By JUSTIN=20
SCHECK
August 13,=20
2008; Page B1
Dell Inc. Tuesday released 10 new business laptop =
models,=20
in a move aimed at defending one of the company's key markets.
The Round Rock, Texas, company lags rival Hewlett-Packard=20
Co. in world-wide sales. Dell is No. 1 in the U.S. market, with a=20
particularly strong position in sales to business users.
![3D"[Dell](3D"http://s.wsj.net/public/resources/images/MK-AR199_DELL_20080812174=) |
| Getty Images |
| Dell Senior Vice President Jeff Clarke =
shows two=20
Latitude E4200 laptops. |
The computer giant's new portables include an =
ultralight=20
model, long-running batteries and backlit keyboards for working in =
dark=20
rooms. With exterior shells that come in blue, red and pink, they =
are a=20
departure from a prior strategy that mainly churned out =
nondescript=20
laptops for corporate customers.
"They're protecting their bread-and-butter =
market," Richard=20
Shim, an analyst with IDC who covers PCs, said of the new =
products.
The smallest of Dell's new machines has a screen =
of just=20
over 12 inches, and weighs about 2.2 pounds -- making it lighter =
than=20
Apple's ultrathin MacBook Air.
The new laptops represent "a significant =
improvement" in=20
design over the company's past efforts, said Jeff Clarke, a Dell=20
senior vice president.
Dell also disclosed that it is working on a =
technology=20
called Latitude On that is designed to let users quickly access =
e-mail,=20
the Internet and certain other programs without fully booting up =
their=20
computers. Dell wouldn't say how much customers will have to pay =
for the=20
feature. Roger Kay, an analyst with Endpoint Technologies briefed =
on the=20
new PCs, expects Dell to charge as much as $300 for the =
option.
New Latitude models include the midrange E5400, =
which=20
starts at $839, and the E6400, which starts at $1,139. The =
ultralight=20
E4200 will ship next month, Dell said; it didn't disclose pricing, =
but=20
said the laptop will cost at least $1,300.
Dell says its new models can achieve battery life =
of up to=20
19 hours, though that requires using a bigger-than-normal battery =
along=20
with a "slice" -- a flat battery that attaches to the bottom of =
the unit,=20
increasing its thickness by nearly a half inch.
IDC's Mr. Shim said integrating consumer features =
into=20
business machines could make the laptops more attractive to users, =
but=20
will have little influence on the decisions of the tech =
professionals who=20
handle the purchasing of large numbers of PCs. For them, new =
security=20
features offered by Dell will likely be more important, he =
said.
Write to Justin Scheck at justin.scheck@wsj.com
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