Dell announces its first USB 3.0 laptop

Dell has announced exciting upgrades to its flagship ‘Precision M6500′ line – the Intel dual core i5 or i7 processors and the option of a USB 3.0 port. The choice of processors is less interesting since this workstation-class model already offers an Intel Core i7-920XM Quad Core Extreme Edition, so their introduction actually slows it down/saves money. Not often you can say that about i5 and i7 CPUs.

Instead, what is far more interesting is the option of fitting a single USB 3.0 to replace one of the four USB 2.0 ports already available. The M6500 is the first from the Dell laptops range to offer this and, given its power user audience combined with the potential 10x performance boost of USB 3.0 over its predecessor, and you’d have to say it should prove a popular option. Dell has yet to reveal just how much the upgrade will set us back.

Elsewhere a higher res 3.2MP integrated webcam can also now be chosen, while a 64GB SSD ‘mini card’ will be available too. If the latter is based on the new ultra portable solid state drive universal format that would also be an industry first. Other niceties include a 17in RGB LED display and thorough choice of Windows XP, Vista, 7 and Red Hat Linux OSes.

Touchdown for the revised Precision M6500 is claimed to be late February  -  imagine other brands won’t be far behind.

Multi-touch laptop unveiled by Dell

Dell has announced the desktop ‘Inspiron One 19′ and ‘Studio 17′ laptops each with integrated multi-touch and recognition of up to four fingers. Consequently owners will be able to navigate, draw onscreen, edit photos, swipe through playlists and much more all while your mouse/trackpad sits by feeling unloved.

As for the hardware itself, the One 19 is an affordable all-in-one PC with 18.5in 16:9 display and slightly disappointing 1366 x 768 native res backed up by a choice of Intel Celeron 450 or Core 2 Duo E5300 CPUs, up to 3GB of DDR2 RAM and a 640GB HDD. Measuring just 386 x 477 x 103mm and weighing in at 7.3Kg, the One 19 starts from £479 and could make an ideal second computer.

Prices start from £499, though it can be configured north of £1,000 with no trouble at all.

Dell Vostro 13 no longer a secret

At last – Dell’s softly, softly secret  approach with their new Dell Vostro is over.

Although the company is teasing an “unnamed $450 Vostro” to US media, Dell Singapore has just gone ahead and launched the thing officially as the Vostro V13, complete with specs. Oops.

While Dell laptops PR tries to put out that fire, we can tell you that Dell’s putting everything it learned building the Adamo XPS to some more practical use in the .65-inch thick, sub-3.5-pound V13, which packs either a 1.2GHz Celeron, 1.3GHz Core 2 Duo or 1.4GHz Core 2 Solo with integrated X4500MHD graphics under that 13.3-inch screen.

The design isn’t as wild as the Adamo XPS, but the extra thickness means that it can accommodate an Ethernet port, along with eSATA, USB, an SD card slot and even a freaking ExpressCard slot. All this for just a confirmed US$450.

Owners of Dell and HP Laptops unhappy with Windows 7 delays

A large number of Dell and HP customers are up in arms about delays to the Windows 7 upgrades promised to punters who purchased laptops earlier this year.

Many manufacturers promised customers an upgrade to the Vista successor once it landed on 22 October but weeks on from that launch, tech support forums for Dell and HP laptops are inundated with narked customers complaining that the upgrade hasn’t been delivered.

“I honestly think that this whole Windows 7 “FREE!!!” upgrade is total rubbish,” said a user identified as “mdr322″ in a message posted to a thread dedicated to upgrade complaints. “It took me 1 month to register my service tag and now my delivery date has been delayed by 2 weeks!”

“Dell is behaving very unprofessionally!” said someone labeled “Vlad G” on the same thread. “I am sure this will cost them customers.”

Laptop users could help save 200m tonnes of carbon each year

If laptop users were willing to pay an extra pound to upgrade their power supply units, the world could save more than 200m tonnes of carbon a year, according to a leading component supplier in Taiwan.

