It's pretty hard to be efficient without being obnoxious - Kin Hubbard
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Dell introduces a Windows 7 based Latitude ST business tablet
HARDWARE FIRM Dell has entered the Windows tablet market with the release of its Windows 7 based Latitude ST business tablet.
Dell will make the tablet available as early as next week, but the firm took some pains to explain why it had decided to launch now rather than later, like when Windows 8 is released.
"Our customers are asking for a purpose-built Windows 7 tablet that they can easily secure and manage, will easily integrate into their existing IT environment and supports legacy applications," said Kirk Schell, executive director and general manager of Dell's Business Client Product Group.
Although the company did not confirm whether it would make the devices upgradeable to Windows 8, Schell did say that the firm will continue to work closely with Microsoft, adding, "You can expect to hear more about Windows 8 from us and see a wide range of products released."
This is Dell, this is a business device, and the fact that it is pitched at such users was cited as the reason for it not running Android, while the firm said it is well suited for the business environment.
>Business users might enjoy the large 10.1in 1280x800 multi-touch display on offer, along with its WiFi and mobile broadband connections. Or perhaps they will favour the Blackberry Playbook, which is pitched at business users but does not have a native email or messaging client.
The Latitude ST tablet has an optional docking station, which looks handy. It will cost around £603, excluding VAT.
Dell's specifications paint a fairly pretty picture of the device. It weighs 816g, has an Atom 1.5Ghz single core Z670 processor, Intel's SM35 chipset and an Intel 600 graphics media accelerator. It comes with 2GB of RAM but can be expanded up to 64GB. It has a USB 2.0 port, SD card expansion slots and a Gorilla glass screen. µ
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Actually we tested a Fujitsu Stylistic Q550 that pretty similar specs and the 4-cell battery gave us about 6-6.5 hours of battery (with active use). Official rating is 8 hours.
"It comes with 2GB of RAM but can be expanded up to 64GB."
Oh for heavens sake, that's the SD card, not RAM. The SSD, I read elsewhere, can be up to 128 GB. Which will affect price.
As described, know what it isn't as good as (except for battery life)? The HP Slate 500 from A YEAR AGO.
So it better be cheaper.
at least they did the docking station right. This is a big step in the right direction for tablets.
So last year Dell says tablets are a dead market. Now they make one but put a cell phone/toy processor cpu in it and call it a work machine. 4 cell battery? what's that like 4 hours of actual "work" use. Why not just take one of your better laptops and put a touch screen in place of the keyboard and call it a day. At least then it will be useful for work and have a real battery. Anyone that cries about a 1 to 2 lb difference is to much of a crybaby to do real work anyways.