’s motivation, in no small part, is mitigating its reliance on traditional PCs and notebooks for its bottom line. The company reported a steep drop in income in the last financial quarter, while losing its second place position in global PC sales to Lenovo. Dell now sits in third place, still on the metaphorical podium but facing ongoing declines in the market overall.
“We’re looking at a world of lots of connected devices” Burd concludes, suggesting that rather than a single form-factor suddenly revolutionizing the world of computing, what’s more likely is that “the number of devices per person is exploding.”
Dell has tried to take a bite of the mobile market before, but has struggled to make a success of it. The Dell Streak, the company’s 5-inch mini-tablet, showed significant promise but failed to convince the market that Android on a larger screen made sense; ironically, shortly after Android phones began rapidly increasing in screen-size, so that now the Streak’s display actually looks mid-sized.
Then followed a brief attempt to join the Windows Phone bandwagon, including one of the only physical-QWERTY handsets to run the OS, the Venue Pro. However, the device was cancelled before most customers even saw one in stores.
Now, Dell’s focus in mobility has centered around tablets, usually running Windows 8, though Burd concedes that sales haven’t exactly set the company’s financials alight. Only “hundreds of thousands” of XPS 10 and Latitude 10 tablets have been sold, he admitted, explaining that enterprise customers had been slow to warm to Microsoft’s latest OS on touch-only devices.
Wearables could be the bridging device, perhaps, though we’ll have to wait a little longer to actually see the fruits of Dell’s R&D. “We haven’t announced anything, but we are looking at the technology in that space” Burd said.
The company isn’t alone in that. Intel is working on a smartwatch project of its own, the chip company has confirmed, and expects to find its silicon in its own products – and those of its customers – before the year is through. Meanwhile, Acer has said that it expects a wearable to launch under its brand sometime in 2014.
Dell smartwatch hinted as company invests in wearable R&D is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Jul 02
Computer makers are focusing more and more on design these days with their products. Computers are no longer a beige square box, but almost pieces of art that need to look good sitting on a desk. Yesterday, the IDSA handed out its International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA for short), and companies like Dell, HP, IBM, and Vizio took home some of the prizes with their creations.
In the “Computer Equipment” category, Vizio took home two IDEA awards, one for their Thin + Light Notebook and the other for their All-in-One Touch PC. HP‘s Envy 120 e-All-in-One printer also won an IDEA award, as did Dell‘s Enterprise 12G Power Supply Unit and IBM‘s unique-looking PureSystems server machine. The Nest smart thermostat also made the list.
In the “Entertainment” category, the Blackmagic Cinema Camera took home an award (we’ve talked about this new camera before). The Sonos SUB and the Beats Executive headphones also won in the category. Most of the products mentioned here are either enterprise-level products or products that have just recently released. Vizio’s line, on the other hand, are probably some of the more ubiquitous from the winners.
We’ve taken a look at Vizio’s latest lineup in the past and even reviewed one of their latest all-in-one machines, as well as checked out their newest laptops at CES back in January. Of course, design was one of the first aspects that caught our eye, and while is seen to have a leg up in that category, many companies are catching up extremely quickly.
Design has become huge in recent years, and Ford’s executive chairman Bill Ford recently said that design is essentially “all-encompassing,” and it consists of not only how pretty something looks, but also how well something functions and what it can do to make it extra special.
