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Does anyone thnk Dells need a new exterior?

post #1 of 22
11/3/06 at 11:04am
Thread Starter 
I've used Dells in the past and recently had a D620 and D820. They are good laptops, but honestly, the Dell line , which was recently refreshed, just plain looks positively boring.

The Inspiron line is very animated looking and resembles a toy in my opinion. Is it any wonder that Dell's market share is dropping. They need to refresh their exterior to compete with Apple and Sony. Sony may not be selling well, presumably because of the backlash caused by the battery recalls, but their styling is fresh and vibrant. Very modern looking compared to Dells bulky and two-tone exteriors. Obviously, the general public is reacting positively towards Apple's limited offering in laptops, but perhaps it's because of their sleek and modern exterior.

The Lattitude line is not quite as bad as the Inspiron line, but I really think they can do much better. Personally, I think the all black exterior of the Lenovo line or the charcoal exterior of the HP business models really makes the Lattitudes look cheap in comparison.

I have no doubt that the interior of the laptops is top notch, but the exterior may be what's making everyone consider Apple, Lenovo, and HP.
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post #2 of 22
11/3/06 at 6:30pm
I agree, Dell designs quite simply do not match up to the sleekness of a Sony or Apple for example... but look at the relative price tags. You pay a hefty premium for those looks. That being said, dell is due to refresh the line soon, and I would not be surprised if new models were released to coincide with quad-core and Windows Vista...

Stu
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post #3 of 22
11/3/06 at 6:59pm
This has to be about #57 on my list.. almost into couldn't care less territory. A great look certainly doesn't hurt & no doubt a sizeable minority do obsess over the colour of their palmrest. It's even a minor consideration for me. But specs & price mean a whole lot more. Dell could redesign their whole look & I'd still buy the HP that had better specs. Or vice versa. I bought an E1705 recently & yeah it was a bit ugly. So $90 later & it now has an XPS lid & palmrest. Problem solved. If looks are an all encompassing concern for you, then just buy the Mac.
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post #4 of 22
11/3/06 at 7:28pm
I feel just the opposite about the Latitude and Precisions. I think they look far better than anything HP or IBM offers. The all black Lenovo look from "1998" is tired and old.

As for the Inspirons, I'm not a fan of the white same for the Apples. I do however really like the black/silver XPS color scheme. Considering the white/silver has been around over two years I look for a change to come from Dell on the next products.
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post #5 of 22
11/4/06 at 11:41am
Thread Starter 
I think you're missing the point.

No question about it, Dell has the competition beat on "build to order" and options, but I'm intrigued by the way Apple has simplified the buying process with their limited options, extremely high prices, high quality features, and turned this into $ales.

If you compare the features of a Macbook Pro and the price to any other high quality brand, such as, Dell, HP, Lenovo, etc.; then you'd have to say that Apple is going to have a hard time making the sale. That simply has not proved to be true and so one must ponder... what is it? In my opinion, it has to be the minimalist look of the laptop. Another appearling thing has to be the small form factor... currently, I don't know of a 15.4" widescreen Windows laptop that compares to the weight of a Macbook Pro. Surely, the likes of Dell, HP, and Sony can match this, can't they?
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post #6 of 22
11/4/06 at 12:07pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by sakor1
I agree, Dell designs quite simply do not match up to the sleekness of a Sony or Apple for example... but look at the relative price tags. You pay a hefty premium for those looks. That being said, dell is due to refresh the line soon, and I would not be surprised if new models were released to coincide with quad-core and Windows Vista... Stu
Also, Dell makes some solid machines, but ive noticed some of the latitudes and budget inspirons have felt a bit cheap and flimsy. I dont like the wrist rests/touchpad flexxing when im doing work. I think they need some brand new chassis's. The budget ones need to be scrapped completely.
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post #7 of 22
11/4/06 at 12:40pm
Well, I'm not very concerned about looks. Performance was number one for me, but also durability of the laptop. The E1705 that I have does not flex in any area, because of its material (magnesium something, i think it's called), whereas the comparable HPs that I looked at had the regular plastic case that, no doubt, would flex all over. I press on the back of the screen and can't even make the screen distort at all, let's see a plastic case do that.

I'm not sure about the material of the Apples, I would guess it is not plastic (at least, I would hope not) but my point is, the Dells have tough exteriors and awesome performance at a great price (especially with coupons). And I actually don't mind the look of my Inspiron, the sparkly silver color with some white edges (on the top of the base) and a black bottom really doesn't bug me at all.
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post #8 of 22
11/4/06 at 1:56pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jjfcpa
I think you're missing the point.

