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Computer maker Dell is taking yet another step into the Android device segment, as it prepares to ship Project Ophelia. Ophelia is a thumb-sized USB device that contains hardware that runs Google's mobile operating system, and it plugs into a television to turn any HDTV into a smart device. It should begin shipping in July of this year for a price of $100.
Dell today announced fiscal 2014 first quarter results, with revenue of $14.1 billion, as the company grew revenue from Enterprise Solutions, Services and Software 12 percent year over year to $5.5 billion, or 8 percent growth, excluding the recent acquisition of Quest Software. The company earned $0.21 per share, not quite meeting Wall Street estimates.
Dell today announced an expanded and stronger Dell Precision workstation portfolio that includes the company's smallest tower workstation chassis in the Dell Precision T1700 small form-factor (SFF), a more powerful Dell Precision T1700 Mini-Tower, and Dell's most powerful rack workstation, the Dell Precision R7610.
Dell has lowered the price of its Windows RT tablet from $449 to $299. The drop in price of the XPS 10 slate, possibly due to the underwhelming sales of Windows RT-based tablets across the industry, is accompanied by discounted additions to the tablet, including the keyboard dock and doubling the internal storage.
After nearly a year following announcement, Dell has begun shipping its hybrid desktop PC and Windows 8 tablet -- the XPS 18. This 18-inch full Windows device has been in Electronista's hands for a few days now, and we've taken some time off to put it through its paces.
Investor Carl Icahn and Southeastern Asset Management have proposed a new offer to Dell shareholders, who are considering a proposal by founder Michael Dell's group of investors, including Microsoft, to purchase existing shares at $13.65 each in order to take the company private. In a letter to Dell's board of directors, Icahn and Southeastern are counter-proposing a deal to give all Dell shareholders the option to retain shares in the company, plus take an additional $12 a share in cash or stock.
Dell has introduced a new budget notebook aimed at students and businesses, as well as a storage system for the education market. The Latitude 3330 is a lightweight notebook with a 13.3-inch, 1,366x768-resolution display, while the new Mobile Computing Cart can be used to securely store and transport up to 30 notebooks at the same time.
Carl Icahn is continuing his quest to take a part in the future of Dell, or at least make a hefty profit off the effort the company is making to go private. The investor is refusing to rule out the possibility of a proxy fight to compel Dell to pay a large dividend to shareholders, despite the board's request that he cease the threat and make a formal bid for the company.
Dell's Alienware venue for premium gaming PC's has revealed that it is making Ubuntu available on a line of compact desktop units. Alienware X51 customers can select from either Windows of Ubuntu when purchasing a new machine. Systems pre-loaded with Ubuntu Linux retail for about $100 less than a Windows counterpart.
In a preliminary proxy statement issued to shareholders on Friday, Dell warned that it would be a risky path for the company to take a lot of debt and remain public, assuming existing profit levels and market trends remain the same. The 274-page statement informs Dell shareholders of how the Silver Lake Partners deal was assembled, and why it feels the deal is the best of all the alternatives before the shareholders.
According to reports, Dell has received two or more offers opposing the $24.4 billion deal on the table to take the company private. As expected, the Blackstone Group submitted a preliminary offer prior to Saturday's expiration, under the terms of the "go shop" clause in the agreement, which allowed Dell to seek other suitors. A second offer was received by investor Carl Icahn who purchased a large block of shares a few weeks ago.
According to a report on Bloomberg, the Blackstone Group -- a rival to Silver Lake Partners -- is planning a competitive bid for Dell. Under the "go-shop" provision of the buyout deal floated by Silver Lake and investors (including Michael Dell himself), Dell's board of directors has through March 22 to seek better offers for the companies, and can still negotiate with suitors past that date if it receives a serious offer.
Dell has introduced its most interesting and innovative Windows 8 device to date. The new XPS 18 all-in-one is both a desktop PC as well as a large Windows 8 tablet that includes a built-in 69Whr battery good for up to 5 hours use. It is also a relatively manageable 4.87 pounds, which Dell says helps to ‘redefine the desktop.’
New Dell investor Carl Icahn has agreed to sign the confidentiality agreement in order to allow access to the company's financial information. The investor is part of a larger group intending on torpedoing the current offer of $13.65 per share to take the company private. Dell's stock currently stands at $14.27, climbing on the news of Icahn's involvement in negotiations.
