Gadgetell | Tech News, Reviews, and Interesting Things

Dell has just announced that it will start offering a free software update for Latitude XT owners that will bring them multi-touch capabilities on their XT machines. By upgrading their XT’s firmware users will be able to maximize the full real estate of their XT’s screen.

Once the XT’s firmware is upgraded, users can start using their XT’s screen to scroll through web browsers and productivity application as well as zoom in and out various contents just by placing two fingers on the screen and moving them together horizontally or vertically. Users can also program a double-tap gesture on the screen to to launch an application or to turn the machine off. This feature is somewhat similar to the multi-touch capability of the MacBook Air’s touchpad..

The firmware upgrade is available at http://support.dell.com. If you want to find out how this multi-touch capability works, keep on reading to watch the video demo.

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In days past, photographers had to rely on their memory to answer the question “where did I take this shot?”. Not so any more. Geotagging is fast becoming popular in the days of digital photography. By definition, Geotagging is the process of adding a form of geospatial geographical identification metadata to your images. It can also be added to other media like websites or RSS feeds. This metadata almost always consists of latitude and longitude coordinates; although it can sometimes also include things like altitude, bearing, or even location names depending on how specific you want to get.

Geotagging can also be useful if you are looking for location-specific information. For example, you are trying to find images taken near Red Rock Canyon. You simply enter the latitude and longitude coordinates into a Geotagging-enabled image search engine. There you go! These same search engines can also be used to locate location-based news, websites and more.

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Here at Gadgetell, as I am sure you do also, love to see information leaked early, this time it involves Dell’s highly anticipated Latitude series. What we have learned are some more details involving two new E-Series models, the E6500 and the E6400. The E6500 is the more advanced of the two, and it begins with a 15.4-inch screen as opposed to the E6400’s 14.1-inch. Interestingly enough, these two laptops are set to replace the D830 and the D630. 

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These rugged designed products always seem to have a military style to them, and the latest from Dell is not any different. The Latitude XFR D630 marks Dell’s first venture into the rugged laptop market and is intended for government and commercial users. The XFR D630 features a 14.1-inch display that is outdoor readable at 500 nits and is powered by Intel Core 2 Duo processors. They also have shock isolated mounting to protect hard drive along with a sealed keyboard to prevent rain and dust (and crumbs) from sticking the keys. The XFR D630, of course also meets the military standard (MIL-STD 810F) specs, which means it can withstand extreme hot or cold temperatures, moisture and altitude. The Latitude XFR D630 is currently available and retails for $3,899.

Read [Dell]

EVDO has started to pop up in almost all manufacturer’s laptop computers over the past couple of years.  Now, Dell plans to enter the space by integrating EVDO into three models of Latitudes: the D420, D620, and D820 notebooks.  The computers will have Sprint’s EVDO mini card built-in, so there’s no worries of having an external dongle hanging off. 

Forget going to Starbucks, or connecting to airport Wi-Fi, because now you can even connect from your car on the highway (freeway for those of you on the west coast).  Additionally, the 12 inch XPS 1210 is also getting EVDO slapped in.  I’m going to say hold off for a while since the data plans are so expensive (unless it’s being payed as a business expense).  It’s only a matter of time before the plans drop in price.

Read [Dell] Via [Gizmodo]

If you’re a business traveler and plan on taking Virgin Atlantic airlines in the near future, you should know that your laptop battery may not be allowed on-board.  Similar to Korean Air’s recent battery ban, Virgin has announced that passengers who travel with Dell Inspirons and Latitudes, and Apple iBooks, Powerbooks, MacBooks, and MacBook Pros will be asked to remove the battery before the plane takes off.  The company is asking that if you need to use your laptop in-flight, you plug in to the in-seat power supply.  In addition, passengers are only allowed to bring a max of 2 batteries on-board, so if you the Energizer bunny, you many need to leave some at home.

The battery ban is the result of recalls that took place last month of certain models of Sony-manufactured batterys.  Virgin has yet to announce when they will lift the restriction.

Read [RegHardware]

Dell has hopped on anew diet plan to shed some weight off their laptops. The first announcement is the news Latitude D420, with a starting weight of three pounds, and the potential to deliver more than seven hours of battery life.

The Latitude D420 features a 12.1-inch wide-aspect display, full-sized keyboard and dual pointing capability. Customers can configure systems with choice of Wi-Fi 802.11g or 802.11a/g, as well as optional integrated mobile broadband connections from Cingular or Verizon Wireless in the United States, and Vodafone in France, Germany and the United Kingdom. It is 802.11n-ready, and features the Wi-Fi Catcher, a switch that can help find wireless connections without turning on or booting up, or turn all wireless devices off.

While systems come standard with Smart Card readers and Trusted Platform Module (TPM) security technology, customers can add biometric fingerprint readers at time of purchase. The Latitude D420 includes three USB ports, an IEEE 1394 port and a Secure Digital (SD) card slot. The new system also includes the standard Latitude three-year limited warranty with next-business-day on-site service.

Starting at $1,379, the Latitude D420 is powered by Intel Core Solo processors Ultra Low Voltage. Single-core configurations are available immediately. Dual-core configurations are scheduled to be available later this summer.

Read [Dell]

Delivering business demands for increased computing power on the go, the Dell Latitude D620 and Latitude D820 feature Intel Core Duo processors and optional wireless broadband technology.

With a starting weight of 4.4 pounds, the Latitude D620 includes an Intel Core Duo T2300 processor and a 14.1-inch wide aspect XGA display. The $1,149 base configuration includes 512MB shared DDR2 memory, 40GB SATA hard drive and 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi capability.

A base configuration for the Latitude D820 (starting weight 5.6 pounds) is $1,289 and includes an Intel Core Duo T2300 processor with a 15.4-inch wide aspect XGA display, 512MB DDR2 shared memory, 40GB SATA hard drive and 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi capability. Advanced upgrade options for the D820 include the NVIDIA Quadro NVS 120M business graphics solution with 512MB, a high-resolution WUXGA display and 120GB hard drive.

These Dell models also include:

• A choice of wireless broadband connection options, with carrier choices of Cingular Wireless or Verizon Wireless (in U.S.) and Vodafone (in Europe).


• Pre-configured for 802.11n scalability


• Integrated new optional biometric fingerprint reader, smart card, and trusted platform module (TPM1.2).


• Sealed, spill-resistant keyboards, full-time hard drive protection with StrikeZone, metal-reinforced security slots are included standard.
• Wi-Fi Catcher(TM) helps find wireless connections without turning on or booting up, and Location Profiler makes it easy to configure settings for a variety of networks or locations.

[Press Release]