Dell's Mini 10 launching on or around February 27th?

We'd be highly skeptical of this one (in fact, we actually are highly skeptical), but we've seen a Dell rep or two speak the truth before. To that end, we figured it prudent to pass along Sir Paul Synnott's recent chat with an online Dell UK representative. Upon asking for more details on the future release of the Mini 10 netbook -- you know, that machine that was unveiled at CES and then promptly forgotten? -- he was amazingly hit back with a definitive ship date: February 27th. He was also told that the power adapter would be a "smaller one, as with the Mini 9," and that pricing was yet to be determined. We know, it reeks of fish, but the date itself doesn't sound all that outlandish. Guess we'll just have to wait and see, eh?

Hark! Dell Mini 12 kitted with an SSD

Like a proclamation from On High come the words: "Rejoice! No longer do you have to put up with a slow dell Mini 12!" The kids over at Portable Monkey have taken a good look at Mtron's 1.8-inch SSD (the inelegantly named MSD-PATA3018032-ZIF2 is going for ?26,800 -- about $294) and not surprisingly, the thing has far out-classed the Mini 12's default 4200rpm HDD in benchmarks. On the other hand, the drive does draw a considerable bit of power, so battery life may be an issue -- and at a height of 8 millimeters (as opposed to 5 millimeters for the standard drive) some folks have had a hard time installing the thing. Are you the type of person who gets giddy at the prospect of souping up your hardware? We thought so. Hit the read link for all the juicy deets.

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Dell XT2 specs and availability leaked, launching on Weds?

It's been a long, long time since the first information about Dell's update to the venerable XT convertible tablet snuck out of Texas, and while we got some choice morsels of information last month, we were still missing any semblance of a release date (that original November 2008 target proved to be a bit optimistic). Now we have what could be the official spec sheet for the series and a date to boot, confirming much of what we'd heard before, like your choice of 1.2GHz SU9300 or 1.4GHz SU9400 Intel Core 2 Duo CPUs, a 12.1-inch multitouch display, up to 5GB of DDR3 memory, and either 80GB worth of platters or 64GB of SSD. Base weight is 3.62 pounds, just over the 3.5 pound target the company had been aiming for, and if this source is correct the machine will be getting an official unveiling on February 11 -- close enough that we'd advise holding off on any other tablet purchases for a few days.

• dell 's Mini 9 selling for just $249 -- who needs a subsidy?

Dell's Mini 9 selling for just $249 -- who needs a subsidy?

mini s>If you thought last month's $99 Mini 9 was just too cheap (unlikely), or were scared off by the two year contract that came along with the offer (rather more likely), check out Dell's latest deal. The company is selling its lowest-spec Mini 9n, offering 512MB of memory and Ubuntu installed on a 4GB SSD, for just $249. That's $100 less one went for for last September. Can't live without Windows? You'll still need to pony up another $50, but will at least get an extra 4GB of storage out of the deal. Surely one of these two bargain portables will fit into your budget and your lifestyle, but don't spend too long deciding which -- this deal expires on February 12.

• Dell's Mini 12 netbook dissected for your viewing pleasure

Dell's Mini 12 netbook dissected for your viewing pleasure

It's taken quite awhile for someone to gather up the courage to do it, but at long last, Dell's cutesy Mini 12 has been stripped of its dignity and dissected for the world to see. Honestly, there isn't much in this netbook that you haven't already seen in similar alternatives, but those unable to resist the allure of undressed gadgets will still want to give the read link a visit. Or two, depending on your level of self-restraint.

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Dell to take $280 million fourth-quarter charge

When Dell reports its fiscal 2009 fourth-quarter earnings next month, there will be some hefty pre-tax charges, the PC maker said Wednesday. The charges will cover relocating some of its manufacturing and distribution operations by fiscal year 2011 and accelerating the vesting of stock options that were previously awarded. Dell, which will announce its fourth-quarter results on February 26, said it expects the pre-tax charge will be for $280 million, or 11 cents a share. In its filing with the SEC, Dell said the cost-reduction measures were part of its plan announced in March to reduce its expenses by $3 billion. The company says there will be more cost-cutting measures during fiscal year 2010, which begins January 31.

Dell to take $280 million fourth-quarter charge

When Dell reports its fiscal 2009 fourth-quarter earnings next month, there will be some hefty pre-tax charges, the PC maker said Wednesday. The charges will cover relocating some of its manufacturing and distribution operations by fiscal year 2011 and accelerating the vesting of stock options that were previously awarded. Dell, which will announce its fourth-quarter results on February 26, said it expects the pre-tax charge will be for $280 million, or 11 cents a share. In its filing with the SEC, Dell said the cost-reduction measures were part of its plan announced in March to reduce its expenses by $3 billion. The company says there will be more cost-cutting measures during fiscal year 2010, which begins January 31.

Dell to take $280 million fourth-quarter charge

When Dell reports its fiscal 2009 fourth-quarter earnings next month, there will be some hefty pre-tax charges, the PC maker said Wednesday. The charges will cover relocating some of its manufacturing and distribution operations by fiscal year 2011 and accelerating the vesting of stock options that were previously awarded. Dell, which will announce its fourth-quarter results on February 26, said it expects the pre-tax charge will be for $280 million, or 11 cents a share. In its filing with the SEC, Dell said the cost-reduction measures were part of its plan announced in March to reduce its expenses by $3 billion. The company says there will be more cost-cutting measures during fiscal year 2010, which begins January 31.

