Centrino
Centrino, a platform-marketing initiative from Intel, covers a particular combination of CPU, mainboard chipset and wireless network interface in the design of a laptop personal computer. Intel claimed that systems equipped with these technologies should deliver better performance, longer battery life and broad wireless network interoperability.
To qualify for a Centrino label, laptop vendors must use all three Intel qualified parts, otherwise using only the processor and chipset will carry the Intel Core label instead.
Carmel platform (2003)
Intel used Carmel as the code name for the first-generation Centrino platform introduced in March 2003.
The Carmel platform consists of:
an Intel Pentium M processor (code-named Banias or later Dothan) with a 400 MT/s FSB, Socket 478 and
an Intel 855 series chipset (code-named Odem or Montara with Intel Extreme Graphics 2), DDR-266 and
an Intel PRO/Wireless 2100 or later 2200 (IEEE 802.11b) mini-PCI Wi-Fi adapter (code-named Calexico or Calexico2).
Industry-watchers initially criticized the Carmel platform for its lack of an IEEE 802.11g-solution, because many independent Wi-Fi chip-makers like Broadcom and Atheros had already started shipping 802.11g products. Intel responded that the IEEE had not finalized the 802.11g standard at the time of Carmel's launch, and that it did not want to launch products not based on a finalized standard.
In early 2004, after the finalization of the 802.11g standard, Intel permitted an Intel PRO/Wireless 2200BG (code-named Calexico2) to substitute for the 2100. At the same time, they permitted the new Dothan Pentium M to substitute for the Banias Pentium M. Initially, Intel permitted only the 855GM chipset, which did not support external graphics. Later, Intel allowed the 855GME and 855PM chips, which did support external graphics, in Centrino notebooks.
Despite criticisms, the Carmel platform won quick acceptance among OEMs and consumers. Carmel could attain or exceed the performance of older Pentium 4-M platforms, while allowing for notebooks to operate for 4 to 5 hours on a 48 W-h battery. Carmel also allowed notebook-manufacturers to create thinner and lighter notebooks because its components did not dissipate much heat, and thus did not require large cooling systems
Sonoma platform (2005)
Intel used Sonoma as the code name for the second-generation Centrino platform, introduced in January 2005.
The Sonoma platform consists of:
an Intel Pentium M processor (code-named Dothan) with a 533 MT/s FSB, Socket 479 and
an Intel Mobile 915 Express series chipset (code-named Alviso with Intel's GMA 900), DDR2-533 and
the Intel PRO/Wireless 2200 or 2915ABG mini-PCI Wi-Fi adapter (code-named Calexico2).
The Mobile 915 Express chipset, like its desktop version, supports many new features such as DDR2, PCI Express, Intel High Definition Audio, and SATA. Unfortunately, the introduction of PCI Express and faster Pentium M processors causes notebooks built around the Sonoma platform to have a shorter battery-life than their Carmel counterparts; Sonoma notebooks typically achieve between 3.5-4.6 hours of battery-life on a 53 W-h battery.
INTRO:-
Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL SEHK: 4331), an American technology company based in Round Rock, Texas, develops, manufactures, sells and supports personal computers, servers, data storage devices, network switches, personal digital assistants (PDAs), software, televisions, computer peripherals and other technology-related products. As of 2006, Dell employed more than 78,700 people worldwide. Formerly holding a substantial lead in sales of PCs and of servers, the company recently slipped behind Hewlett-Packard (HP) in these markets.In 2006, Fortune magazine ranked Dell as the 25th-largest company in the Fortune 500 list, 8th on its annual Top 20 list of the most-admired companies in the United States. In 2007 Dell ranked 34th and 8th respectively on the equivalent lists for the year. A 2006 publication identified Dell as one of 38 high-performance companies in the S&P 500, which had consistently out-performed the market over the previous 15 years.
ORGINS AND EVOLUTION:-
While a student at the University of Texas at Austin in 1984, Michael Dell founded the company as PC's Limited with just $1000. Operating from Michael Dell's off-campus dorm room at Dobie Center , the startup aimed to sell IBM-compatible computers built from stock components. Michael Dell started trading in the belief that by selling personal computer systems directly to customers, PC's Limited could better understand customers' needs and provide the most effective computing solutions to meet those needs. Michael Dell dropped out of school in order to focus full-time on his fledgling business, after getting about $300,000 in expansion capital from his family.
In 1985, the company produced the first computer of its own design (the "Turbo PC"), which contained an Intel 8088-compatible processor running at a speed of 8 MHz. PC's Limited advertised the systems in national computer magazines for sale directly to consumers, and custom-assembled each ordered unit according to a selection of options. This offered buyers prices lower than those of retail brands, but with greater convenience than assembling the components themselves. Although not the first company to use this model, PC's Limited became one of the first to succeed with it. The company grossed more than $73 million in its first year.
