Dell unveils XPS Mobile Concept PC
Though it may not hit retail stores, this prototype PC model incorporates 11 Dell patents and showcases the technologies we can expect in the company's future mobile product lines. With Jeff Morris, senior product manager of Dell Asia Pacific, chaperoning the precious prototype, CNET Asia used this opportunity to find out more about some of the surprises the computer company has in store for 2006. What are the special features of the Dell XPS Mobile Concept? According to Jeff, the XPS Mobile Concept is like an F1 car which showcases seom of the technologies you can find in future Dell notebooks. In all, there are 11 patents filed for the design and technologies incorporated in the XPS Mobile Concept. Key features include: Despite the raw computing power of the unit, the removable battery is expected to give reasonable 2 hours of use and has an LED indicator to show real remaining power. This prototype model uses a 256MB ATI X1K series graphics chip and a Core Duo T2600 processor running at 2.16GHz.
The keyboard has a full-sized layout complete with numeric keypad and touchpad. Dedicated buttons are used with Dell's MediaDirect software for multimedia control. The built-in battery on the keyboard can be charged by docking the device with the main unit. The remote control and optical mouse are carried separately and uses batteries for convenience. An on/off switch allows the mouse to be turned off to save power. The remote control has an LCD display which displays the song title during music playback, and allows audio to be fully controllable in the background. An internal gyroscope allows the peripheral to synchronize cursor movements with the actual physical motion of the remote control. This feature can even be used in games such as Quake 4. Why is there no integrated TV tuner? When asked about the exclusion of the TV tuner in the Mobile Concept PC, Dell's reply was that it would restrict users to a certain TV capability. Instead, the company is working on wireless audio/visual network streaming devices that will allow accessories to be plugged directly to a TV or video feed and stream it to the PC. Another reason for not including the TV tuner is to allow more buffer space in the chassis to accommodate future CPUs and graphics processors, which are expected to get hotter as more transistors are added. In fact, the company considers the heat issue a priority when deciding on the type of hardware components in its machines.
Dell envisions that the XPS laptop will be used in homes or hostels as a complete home entertainment system. At 8kg, it is not expected to appeal to those who put a premium on portability. With a Windows XP Media Center 2005 Edition OS and high-end audio/visual capabilities, the classy design will also attract those who want an all-in-one system for their multimedia needs. What's the cost of the machine? According to Dell, the XPS Mobile Concept retail model will retail below S$7,000 (US$4,453.49). The Toshiba Qosmio G20 desktop replacement (with 17-inch monitor) currently retails for S$5,499 (US$3,498.54). Does this mean Dell will be bringing in its XPS series? Dell adopts a crawl-walk-run marketing strategy, by first looking at the region's demand for the product line. Depending on the specific needs of individual countries, it will then decide on the products that best fit the emerging trends. Without going into specifics, Dell did mention that it is looking at possibly releasing its high-end XPS notebooks in this region sometime in the middle of the year.
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