Based on the success of HP's Slate 500, we'd guess that the market for business tablets was pretty small. Nonetheless, Dell is following the trail of its archrival by announcing a 10in device specifically designed for enterprise users.
Unfortunately, there are very few details on the new slate, which will join the company's existing family of Android tablets. CNET reports that it will run on an Intel CPU - we're guessing from the Atom Oak Trail family - but that's all that's been revealed at this point.
Even the mock-up shown at the Dell Means Business event yesterday was - according to Engadget - as real as an "IKEA TV," meaning that it's probably still at quite an early stage in its development. Nonetheless, the tablet is scheduled to be released at some point later this year.
Hopefully the company will manage to avoid the pitfalls that befell of HP's offering, which was announced to much fanfare, but fizzled by the time it was released ten months later.
Dell's other touchy product is the Latitude XT3, an update to the well established XT2 convertible laptop/tablet hybrid. The 13in notebook will be equipped with the latest dual-core Sandy Bridge CPUs and the screen will be able to handle inputs from up to three fingers or the included stylus - a feature that's likely to be warmly received by the business community. IT departments should also appreciate the fact that the hybrid uses the same dock-connector configuration as the other Lattitude models, helping it to fit in around the office.
Like the new tablet, the XT3 hasn't been given a price, release date or any detailed specs, although we'd expect it to launch sometime later this year as well.