In 1989, PC's Limited set up its first on-site-service programs in order to compensate for the lack of local retailers prepared to act as service centers. Also in 1987, the company set up its first operations in the United Kingdom; eleven more international operations followed within the next four years. In June 1988, Dell's market capitalization grew by $30 million to $80 million from its initial public offering of 3.5 million shares at $8.50 a share. The company changed its name to "Dell Computer Corporation" in 1988.
In 1990, Dell Computer Corporation tried selling its products indirectly through warehouse-clubs and computer-superstores, but met with little success, and the company re-focused on its more successful direct-to-consumer sales model. In 1992, Fortune magazine included Dell Computer Corporation in its list of the world's 500 largest companies.
In 1996, Dell began selling computers via its web site.
In 1999, Dell overtook Compaq to become the largest seller of personal computers in the United States of America with $25 billion in revenue reported in January 2000.
In 2002, Dell attempted to expand by tapping into the multimedia and home-entertainment markets with the introduction of televisions, handhelds, and digital audio players. Dell has also produced Dell-brand printers for home and small-office use.
In 2003, at the annual company meeting, the stockholders approved changing the company name to "Dell Inc." to recognize the company's expansion beyond computers.
In 2004, the company announced that it would build a new assembly-plant near Winston-Salem, North Carolina; the city and county provided Dell with $37.2 million in incentive packages; the state provided approximately $250 million in incentives and tax breaks. In July, Michael Dell stepped aside as Chief Executive Officer while retaining his position as Chairman of the Board. Kevin B. Rollins, who had held a number of executive posts at Dell, was appointed the new CEO.
In 2005, the share of sales coming from international markets increased, as revealed in the company's press releases for the first two quarters of its fiscal 2005 year. In February 2005 Dell appeared in first place in a ranking of the "Most Admired Companies" published by Fortune magazine. In November 2005 BusinessWeek magazine published an article titled "It's Bad to Worse at Dell" about shortfalls in projected earnings and sales, with a worse-than-predicted third-quarter financial performance — a bad omen for a company that had routinely underestimated its earnings. Dell acknowledged that faulty capacitors on the motherboards of the Optiplex GX270 and GX280 had already cost the company $300 million. The CEO, Kevin Rollins, attributed the bad performance partially to Dell's focus on low-end PCs.
In 2006, Dell purchased the computer hardware manufacturer Alienware. Dell Inc.'s plan anticipated Alienware continuing to operate independently under its existing management. Alienware expected to benefit from Dell's efficient manufacturing system.
On January 31, 2007, Kevin B. Rollins, CEO of the company since 2004, resigned as both CEO and as a director, and Michael Dell resumed his former role as CEO. Investors and many shareholders had called for Rollins' resignation because of poor company performance. At the same time, the company announced that, for the fourth time in five quarters, earnings would fail to reach consensus analyst-estimates.
In February 2007, Dell became the subject of formal investigations by the US SEC and the US Attorney General for the Southern District of New York. The company has not formally filed financial reports for either the third or fourth fiscal quarter of 2006, and several class action lawsuits in the wake of its recent financial performance. The company's lack of formal financial disclosure would normally subject the company to de-listing from the NASDAQ, but the exchange has granted Dell a waiver, allowing the stock to trade normally.
On 1 March, 2007, the company issued a preliminary quarterly earnings report which showed gross sales of $14.4 billion, down 5% year-over-year, and net income of $687 million (30 cents per share), down 33%. Net earnings would have declined even more if not for the effects of eliminated employee bonuses, which accounted for six cents per share. NASDAQ extended the company's deadline for filing financials to May 4.
DELL AND AMD:-
On August 17, 2006, a Dell press-release stated that starting in September 2006, Dell Dimension desktop computers would have AMD processors and that later in the year Dell would release a two-socket, quad-processor server using AMD Opteron chips, moving away from using Dell's traditional Intel processors.
CNet's News.com on August 17, 2006 cited Dell's CEO Kevin Rollins as attributing the move to AMD processors to cost-advantage and to AMD technology. AMD's senior VP in commercial business, Marty Seyer, stated: "Dell's wider embrace of AMD processor-based offerings is a win for Dell, for the industry and most importantly for Dell customers."
On October 23, 2006, Dell announced new AMD-based servers — the PowerEdge 6950 and the PowerEdge SC1435 — marking its entry into the AMD-based server-marketplace.