Dude, Putin is so not getting a Dell

Many have by now learned that Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is a bit, uh, prickly. But Michael dell found out first hand at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday. During the opening of the show, Putin gave a wide-ranging, 40-minute speech. When it came time for questions, Dell asked "How can we help" you with your country's IT infrastructure, according to a report in Fortune. Putin immediately rebuffed the PC company's founder. "We don't need your help. We are not invalids. We don't have limited mental capacity," Putin responded. (I think the only appropriate response to that is, "Oh, snap!") Now, I wasn't there, but it's highly unlikely this is anything close to what Dell was suggesting. Fortune writes that the "slapdown took many of the people in the audience by surprise." Um, rightfully so. But that wasn't the end of Putin's verbal judo attack on Dell and his company. Near the conclusion of his talk he reportedly talked up Russian scientists and how they are "respected not for their hardware, but for their software." Double snap. It's worth noting that Davos can be a humbling place for Dell. My CNET News colleague Ina Fried was at Davos back in 2000 and remembers the sight of Dell flipping slides for a fellow tech executive when the two were part of a panel. The look on Dell's face was priceless. Evidently slide jockey is not a role he coveted. Update: The video showed up on YouTube. Here it is:

• Dell to take $280 million fourth-quarter charge

Dell to take $280 million fourth-quarter charge

When Dell reports its fiscal 2009 fourth-quarter earnings next month, there will be some hefty pre-tax charges, the PC maker said Wednesday. The charges will cover relocating some of its manufacturing and distribution operations by fiscal year 2011 and accelerating the vesting of stock options that were previously awarded. Dell, which will announce its fourth-quarter results on February 26, said it expects the pre-tax charge will be for $280 million, or 11 cents a share. In its filing with the SEC, Dell said the cost-reduction measures were part of its plan announced in March to reduce its expenses by $3 billion. The company says there will be more cost-cutting measures during fiscal year 2010, which begins January 31.

Dell to take $280 million fourth-quarter charge

When Dell reports its fiscal 2009 fourth-quarter earnings next month, there will be some hefty pre-tax charges, the PC maker said Wednesday. The charges will cover relocating some of its manufacturing and distribution operations by fiscal year 2011 and accelerating the vesting of stock options that were previously awarded. Dell, which will announce its fourth-quarter results on February 26, said it expects the pre-tax charge will be for $280 million, or 11 cents a share. In its filing with the SEC, Dell said the cost-reduction measures were part of its plan announced in March to reduce its expenses by $3 billion. The company says there will be more cost-cutting measures during fiscal year 2010, which begins January 31.

Dude, Putin is so not getting a Dell

Many have by now learned that Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is a bit, uh, prickly. But Michael dell found out first hand at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday. During the opening of the show, Putin gave a wide-ranging, 40-minute speech. When it came time for questions, Dell asked "How can we help" you with your country's IT infrastructure, according to a report in Fortune. Putin immediately rebuffed the PC company's founder. "We don't need your help. We are not invalids. We don't have limited mental capacity," Putin responded. (I think the only appropriate response to that is, "Oh, snap!") Now, I wasn't there, but it's highly unlikely this is anything close to what Dell was suggesting. Fortune writes that the "slapdown took many of the people in the audience by surprise." Um, rightfully so. But that wasn't the end of Putin's verbal judo attack on Dell and his company. Near the conclusion of his talk he reportedly talked up Russian scientists and how they are "respected not for their hardware, but for their software." Double snap. It's worth noting that Davos can be a humbling place for Dell. My CNET News colleague Ina Fried was at Davos back in 2000 and remembers the sight of Dell flipping slides for a fellow tech executive when the two were part of a panel. The look on Dell's face was priceless. Evidently slide jockey is not a role he coveted. Update: The video showed up on YouTube. Here it is:

• Dell to take $280 million fourth-quarter charge

Dell to take $280 million fourth-quarter charge

When Dell reports its fiscal 2009 fourth-quarter earnings next month, there will be some hefty pre-tax charges, the PC maker said Wednesday. The charges will cover relocating some of its manufacturing and distribution operations by fiscal year 2011 and accelerating the vesting of stock options that were previously awarded. Dell, which will announce its fourth-quarter results on February 26, said it expects the pre-tax charge will be for $280 million, or 11 cents a share. In its filing with the SEC, Dell said the cost-reduction measures were part of its plan announced in March to reduce its expenses by $3 billion. The company says there will be more cost-cutting measures during fiscal year 2010, which begins January 31.

Dell Adamo to hit the streets in the second half of 2009?

If the "reliable source" that spoke to Digitimes is, well, reliable, it looks like Foxconn has landed the dell Adamo gig. According to the article, the sleek and stylish device is in sample production as we speak, but won't enter volume production until the second half of 2009 -- to the tune of about 400,000 units. Of course, this flies in the face of Dell's statement at the CES unveil, where a company spokesperson said that the thing would be out in the first half of this year -- and that's not the only contradiction here, as Foxconn's Edmund Ding has stated that "he has no idea what the hell anybody is talking about." (OK, so we paraphrased that last bit).

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