As previously reported, Carl Icahn has recently purchased millions of shares of stock in computer manufacturer Dell ahead of an attempt to take the company private. Since the report of the purchase, he has demanded Dell pay $15.7 billion in special dividends above the buyout price. Icahn's proposed dividend of $9 per share represents a 67 percent premium to existing shareholders above the current $13.65 offer on the table for the leveraged buyout proposed by Michael Dell, Microsoft, and investment company Silver Lake.
Investor Carl Icahn has recently purchased 100 million shares of Dell, giving him a six percent stake in the company. While Icahn himself has no comment on his intention, sources familiar with the situation have claimed that he has met with advisors to Dell's special committee, and have urged them to pursue a one-time dividend to shareholders. Additionally, Icahn is likely to throw in with Southeastern Asset Management's opposition to the deal to take the company private.
Opposing Dell's bid to go private, Southeastern Asset Management has called for "straightforward information" from Dell in regards to its finances on behalf of Longleaf Partners Fund. The firm says that Dell executive silence about the deal during February earnings are leading to a bad deal for shareholders. Southeastern has suggested several alternatives to the plan which would be a better deal for shareholders, including the company broken up and the disparate business units sold individually -- similar to what Michael Dell proposed for Apple's fate in the late 90s.
Dell has announced the availability of the Dell Wireless Dock, a docking solution based on the multi-gigabit Tri-Band Wi-Fi standard (WiGig), compatible with the Dell Latitude 6430u Ultrabook. The new WiGig standard achieves speeds up to 10 times that of today’s fastest Wi-Fi networks, allowing for two external displays with both DisplayPort and HDMI, peripheral connectivity via three USB 3.0 ports, and a front Audio In/Out port.
Dell today deployed the Latitude 10 with an enhanced security configuration -- a business-ready tablet designed to address the security challenges faced by the nature of the mobile devices. The Dell Latitude 10 is aimed at highly-regulated industries such as government agencies, financial institutions and healthcare organizations, meeting the encyption and security requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, and the Federal Information Processing Standard.
Dell announced fiscal 2013 fourth quarter and full-year results today, with revenue of $14.3 billion for the quarter, with an 11 percent drop from the same time period last year. Profit fell as well, with a net income of $530 million, marking a 31 percent drop year-over-year. Dell ended the fiscal year with $15.3 billion in cash and investments.
Google increased the amount it spent on lobbying the US government 90 percent year-over-year in 2012, according to data compiled by Fortune. The company ended up spending $18.22 million, easily beating out any other American technology firm. Microsoft, in fact, came in second place with $8.09 million, despite likewise increasing its spending. Other major tech businesses that funneled more money toward lobbying last year included HP, Facebook, and Amazon.
Dell today announced the availability of a new flagship monitor -- the U3014 30-inch display. The U3014 is noted by Dell as its largest screen size to date, and ships with the company's PremierColor feature for accurate, customizable colors that cover industry standards with a large color gamut.
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission discussing its controversial $24.4 billion plan to go private, Dell claims that it "considered an array of strategic alternatives" prior to the decision. Additionally, the company hired a "prominent management consultant" to build the best plan for Dell's future. Regulatory agencies must approve the deal, and shareholders must vote to sell, with a simple majority required. Several major shareholders have expressed reservations about the deal, or outright said that they would vote against the offer.
According to a report on Reuters, several major shareholders and investment companies with money tied up in Dell stock are having issues with the terms of the deal offered to take Dell public. Southeastern Asset Management owns 7.5 percent of the company and has allegedly told the company that it is "disturbed" by the $13.65 per share offer, believing that the company is worth at least $20 per share despite recent stock pricing.
Dell is being withdrawn from public sale and will become a privately held company. A definitive merger agreement signed today sees company founder, chairman, and CEO Michael Dell partnering with technology investment firm Silver Lake to acquire the company. The transaction is valued at approximately $24.4 billion.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Dell's board of directors is planning to meet tonight to vote on an offer to take the company private. The offer, valued at $24 billion, would make the deal the largest leveraged buyout in five years. As reported, Silver Lake Management LLC will invest more than $1 billion in the deal, and Microsoft is injecting $2 billion. CEO Michael Dell will include his 15.7 percent share of the business, and an additional $700 million, giving him a majority stake in the company.
