Dell Designs New Vostro for Fast-Growing Economies and Businesses

Dell today unveiled two new Vostro laptops and two desktops designed specifically to meet the needs of small businesses, governments and educational institutions operating on limited budgets in the world’s emerging economies.

• Matches affordability with quality and reliability
• Backed by specially designed support services
• Fuels commitment to emerging economies

The new Vostro laptops and desktops will be available through authorized channel partners, as well as direct from Dell in more than 20 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America.

“Within the world’s emerging economies millions of new businesses are demanding just the technology they need, at the prices they can afford, from a vendor they can trust. Today we answer that need by introducing new products that join our existing Vostro product line,” said Steve Felice, president, Dell Asia-Pacific/Japan. “Together with our partners, Dell will play an important role in bringing more technology to more people than ever before – whether in business or in the public sector. Vostro is a key building block to unleashing the potential of the Connected Era.”

The new Vostro products include two pre-configured laptops and two desktops. Additional Vostro products designed for emerging economies will be introduced in coming months. The new Vostro products being introduced today provide:

• Everyday Business Mobility – The Dell Vostro A860 laptop is an affordable 15.6-inch laptop equipped for handling everyday business tasks. This system is ideal for customers interested in transitioning from desktop to mobile computing. It offers an HD widescreen LCD with anti-glare coating, the choice of a variety of Intel processors from Celeron to Core 2 Duo and the choice of Ubuntu Linux or Microsoft Genuine Windows Vista operating systems. The laptop also offers an integrated network, modem and wireless connectivity with optional Bluetooth capabilities.
• Compact Affordability – The Dell Vostro A840 is a 14.1-inch version of the A860 laptop with an anti-glare WXGA widescreen LCD. It offers the same practical technology for mobile business computing, but for small business customers who value mobility and compact size at an affordable price offering.
• Affordable, Basic Business Computing – The Dell Vostro A180 is an affordable, practical desktop solution for everyday business computing. The system offers Intel Celeron and Pentium dual core processors to optimize office application performance and simple multi-tasking, in addition to the option of Ubuntu Linux or Microsoft Windows Vista.
• Entry-Level Productivity – The Dell Vostro A100 is a reliable, entry-level desktop designed for basic business productivity. The system comes standard with an Intel Atom processor and Ubuntu Linux operating system.

According to IDC, there are more than 72 million small businesses worldwide, with 23.4 million – nearly one-third of the global total – located in Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan). Latin America and EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa) follow with 12.5 million and 11.9 million, respectively.

Through the thousands of daily conversations Dell and its channel partners have with small businesses in these countries, Dell identified significant challenges related to the purchase, ownership and support of technology. These include:

• The prohibitive cost of technology, especially mobility.
• Product reliability and quality.
• Finding solutions that are easy to set up and maintain.
• Accessible support and services.

The new Vostro products were designed to address these needs as follows:

• Affordable : These systems enable growing businesses to increase productivity through basic business and everyday computing applications.
• Reliability : The new Vostro products reflect Dell’s reputation for high-quality standards and underwent up to 7,000 hours of rigorous reliability testing.
• Easy to maintain : The set configurations are easy to set up and maintain, delivering out-of-the-box productivity. The systems are also pre-configured with core office productivity applications and only the software customers want.
• Worry-free Dell services and support : As the technology needs for small and medium size businesses in emerging economies continues to grow, so does their need for services and support.

To help these businesses keep their systems running smoothly, Dell offers a range of services and support that includes:

• Technical support that begins with telephone diagnosis and consultation, and includes system repair or replacement if necessary.
• Easy-to-use return for repair process at Dell-certified repair facilities.
• Next business day onsite support.
• Support consultation and repair parts and labor included as part of the standard one-year limited hardware warranty.
• Accidental damage service and basic installation.

Pricing for the new Vostro products will vary by configuration.

From and For Partners

Consistent with Dell’s commitment to deliver affordable and reliable technology to emerging countries through multiple channels, the pre-configured Vostro laptops and desktops will be available primarily through a Dell local solution provider, distributor or retailer. While all products are available through Dell channel partners, this is the first time a Dell product will be available primarily through Dell channel partners in emerging countries.