Dell, HP, IBM, and Vizio take home 2013 IDSA design awards is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Jun 14
Dell E2414H 24-Inch Full HD Monitor
Posted in: Today's Chili
Dell has released a new Full HD monitor ‘E2414H’ for the mass market. Adopting a TN panel, this new 24-inch LED-backlight monitor provides 1920 x 1080 Full HD resolution, 1000:1 contrast ratio, 250 cd/m2 brightness, 5ms response time and 170/160 degree viewing angles, and features DVI-D and D-Sub connectors. The E2414H is available now for 16,980 Yen (about $178). [Dell]
Jun 14
Jun 11
The Daily Roundup for 06.11.2013
Posted in: Today's Chili
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Jun 10
Alienware 17 and 18 hands-on
Posted in: Today's ChiliThree years in the making, the new Alienware 17 and Alienware 18 notebooks arrive at a time when gaming is under the spotlight. Microsoft’s Xbox One and Sony’s PlayStation 4 have thrown new attention on mainstream gaming, but the Dell-owned PC gaming specialist isn’t willing to concede the power crown so readily. Alongside the new
Jun 10
Alienware has a new gaming notebook range, the result of three years of development, and the Alienware 14 may well be our favorite. “Significantly evolved” from the already eye-catching design of the old model, the new Alienware 14 – the “M14x” nomenclature has been retired, Alienware GM Frank Azor says, since nobody outside of the
Jun 10
Dell unveils redesigned Alienware 14, 17 and 18 gaming notebooks, available now from $1,199 (hands-on)
Posted in: Today's Chili
Hot on the heels of refreshing its X51 gaming desktop, Dell is sharing the news gamers have really been waiting for. The company just unveiled some fresh Alienware laptops, complete with a new look and even a new naming scheme: Alienware 14, 17 and 18. As you’d expect, they step up to Haswell processors, the latest NVIDIA graphics and 802.11ac on some models, but the real story is that they’ve received a serious makeover, the first in six years. For starters, Dell ditched the ol’ plastic body and moved to a metal chassis with an aluminum lid and magnesium alloy chassis. As befits an Alienware, there are LEDs aplenty, including lights around the edges and a touchpad that fully lights up. And though the alien logo on the lid always glowed, that color is now customizable like other zones on the laptop. Speaking of the keyboard, you get 10 color zones on the 17 / 18 and five on the 14, and it promises improved travel, too, thanks to some retooled key caps. Dell also added Klipsch speakers, backed by Dolby Audio Theater. On a more practical note, the vents have moved to the back edge, as far as possible from gamers’ hands. All told, it’s a nicer design, but if you were expecting these guys to be thinner or lighter, you’re going to be disappointed: the dimensions haven’t really budged.
Moving on to performance, Dell added some macro keys on the larger models, with the 18 supporting up to nine, and the 17 allowing for four. All come standard with a quad-core Core i7 processor, though they won’t each be configurable with the same range of CPUs. 750GB of HDD storage is the minimum, and SSDs will be available too. On the 14, in particular, you can add up to three HDDs, while the two larger notebooks have room for four. Graphics-wise, NVIDIA’s GTX 765M (2GB) is standard on the 17 and 18, while the 14 starts with a 1GB 750M. And on the 18 you get two GPUs by default, in an SLI setup. The Alienware 17 and 18 come with 802.11ac WiFi, while the 14 packs a Killer Wireless-N 1202 radio. As for displays, they’re all IPS screens (non-touch), and while 1080p is offered on all, it’s only standard on the 18 (the 14, in particular, starts with 1,366 x 768, blech). They’re all available now, with starting prices pegged at $1,199 for the 14, $1,499 for the 17 and $2,099 for the 18. A Core i5 version of the 14 is also on the way, and will start around $1,099. Hopefully we’ll review one of these soon, but until then have a look at some hands-on photos, a detailed spec table and a trio of promo videos, all embedded after the break.
Jun 07
Computex 2013: the best of Haswell
Posted in: Today's Chili
Intel used this year’s Computex to officially debut Haswell-based Core processors, and it had no shortage of willing launch partners: seemingly everyone had at least one updated PC to reveal. The refinements to battery life and graphics also led to quite a few companies pushing the boundaries, whether it was in cutting-edge screens or exotic form factors. Quite frankly, there was a lot to cope with in several days — enough so that we’re putting the more important Haswell offerings in one convenient roundup. Read on for our look at the desktops, laptops and tablets that launched in sync with Taiwan’s premier tech event.
Filed under: Desktops, Laptops, Tablets, Sony, ASUS, Dell, Acer
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