Dell aims new systems and services at corporate users

by Linda Rosencrance

December 7, 2000 —

Dell Computer Corp. today announced a series
of new servers and customer service offerings in a bid to broaden its appeal as an
enterprise-level vendor for corporate users.

Dell said it's aiming to beef up its ability to run internal and external Web sites
as well as high-end database applications and other corporate processing jobs. Included
among the moves detailed today is the planned addition of a
32-processor server made by Unisys Corp. that will be marketed for use in
applications "that require significant computing horsepower," said Michael Lambert,
senior vice president of Dell's enterprise systems group.

Dell becomes the fourth server vendor to sign on to resell Unisys' ES7000
machine, which currently is the only system that can take full advantage of the
32-processor scalability built into Microsoft Corp.'s new high-end Windows 2000
Datacenter
operating system.
Hewlett-Packard Co., Compaq Computer Corp. and Fujitsu Ltd.'s U.K.-based ICL subsidiary
previously announced plans to offer the ES7000.

Dell, which will market the ES7000 under PowerEdge brand name, said it plans to make
the 32-processor system available in the first quarter of next year. Pricing on the
machine wasn't disclosed.

In addition, Round Rock, Texas-based Dell announced two new
rack-mounted servers targeted at uses involving Internet and intranet applications. The
PowerEdge 1550 is due to ship in January at a starting price of $2,599, while the
PowerEdge 350 is slated to be available in February with a base price of $1,499.

Dell also detailed plans to expand its portfolio
of consulting and support services aimed at corporate users. The new offerings include
infrastructure assessment and implementation services for companies installing
e-commerce applications based on Windows 2000 and a packaged e-commerce design and
deployment setup for users looking to do a rapid deployment.

Computerworld