No question about it, Dell has the competition beat on "build to order" and options, but I'm intrigued by the way Apple has simplified the buying process with their limited options, extremely high prices, high quality features, and turned this into $ales.

If you compare the features of a Macbook Pro and the price to any other high quality brand, such as, Dell, HP, Lenovo, etc.; then you'd have to say that Apple is going to have a hard time making the sale. That simply has not proved to be true and so one must ponder... what is it? In my opinion, it has to be the minimalist look of the laptop. Another appearling thing has to be the small form factor... currently, I don't know of a 15.4" widescreen Windows laptop that compares to the weight of a Macbook Pro. Surely, the likes of Dell, HP, and Sony can match this, can't they?

Apple does make a pretty system, I have used the new Intel Mac books and they are not that much of an improvement of the Dell counterparts, in fact the Latitudes are actualy built better from what I could tell. What really sells the Apple system is the operating system. However Apple is not really competing against Dell for the most part, Apple actually lost world wide market share in the first half of this year, they went from 2.2 percent down to 2 percent. I think Dell is losing its market share to the likes of Lenovo and HP. More time will tell but I think with the XPS line expanding and with the introduction of the AMD based systems I think Dell is poised to take back some of its market share. I think when SantaRosa is released early next year we will see new designs from Dell that might improve the Inspiron cosmetics, I also think we will see an increase in XPS products and sales.
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post #9 of 22
11/4/06 at 3:06pm
I think it's about time they give a new look to the Inspiron line.
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post #10 of 22
11/4/06 at 3:49pm
I just replaced my Vaio BX540 with a E1405. While the magnesium alloy case on the BX was nice, overall, the Dell is head and shoulders better in every aspect.

Where Dell needs to pay more attention is in the sub-notebook area. The 700M/710M/1210M are nice, but look at Sony's and Apple's 12" and 13" notebooks. Their design is simply amazing. The Lenovo X series are also great, but the gap between that and the Dell isn't quite as large.

I do like the current silver/white/black design on the Inspiron line. But then again, I've only had my E1405 for a week....
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post #11 of 22
11/4/06 at 4:06pm
Sadly... the look of the E1705 is the only thing keeping me from purchasing one for college. That and the lack of GPU power in the E1505.
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post #12 of 22
11/4/06 at 11:08pm
I couldn't agree with you more. Dell's pricing is good, sure, but its not so good that I am tempted to carry around the bulky, fugly Inspirons. And when you upgrade to the latitude line, there is a huge price jump because all of a sudden dell needs better quality. Having been an owner of two Dell computers, I must say that they don't stack up very well with other companies.
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post #13 of 22
11/4/06 at 11:56pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by ricky28269
Well, I'm not very concerned about looks. Performance was number one for me, but also durability of the laptop. The E1705 that I have does not flex in any area, because of its material (magnesium something, i think it's called), whereas the comparable HPs that I looked at had the regular plastic case that, no doubt, would flex all over. I press on the back of the screen and can't even make the screen distort at all, let's see a plastic case do that.

I'm not sure about the material of the Apples, I would guess it is not plastic (at least, I would hope not) but my point is, the Dells have tough exteriors and awesome performance at a great price (especially with coupons). And I actually don't mind the look of my Inspiron, the sparkly silver color with some white edges (on the top of the base) and a black bottom really doesn't bug me at all.

I had a 9300 (which I think the E1705 is based on) and I'd hardly call that a laptop.. it's more like a luggable. It's too bulky, too heavy, and looks like something a student might purchase, but definitely not a professional.

I don't know why everyone wants to talk about durability of their laptops. Chances are you'll replace it long before it wears out.

And why does everyone worry about screen distortion when they push on the top of the case? How many times a day does that happen?

I wouldn't touch an Inspiron right now the way they look. I'd rather buy a Macbook Pro and run Parallels just for the lightweight and "cool" factor.
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post #14 of 22
11/5/06 at 12:01am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by yellowlt4
Apple does make a pretty system, I have used the new Intel Mac books and they are not that much of an improvement of the Dell counterparts, in fact the Latitudes are actualy built better from what I could tell. What really sells the Apple system is the operating system. However Apple is not really competing against Dell for the most part, Apple actually lost world wide market share in the first half of this year, they went from 2.2 percent down to 2 percent. I think Dell is losing its market share to the likes of Lenovo and HP. More time will tell but I think with the XPS line expanding and with the introduction of the AMD based systems I think Dell is poised to take back some of its market share. I think when SantaRosa is released early next year we will see new designs from Dell that might improve the Inspiron cosmetics, I also think we will see an increase in XPS products and sales.