Dell has reportedly moved forward with negotiations to go private, with a finalized deal expected as early as this weekend, unnamed sources have told Reuters. A buyout consortium headed by CEO Michael Dell and private equity firm Silver Lake Partners is said to be preparing to pay $13 to $14 per share, which would result in a maximum buyout price of approximately $24.4 billion.
Microsoft is reportedly considering placing a significant investment in Dell, following reports that the computer maker is attempting to go private. Unnamed sources have told CNBC that Microsoft may be preparing to take a stake worth $1 billion to $3 billion, though the leveraged buyout is still expected to be dominated by a private equity firm.
More information has begun to surface on the rumors of Dell's potential transition to a privately-held company. According to the Wall Street Journal, a combined group of investors are in discussion with Dell for a leveraged buyout, offering between $13 and $14 per share. The group includes Silver Lake Partners spearheading the deal, at least one other investor, and Michael Dell himself.
Preliminary PC shipment data produced by Gartner shows that Apple has held on to the number three position in the US market in the fourth quarter of 2012. Although PC shipments declined in the US by 2.1 percent year over year dropping to 17.5 million units, Apple managed to boost its sales by 5.4 percent over its 2011 fourth quarter results. HP retained its number one position in the US, boosting its sales by 12.6 percent, while Dell retained second position but went backwards with 16.5 percent fewer sales for the quarter.
Computer manufacturer Dell saw its shares rise sharply today on news that the company is in talks to go private. As of the close of the trading day on Monday, Dell shares were trading on NASDAQ at $12.29, up 12.96 percent, though shares were up nearly 18 percent earlier in the day due to rumors that the company was in talks with a number of private equity firms for a possible buyout. Dell, still a significant player in the PC market, has faced declining profits and slumping shipments along with most other PC manufacturers as consumers increasingly opt for smartphones and tablets over traditional computing form factors.
Shipments of personal computers have continued to decline, according to market analyst firm Gartner. Sales have declined in the fourth quarter in 2012 by 4.9-percent compared to the same period in 2011, with a combination of the weak global economy and the availability of cheap and accessible tablets reportedly to blame.
Dell has created a budget version of its Latitude 10 Windows 8 tablet for more price-conscious customers. The new essentials level offers a configuration that drops some aspects of the original, such as being able to remove the battery or have support for a Wacom active stylus, in order to put the slate's price down to as low as $500.
Dell has revealed updated versions of its Inspiron notebook product line at CES. Customers in the United States, Canada, and other countries will be able to buy notebooks that, following feedback from users, have higher battery capacities and ultra-low voltage versions of Intel Core i3, i5, and i7 processors, requiring half the power of those used in Inspiron notebooks last year.
A Dell executive urged Microsoft to not use Windows branding for its ARM-based operating system, according to reports. Jeffrey Clarke of Dell apparently told Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer that it should have been called something else other than Windows RT, but Ballmer deemed the Windows brand to be too important to not be used in the new devices.
In an amicus curae ("friend of the court") brief filed on Friday by Google, Facebook, and six other tech companies, the unlikely allies have asked the courts to reject all lawsuits based on patents with unclear concepts instead of specific information and applications. Cosigned by, Dell, Homeaway, Intuit, Rackspace, Redhat, and Zynga, the brief implies that there is a great risk to the technology industry if such lawsuits are allowed to continue.
Dell’s long anticipated XPS 13 ultrabook with Ubuntu is finally on sale. First announced in late July, it is the first premium ultrabook to feature Linux pre-installed instead of Windows. The XPS 13 is the culmination of Dell’s Project Sputnik initiative, which aimed to bring a Developer Edition of its ultrabook running Ubuntu 12.04LTS “Precise Pangolin.”
Environmental activism group Greenpeace has downgraded Apple in its 18th annual Guide to Green Electronics. The slip to sixth place is blamed on a "lack of transparency" with several issues, namely "GHG [greenhouse gas] emission reporting, clean energy advocacy, further information on its [Apple's] management of toxic chemicals, and details on post-consumer recycled plastic use."
