Dell shows its new ultraslim Adamo laptop

Dell on Friday stripped the tease surrounding its upcoming Adamo computer, revealing it to be a lightweight laptop, which could make it a possible competitor to Apple's MacBook Air.

The laptop has an ultraslim design that makes it easy to hold, as demonstrated by an on-stage model who held it with a few fingers. Adamo was shown during a press briefing at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

It won't be just a laptop, but a whole new brand name of luxury products, said Michael Tatelman, vice president of global consumer sales and marketing at Dell.

"There's things and products that you like, and there's things and products that you love. Adamo ... will be the new luxury franchise in the Dell brand lineup," said Tatelman.

The company did not reveal further specifications of the laptop, other than saying Adamo represented the best of Dell's craftsmanship, performance and design. More product details will be revealed at a later date and the product will ship this quarter.

Company officials dodged many questions about Adamo posed by the press, but Tatelman said the company showed it to address rumors surrounding the product.

Speculation around Adamo heated up late last year when news media and observers said Adamo was an ultraportable laptop that was the company's response to Apple's Macbook Air. Dell also leaked out accessories for an ultraportable laptop called Adamo Thirteen, which pointed to a laptop with a 13-inch screen in line with Dell's branding conventions. The company already offers the Inspiron Mini 9, which has a 9-inch screen, and Inspiron Mini 12, which has a 12-inch screen.

Besides dodging Adamo rumors, Dell also provided a glimpse at what consumers can expect to see in its products this year. The company is working on adding touch-screen capabilities as it gears up to support Microsoft's upcoming Windows 7 OS.

"As you see the rollout of Windows 7, you will also see us expand our portfolio with touch capability on both our all-in-one families -- Studio One product lines -- as well as into the ... laptop arena over time," Tatelman said.

Microsoft on Wednesday said that Windows 7 would come with multitouch capabilities so users can take advantage of touch-screen monitors to make PCs more interactive. Microsoft announced the release of the Windows 7 beta at CES on Wednesday, and the end product is scheduled for release in late 2009 or early 2010.

Dell also announced the Mini 10 netbook, which will include a 10-inch screen and a full-sized keyboard. It will also have some unique mobile features like GPS (global positioning system) capabilities and a built-in TV tuner, which will allow users to watch broadcast TV on the go. The tuner supports certain standards in the U.S., Western Europe, Japan and China.

The netbook will be based on Intel's Atom Z-series processor and is scheduled for release in the next few months. Pricing information was not immediately available. Dell already offers Mini notebooks with 9-inch and 12-inch screens.

The company also said it will offer the Mini 9 for US$99 on its Web site along with a two-year subscription to AT&T's mobile broadband network in the U.S. It also announced the Dell Download Store, an online store where users can download music, movies and software.

SMS: Dell broke its silence on Adamo, showing the ultraslim laptop during a press event at CES.

IDG News Service

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