Digital Home Thoughts - News & Reviews for the Digital Home

This is my review video of the Dell Adamo laptop - please check out my unboxing and first impressions video if you haven't already. This is easily the most impressive Dell product I've ever looked at from a design perspective - if you took the name Dell off the laptop, you'd never know it was created by the world's second biggest computer maker. The materials, the design, the build-quality, the fit and finish, the attention to detail: all are mind-blowingly excellent. But the hardware performance and price tag that comes with it? Much less impressive.

This is the "Admire" model, which features a 1.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor (SU9300), 2 GB RAM, 128 GB SSD drive, Windows Vista 64-bit, a 13.4 inch 16:9 aspect ratio 1366 x 768, a 1.3 megapixel webcam, Bluetooth 2.0, a back-lit keyboard, two USB ports, one USB/eSATA combo port, gigabit Ethernet, Display Port out (it comes with an adaptor for Display Port to DVI), 802.11n WiFi, built-in speakers, and a 40-watt hour battery that's rated to last five hours. As you can tell from my video, five hours would only be possible if the display was so dim it would only be readable in the dark, and you couldn't actually use it for anything during those five hours. Read more...

This is an unboxing and first impressions video of the Dell Adamo laptop. This is easily the most impressive Dell product I've ever looked at from a design perspective - if you took the name Dell off the laptop, you'd never know it was created by the world's second biggest computer maker. The materials, the design, the build-quality, the fit and finish, the attention to detail: all are mind-blowingly excellent. But the hardware performance and price tag? Much less impressive.

This is the "Admire" model, which features a 1.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor (SU9300), 2 GB RAM, 128 GB SSD drive, Windows Vista 64-bit, a 13.4 inch 16:9 aspect ratio 1366 x 768, a 1.3 megapixel webcam, Bluetooth 2.0, a back-lit keyboard, two USB ports, one USB/eSATA combo port, gigabit Ethernet, Display Port out (it comes with an adaptor for Display Port to DVI), 802.11n WiFi, built-in speakers, and a 40-watt hour battery that's rated to last 5 hours. Read more...

On top we have the HP Mini 110, and on the bottom we have a Dell Adamo - both delivered by UPS today. I think I'm more excited about the HP Mini 110 (known as the Mini 1100 in Canada) to be honest, because I'm a big fan of the HP Mini 1000 and this is supposed to be a refind version of that. The Dell Adamo is going to look great, but given the hardware specs it has, I'm not sure how well it's going to perform. I guess we'll see!

"I got my hands on Dell's Adamo, which is world's thinnest notebook and the most stylish Dell I've ever seen. It is a beautiful piece of machinery and something I'd like to own. Adamo is Dell's new luxury label and while it's made by Dell, it has nothing in common with other notebooks sold by the company."

My pal Xavier over at Notebooks.com had a bit of hands-on time with the new Dell Adamo (being the BSG fan that I am, I keep wanting to call it the "Adama", which it sounds like Xavier does) and it's certainly something brand new from Dell: a luxury computer. Starting at $1999 USD and going all the way up to $3000 USD, it's certainly the most "cost be damned" laptop that Dell has ever released. In the video Xavier goes through the unboxing, and Dell has certainly done some interesting things with the design, the accessories, and even the packaging. Read more...

Today Dell officially unveiled their Adamo notebook, and it looks like an impressive piece of hardware - definitely not your typical Dell product. Some of the highlights I gleaned from browsing the micro-site: the keyboard is backlit and has "scalloped" keys, which I think is a fancy way of saying they slope inward. The laptop is only 16.4 mm thin, has three USB ports on the back (along with an Ethernet port), and boasts a 16:9 aspect ratio, 13.4 inch 1280 x 720 display with "edge to edge" glass - the bezel looks incredibly thin. Dell claims 4 hours 53 minutes of battery life from a single charge, and under the hood it has either a 1.4 Ghz or 1.2 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU, either 4 GB or 2 GB DDR3 RAM, Wireless N, and Bluetooth 2.1. There are two colours, "Onyx" (black) and "Pearl" (white), and two basic configurations for each: "Admire" (1.2 GHZ CPU, 2 GB RAM, $1999 USD) and "Desire" (1.4 Ghz CPU, 4 GB RAM, $2699 USD). Each comes with a 128 GB solid state drive for storage. Dell has an assortment of accessories for the Adamo line, including an external optical drive (that's right folks, no optical drive in this thing!), and a Tumi leather sleeve. The external optical drive comes in two flavours: a slot-loading DVD-RW drive for $120 or a slot-loading Blu-ray drive for a pricey $350.

So I guess the question is, in the worst economic environment in nearly a century, Dell releases a luxery laptop - who's going to buy it? People are flocking to low-cost netbooks because they offer great value for the dollar. I think Dell's Adamo has a rough road ahead of it. Anyone got their credit card ready?