Dell's fiscal 2013 third quarter results were announced today. Earnings came in slightly below analyst estimates, with revenue of $13.7 billion (compared to an expected $13.89 billion), operating income of $589 million, and GAAP earnings of $0.27 per share. Highlights of the report include server and networking revenue increasing by 11 percent, large enterprise revenue falling eight percent, and general public revenue dropping 11 percent. However, profits were off by 47 percent, in part due to declining PC sales.
Wilocity, developer of 60 GHz multi-gigabit wireless chipsets, announced today that it is jointly providing tri-band wireless chipsets with Qualcomm Atheros, for Dell's first WiGig enabled Ultrabook for business, the Latitude 6430u. Dell announced the Latitude 6430u last week and demonstrated its multi-gigabit wireless docking and networking capabilities at the Windows 8 launch attended by Dell and Microsoft executives in New York City.
Bringing full Windows 8 compatibility to older gear, Dell has unveiled the 23-inch S2340T display. The new display features 1080p resolution, flexible positioning with an articulated stand, and supports up to 10 points of simultaneous multitouch on an edge-to-edge glass panel.
Dell announced today two new all-in-one devices that will be released along with Windows 8. Both the XPS One 27 and the Inspiron One 23 feature touchscreen technology to take advantage of Microsoft's new touch-enabled operating system. The XPS One 27 has a 27-inch wide quad Hi-Def screen that outputs at 2560x1440. one configuration sports an Intel Core i5-3330s processor clocked at up to 3.2GHz and 6GB of Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM. The other has an Intel Core i7-3770s processor clocked at up to 3.9GHz, 8GB RAM, and an NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M graphics processor with 2GB DDR5 memory.
Dell has put a number of its previously-revealed computers up for pre-order. The XPS 12 convertible tablet notebook, XPS One 27 All-In-One, and the Inspiron One 23 Windows 8-enabled systems are all set to ship soon after the Microsoft operating system release at the end of October.
Fingerprint technology company AuthenTec will be cutting off all of its non-Apple customers starting in 2013, a Korean report says. This includes companies like Samsung, HP, Dell, Lenovo, and Fujitsu. Apple bought out AuthenTec in July, and as is normally the case for the company, the acquisition appears to have been solely to support its own products. AuthenTec clients are allegedly "in a state of panic" about the situation, since they now have to find alternate suppliers for fingerprint scanning.
Dell has unveiled a new S Series of displays. All five models feature 178-degree vertical and horizontal wide viewing angles, in-plane switching panel technology. Included in the new displays is the Dell Image Enhance feature, said to improve visual quality. The Dell Display Manager allows fast access to software such as Auto Mode, which lets users select the preferred preset mode for specific applications.
Building seven of the Dell Round Rock, TX international headquarters came under gunfire Monday night, though no employees or bystanders were harmed in the assaunlt. Three windows were struck by small-arms fine from an assailant on a bicycle who evaded a police blockade and a helicopter search. No injuries were reported, no arrests have been made, and investigators have discovered no apparent motive in the shooting.
Dell has revived its Duo line with the launch of the XPS Duo 12 for Windows 8. The company had previously launched the Inspiron Duo featuring a similar flip hinge design, as a convertible netbook running the less touch friendly Windows 7. The all-new XPS Duo 12, however, is a much more premium product incorporating top-tier materials including machined aluminum, carbon fiber as well as Corning Gorilla Glass.
Dell announced its fiscal 2013 second-quarter results today, revealing that the company's consumer segment took a considerable hit versus the same quarter last year. The company saw steady growth in its enterprise solutions and services sector, as well as in its networking and storage divisions. The consumer sector, though, continues to suffer as the company continues its transition to an enterprise-focused model.
Dell Japan has revealed its first 27-inch display using "advanced high-performance" IPS (AH-IPS) tech. The UltraSharp U2713HM is claimed to offer improved colors and higher clarity over other IPS systems, with a 37 percent drop in energy consumption compared to its predecessor, the UltraSharp U2711.
Today, Dell announced a three-model expansion to its Precision mobile workstation lineup—the M4700, the M6700, and the specialty Covet model. All three models are intended for desktop replacements, and are certified for many of the major vertical-market applications for CAD/CAM and engineering.
