Hasta La Gadget!

It’s been a long, long time since the first information about Dell’s update to the venerable XT convertible tablet snuck out of Texas, and while we got some choice morsels of information last month, we were still missing any semblance of a release date (that original November 2008 target proved to be a bit optimistic). Now we have what could be the official spec sheet for the series and a date to boot, confirming much of what we’d heard before, like your choice of 1.2GHz SU9300 or 1.4GHz SU9400 Intel Core 2 Duo CPUs, a 12.1-inch multitouch display, up to 5GB of DDR3 memory, and either 80GB worth of platters or 64GB of SSD. Base weight is 3.62 pounds, just over the 3.5 pound target the company had been aiming for, and if this source is correct the machine will be getting an official unveiling on February 11 — close enough that we’d advise holding off on any other tablet purchases for a few days.

[Thanks, Sam]

Filed under: Laptops

Dell XT2 specs and availability leaked, launching on Weds? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 07 Feb 2009 18:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A few retailer slip-ups aside, we haven’t heard a whole lot about the Dell Mini 10 since it was unveiled at CES, but it looks like that’s now starting to change, with this supposedly authentic slide offering some further details on the netbook. Among the new bits of information is word that the Mini 10 will apparently have two display options: the 1366 x 768 option we heard about initially, and a more conventional 1024 x 576 WSVGA option for those less concerned with 720p content. You’ll also apparently be able to get your choice of 1.3GHz or 1.6GHz Atom processors, one of six different color options, a 3-cell or 6-cell battery, and apparently even an “optional DVD slice,” although there’s unfortunately no pics or further details on it. There’s also still no word on a price or release date, but let’s hope those details are the next to surface, officially or otherwise.

[Thanks, Cin]

Filed under: Laptops

More rumored Dell Mini 10 details, colors surface originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 05 Feb 2009 16:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The white space debate over how (or whether) to utilize unused frequencies in the broadcast spectrum has been going on for nearly two years now, and, despite all the ups and downs (and fear mongering), the various members of the White Spaces Coalition have continued to fight the good fight in the hopes of bringing faster downloads to more places. The latest initiative/olive branch is the formation of the White Spaces Database Group, mapping areas of unused spectrum and enabling devices to verify what frequencies are available based on positional information (likely GPS or cell tower triangulation). It’s still early days so there aren’t any details about the database itself yet, except that the group intends to keep things “open and non-proprietary” and will work with the FCC to populate it. Now, can’t we all just get along and work toward a summer of worry-free wireless?

[Via ars technica]

Filed under: Wireless

White Spaces Coalition launches DB Group, letting devices find their own piece of the spectrum originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 05 Feb 2009 09:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s taken quite awhile for someone to gather up the courage to do it, but at long last, Dell’s cutesy Mini 12 has been stripped of its dignity and dissected for the world to see. Honestly, there isn’t much in this netbook that you haven’t already seen in similar alternatives, but those unable to resist the allure of undressed gadgets will still want to give the read link a visit. Or two, depending on your level of self-restraint.

Filed under: Laptops

Dell’s Mini 12 dissected for your viewing pleasure originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 01 Feb 2009 08:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You know who’s blabbing again? That reclusive set of business people who always seem to be “familiar with the matter,” that’s who. This time, they’ve got the Wall Street Journal in a twist over renewed rumors that Dell is “preparing a move into cellphones as early as next month.” Next month, is of course the big cellphone coming out party known as Mobile World Congress in Barcelona — an event Dell has flat-out denied any intention to attend. Still, the evidence presented by the WSJ is pretty overwhelming. First, sources say that a variety of smartphone prototypes, including one with a QWERTY-less touchscreen and another with a sliding keyboard, have already been built running Android and Windows Mobile. Second, Dell’s smartphone team “spent much of last year” meeting with suppliers, carriers, and Asian phone manufacturers. Dell’s team includes the former head of Motorola’s phone division (Ron Garriques) and another Moto employee (John Thode) who heads up Dell’s netbook group. The latter being of interest since the iPhone and BlackBerry Storm are considered netbooks by their makers. Oh, and Dell still hasn’t made good on its purchase of Zing and its plans to build an all encompassing media ecosystem to manage your audio and video files across PCs and mobile devices. Sources do contend that plans have not been finalized and Dell may still abandon the effort. But with Acer making the jump into Smartphones next month and other non-traditional players having great success in the space at the expense of the former cellphone powerhouses, one thing is clear: PC guys “will just walk in” and figure this out. Right Ed?

Filed under: Cellphones

WSJ: Dell “preparing a move into cellphones as early as next month” originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Jan 2009 01:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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