Delta Electronics, which makes more than half of the boxes at the end of the world’s power cables, wants consumers to be informed of the carbon and energy efficiency of its products so that they can make a choice about whether to pay extra for greener computers.

The current energy efficiency standard for switching power supplies on laptops is 87%, though many firms fit devices that fall well below this level.

Delta says its best equipment could reach 93% for about a pound or two more. It is not yet widely adopted because computer firms such as HP laptops and Dell are reluctant to pass on the cost to consumers.

“The point is, consumers never know the efficiency of their computers,” said Delta Electronics’ founder and chairman, Bruce Cheng. “We are serious in our efforts to reduce global warming by our unrelenting research into ever more energy efficient products.”

Dell rival HP with laptop and music offer

Dell has seen HP’s hand and raised it by offering access to free music with the purchase of a new laptop. Unlike the download-only tracks available with new HP laptops, Dell has decided to go down the subscription route and is teaming up with Napster for the promotion.

With selected Dell laptops customers will be given a complimentary subscription to the Napster Unlimited service, which includes access to 8 million music tracks, the ability to play them online from any PC, unlimited downloads on up to 3 PCs, and 60 DRM-free tracks to download and keep forever.

At the end of the year-long subscription, if you don’t continue with the paid subscription you don’t get to continue listening to any of the music you downloaded other than the 60 tracks.

Dell laptops to feature UK Arm chips

Dell have unveiled plans for a high-end line of laptops that include microprocessors designed by the UK’s Arm Holdings.

The Dell laptops will run Microsoft’s new Windows 7 operating system on an Intel chip most of the time.

But the Arm chip and a version of the free operating system Linux will be used for instant access to some functions as soon as the laptop is turned on.

Dell’s inclusion of Arm and Linux follows longstanding user frustration with the slow Windows boot-up process.

Dell are said to be targetting sales executives, creative professionals and small businesses. While they are not Dell’s core customers, they are the company’s focus as they try to compete with Apple and HP laptops.

New Dell laptop could be charged wirelessly

Dell are readying the new Latitude Z laptop for launch in late 2009 but rather than go for the touch-screen option like many of the other Windows 7 systems, they’ve come up with something a bit remarkable.

After losing a large chunk of the PC market share to the likes of HP laptops, Dell returned to the drawing board and have come up with the Dell Latitude Z business laptop featuring ‘advanced wireless capabilities’ and, potentially, ‘wireless charging’.

So you could soon be powering laptops without the need for a bulky plug, similar to the Touchstone accessory sold for the Palm Pre smartphone in the US.

No word on an official release date yet, but it’s expected in the next few weeks.

Big name manufacturers looking to 3D screens

Dell, HP, Sony and Lenovo are working with far-east company Wistron on laptops with screens capable of 3D imagery.

The systems should utilise stereo 3D technologies patented by Wistron itself. Acer is also said to be looking into the feature having struck a deal with US-based DDD company, who offer similar services to Wistron.

While the quality of stereo 3D technologies of DDD or Wistron is not clear at the moment, just like technical requirements of these technologies, it is certain that all of the aforementioned notebook makers (and stereo 3D tech developers as well) are planning to target high-end notebooks for gamers with advanced capabilities.

HP laptops have led the way in 3D enterprise but Sony laptops are coming up in their rear-view mirror – though they’ll be hard-pressed to counter HP’s target date of June next year.

Dell unveil skinny Adamo laptop with under 1cm thickness

The growing penchant for skinny laptops shows no sign of slowing, with Dell announcing a new 9.99mm thin Adamo XPS (Xtreme Performance System) laptop this week.

Further information is scarce, other than the machines bulkiness or lack of it, as Dell choose to take the teaser PR campaign route like they did with the first Adamo notebook.

However, in comparison with the 19.3mm thick MacBook Air and Dell’s original Adamo, which weighed in at 16.5 mm thick, the new sub-10mm laptop has certainly whetted our appetite. As ever on Laptopshop, we’ll have Adamo laptop deals as soon as they go on sale.