On November 1, 2006, Dell's website began offering notebooks with AMD processors (the Inspiron 1501 with a 15.4" display) with the choice of a single-core MK-36 processor, dual-core Turion X2 chips or Mobile Sempron.
COMPETITION:-
Dell's major competitors include Apple, Hewlett-Packard, Sun Microsystems, Gateway, Lenovo, Sony, Acer, Toshiba and Asus. Dell and its subsidiary, Alienware, compete in the enthusiast market against Falcon Northwest, Voodoo PC (a division of HP), and other manufacturers. In the second quarter of 2006, Dell had between 18% and 19% share of the worldwide personal-computer market, compared to Hewlett-Packard with roughly 15%. By leveraging its business-model, Dell attempts to undercut competitors and offer customers a more attractive choice of personal computers and other equipment.
Dell in late 2006 lost its once-substantial lead in the PC business to Hewlett-Packard. Both Gartner and IDC estimated that in the third quarter of 2006, HP shipped more units world-wide than did Dell. Dell's 3.6% growth paled in comparison to HP's 15% growth during the same period. The problem got worse in the fourth quarter, when Gartner estimated that Dell PC shipments declined 8.9% (versus HP's 23.9% growth). As a result, at the end of 2006 Dell's overall PC market share stood at 13.9% (versus HP's 17.4%).
IDC has also reported that Dell lost more server market share than any of the top four competitors in that arena. IDC's Q4 2006 estimates show Dell's share of the server market at 8.1%, down from 9.5% in the previous year. This represents a 8.8% loss year-over-year, primarily to competitors EMC and IBM.
Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL SEHK: 4331), an American technology company based in Round Rock, Texas, develops, manufactures, sells and supports personal computers, servers, data storage devices, network switches, personal digital assistants (PDAs), software, televisions, computer peripherals and other technology-related products. As of 2006, Dell employed more than 78,700 people worldwide. Formerly holding a substantial lead in sales of PCs and of servers, the company recently slipped behind Hewlett-Packard (HP) in these markets.In 2006, Fortune magazine ranked Dell as the 25th-largest company in the Fortune 500 list, 8th on its annual Top 20 list of the most-admired companies in the United States. In 2007 Dell ranked 34th and 8th respectively on the equivalent lists for the year. A 2006 publication identified Dell as one of 38 high-performance companies in the S&P 500, which had consistently out-performed the market over the previous 15 years.
ORGINS AND EVOLUTION:-
While a student at the University of Texas at Austin in 1984, Michael Dell founded the company as PC's Limited with just $1000. Operating from Michael Dell's off-campus dorm room at Dobie Center , the startup aimed to sell IBM-compatible computers built from stock components. Michael Dell started trading in the belief that by selling personal computer systems directly to customers, PC's Limited could better understand customers' needs and provide the most effective computing solutions to meet those needs. Michael Dell dropped out of school in order to focus full-time on his fledgling business, after getting about $300,000 in expansion capital from his family.
In 1985, the company produced the first computer of its own design (the "Turbo PC"), which contained an Intel 8088-compatible processor running at a speed of 8 MHz. PC's Limited advertised the systems in national computer magazines for sale directly to consumers, and custom-assembled each ordered unit according to a selection of options. This offered buyers prices lower than those of retail brands, but with greater convenience than assembling the components themselves. Although not the first company to use this model, PC's Limited became one of the first to succeed with it. The company grossed more than $73 million in its first year.
In 1989, PC's Limited set up its first on-site-service programs in order to compensate for the lack of local retailers prepared to act as service centers. Also in 1987, the company set up its first operations in the United Kingdom; eleven more international operations followed within the next four years. In June 1988, Dell's market capitalization grew by $30 million to $80 million from its initial public offering of 3.5 million shares at $8.50 a share. The company changed its name to "Dell Computer Corporation" in 1988.
In 1990, Dell Computer Corporation tried selling its products indirectly through warehouse-clubs and computer-superstores, but met with little success, and the company re-focused on its more successful direct-to-consumer sales model. In 1992, Fortune magazine included Dell Computer Corporation in its list of the world's 500 largest companies.
In 1996, Dell began selling computers via its web site.
In 1999, Dell overtook Compaq to become the largest seller of personal computers in the United States of America with $25 billion in revenue reported in January 2000.
In 2002, Dell attempted to expand by tapping into the multimedia and home-entertainment markets with the introduction of televisions, handhelds, and digital audio players. Dell has also produced Dell-brand printers for home and small-office use.
In 2003, at the annual company meeting, the stockholders approved changing the company name to "Dell Inc." to recognize the company's expansion beyond computers.
