Dell beefs up Latitude notebook range

 

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By Maggie Holland

Posted on 9 May 2007 at 16:57

There are three new notebooks in Dell's Latitude range, two based on the latest Intel chips and one making use of AMD's technology.

The Intel Core 2 Duo processor-based D630 and D830 are claimed to give business users up to 15 per cent greater performance than previous Latitude models in addition to more than nine hours battery life, which is always a bug-bear for mobile users who find themselves needing to work but in need of power.

These two models also support other key technologies such as Dell's Wireless 5520 HSDPA and 5720 EVDO mobile broadband mini-cards for greater roaming connectivity.

The D531 takes advantage of Dell's recent alliance with AMD, by using the company's Turion 64 and Sempron processors, to give users an alternative to Intel technology if they so require.

The computing giant claims the latest offerings are in response to demand for more solutions that address the myriad of environments that users need mobile solutions in, ranging from 'road warriors' to construction workers.

'2007 and 2008 are really a storm of technological change. It has always been the Dell advantage to move emerging technologies into standard technologies,' said Eric Greffier, Dell's director of client products for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).

'Users in professional companies are more and more tech savvy. They sometimes have more technology at home than in the office and are willing these technologies to be part of their working life too. The Latitude series has delivered value for customers for a long time but we realise that we need to have more products to target more segments and these are the things we have baked into the new solutions.'

All three of the new models come in configurations that are designed to be more energy efficient by complying with the Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star 4.0 specification, according to Dell.

'Dell is committed to producing the most energy efficient desktops and notebooks in the industry,' said Greffier.

'We also ship our products with Energy Smart power settings that are designed to exceed regulatory compliance. This enables customers to save money and decrease their overall environmental footprint.'

Prices for the new Intel range start from £749 (excluding VAT and delivery) depending on the final configuration selected.

Base configurations of the AMD-based D531 start at £439 (excluding VAT and delivery).

Dell has also announced plans to offer a Latitude D430 ultra-mobile notebook and Dell Precision M4300, both based on Intel technology, in the coming weeks, in addition to confirming that it will use the autumn to unveil details of its offering based on Intel's Centrino Pro technology, the D630c.