I know a lot of people are putting off buying anything till Vista comes out. No doubt a lot of people will have to upgrade to run Vista, but from the stats I've seen, Apple's market share increased quite a bit in the 3rd quarter. According to what I've read, they sold more computers in the 3rd quarter than anytime in their history, and the 3rd quarter was up 35% year over year in sales dollars. And we're not talking cheap laptops for what you get.

People didn't want to take a chance on switching to OS X prior to the change over to the Intel processors and Parallels / Boot Camp. Now they are willing to take a chance and let's face it, when you have someone like Leo Laporte (Mr. Podcaster of the year) recommending an Apple over a PC, people are starting to listen.
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post #15 of 22
11/5/06 at 1:18am
Quote:
Originally Posted by jmanjohns
I couldn't agree with you more. Dell's pricing is good, sure, but its not so good that I am tempted to carry around the bulky, fugly Inspirons. And when you upgrade to the latitude line, there is a huge price jump because all of a sudden dell needs better quality. Having been an owner of two Dell computers, I must say that they don't stack up very well with other companies.
I CANNOT agree with most of you, I like the Dell Style, and the prices, I have a Gateway (RIP) and I had a Compaq, the Compaq was a piece of junk, it felt cheap and the touch pad was unusable in 3 weeks due to the coating wearing off. The HP's Ive seen are no better, Junky looking and not as tough, Toshiba makes a solid machine as does sony, but sony's are really $$$ yes Macs are nice but man, half the software I like I could not use on a Mac (It's a windows world) SO why beat up on Dell, if you want you can Skin them, or just buy an Alien.

Anyway what do you all want? If dell continues to price the way they have, they sell computers, if not they end up like Gateway, boring notebooks and higher price not better features than anyone else, My gateway I did like and when I bought it, it was a good deal at the time but the silver on it just rubbed off the palm rest, I now use the removable book covering plastic to protect my palm rests.

So Lets email Dell suggest to them some cool designs and realize cost is #1 ( at least for me)
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post #16 of 22
11/5/06 at 3:01pm
Yep, I think the HP dv2000/dv6000 line is much sleeker (although it has the dumb design of not allowing the screen to open all the way flat and the touchpad being too slippery) along w/ the built-in mic/webcam. This attracts consumers a lot more and has almost mac-sleek design qualities. The Dell Inspirons are definitely clunky looking in comparison...
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post #17 of 22
11/5/06 at 9:20pm
Thread Starter 
The XPS line is probably the most attractive model that they have, but there is nothing in the "sweet spot" of LCD sizes (14" - 15.4"). They go from the 1210 (12.1") to 1710 (17") and that really leaves a huge gap where they have nothing but an ugly Inpiron or Lattitude to offer.
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post #18 of 22
11/5/06 at 10:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by gridtalker
The exterior of the XPS is great
No, the exterior of my M170 looks great. The red and black themes on the 1710 are just plain ugly. The interior adds to the ugliness factor. I mean, wheres the black? Wheres the danger?
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post #19 of 22
11/6/06 at 12:08am
I agree. Dell has milked the 9200/9300 look for far too long. I also wish they used different types of DVD burners. For example, why do the size/make of the DVD burner for 700m is about the same size as the 9300? I want to see a slot loading drive. I also want a thinner/lighter 700m type laptop that does not have alot of fan noise. The 13.3" mac laptop is pretty quiet. While I am a Dell fan, my next laptop may not be a dell due to their lack of style.
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post #20 of 22
11/7/06 at 6:38pm
Thread Starter 
Read PC Mag's review of the Macbook Pro and then tell me that Dell doesn't need a facelift.

Here's a summary...

ow that the Intel Core 2 Duo has arrived in the MacBook Pro 15-inch, I don't anticipate another processor upgrade for a long while—which is a relief, because now you can go out and buy the new laptop without worrying that you'll get shafted by another processor update. With the improvement of Boot Camp Beta and third-party software such as Parallels Desktop, you have the option to run Windows more efficiently than ever before. And the MacBook Pro's heat issues aren't any worse than those of Windows-based laptops, so why not go with the sexiest design out there? The Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Core 2 Duo) offers the performance and features of the best laptops on the market.

********************

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2051320,00.asp
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