In 2004, the company announced that it would build a new assembly-plant near Winston-Salem, North Carolina; the city and county provided Dell with $37.2 million in incentive packages; the state provided approximately $250 million in incentives and tax breaks. In July, Michael Dell stepped aside as Chief Executive Officer while retaining his position as Chairman of the Board. Kevin B. Rollins, who had held a number of executive posts at Dell, was appointed the new CEO.
In 2005, the share of sales coming from international markets increased, as revealed in the company's press releases for the first two quarters of its fiscal 2005 year. In February 2005 Dell appeared in first place in a ranking of the "Most Admired Companies" published by Fortune magazine. In November 2005 BusinessWeek magazine published an article titled "It's Bad to Worse at Dell" about shortfalls in projected earnings and sales, with a worse-than-predicted third-quarter financial performance — a bad omen for a company that had routinely underestimated its earnings. Dell acknowledged that faulty capacitors on the motherboards of the Optiplex GX270 and GX280 had already cost the company $300 million. The CEO, Kevin Rollins, attributed the bad performance partially to Dell's focus on low-end PCs.
In 2006, Dell purchased the computer hardware manufacturer Alienware. Dell Inc.'s plan anticipated Alienware continuing to operate independently under its existing management. Alienware expected to benefit from Dell's efficient manufacturing system.
On January 31, 2007, Kevin B. Rollins, CEO of the company since 2004, resigned as both CEO and as a director, and Michael Dell resumed his former role as CEO. Investors and many shareholders had called for Rollins' resignation because of poor company performance. At the same time, the company announced that, for the fourth time in five quarters, earnings would fail to reach consensus analyst-estimates.
In February 2007, Dell became the subject of formal investigations by the US SEC and the US Attorney General for the Southern District of New York. The company has not formally filed financial reports for either the third or fourth fiscal quarter of 2006, and several class action lawsuits in the wake of its recent financial performance. The company's lack of formal financial disclosure would normally subject the company to de-listing from the NASDAQ, but the exchange has granted Dell a waiver, allowing the stock to trade normally.
On 1 March, 2007, the company issued a preliminary quarterly earnings report which showed gross sales of $14.4 billion, down 5% year-over-year, and net income of $687 million (30 cents per share), down 33%. Net earnings would have declined even more if not for the effects of eliminated employee bonuses, which accounted for six cents per share. NASDAQ extended the company's deadline for filing financials to May 4.
DELL AND AMD:-
On August 17, 2006, a Dell press-release stated that starting in September 2006, Dell Dimension desktop computers would have AMD processors and that later in the year Dell would release a two-socket, quad-processor server using AMD Opteron chips, moving away from using Dell's traditional Intel processors.
CNet's News.com on August 17, 2006 cited Dell's CEO Kevin Rollins as attributing the move to AMD processors to cost-advantage and to AMD technology. AMD's senior VP in commercial business, Marty Seyer, stated: "Dell's wider embrace of AMD processor-based offerings is a win for Dell, for the industry and most importantly for Dell customers."
On October 23, 2006, Dell announced new AMD-based servers — the PowerEdge 6950 and the PowerEdge SC1435 — marking its entry into the AMD-based server-marketplace.
On November 1, 2006, Dell's website began offering notebooks with AMD processors (the Inspiron 1501 with a 15.4" display) with the choice of a single-core MK-36 processor, dual-core Turion X2 chips or Mobile Sempron.
COMPETITION:-
Dell's major competitors include Apple, Hewlett-Packard, Sun Microsystems, Gateway, Lenovo, Sony, Acer, Toshiba and Asus. Dell and its subsidiary, Alienware, compete in the enthusiast market against Falcon Northwest, Voodoo PC (a division of HP), and other manufacturers. In the second quarter of 2006, Dell had between 18% and 19% share of the worldwide personal-computer market, compared to Hewlett-Packard with roughly 15%. By leveraging its business-model, Dell attempts to undercut competitors and offer customers a more attractive choice of personal computers and other equipment.
Dell in late 2006 lost its once-substantial lead in the PC business to Hewlett-Packard. Both Gartner and IDC estimated that in the third quarter of 2006, HP shipped more units world-wide than did Dell. Dell's 3.6% growth paled in comparison to HP's 15% growth during the same period. The problem got worse in the fourth quarter, when Gartner estimated that Dell PC shipments declined 8.9% (versus HP's 23.9% growth). As a result, at the end of 2006 Dell's overall PC market share stood at 13.9% (versus HP's 17.4%).
IDC has also reported that Dell lost more server market share than any of the top four competitors in that arena. IDC's Q4 2006 estimates show Dell's share of the server market at 8.1%, down from 9.5% in the previous year. This represents a 8.8% loss year-over-year, primarily to competitors EMC and IBM.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
