Report: HP, Dell Ultrabooks On Tap For Late 2011, Early 2012 Release

Matt Burns

Matt is a Senior Editor at TechCrunch. Matt Burns is a family man first and attempts to be a writer second. Born and raised in the heart of the automotive world, only cars eclipse his love of gadgets. He previously wrote for Engadget and EngadgetHD before moving into the party house that is TechCrunch. He learned the retail side of... → Learn More

Wednesday, October 5th, 2011
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Ultrabooks are set to light the notebook market ablaze, but the two largest PC makers are arriving fashionably late. A Digitimes report collaborates earlier rumors that HP and Dell do not plan on releasing ultrabooks anytime soon. This puts Acer, Asus, Toshiba and Lenovo in particularly prime positions to stake claim in what could become a pivotal market. But they better get while the getting is good. You can bet that HP and Dell are going to eventually bust through the ultrabook wall Kool-Aid man-style.

The Digitimes report puts HP releasing its first ultrabook at the end of 2011 while Dell will do so in the first quarter of 2012. Reportedly, Dell will use CES 2012 to announce its expected 14-inch model. HP will presumably announce additional models at CES, as well.

The delayed launch is rather smart. The first crop of ultrabooks hitting in the coming weeks are built on Intel’s current Sandy Bridge CPU architecture, which while plenty powerful, do not feature the advance power management found in the upcoming Ivy Bridge CPUs. HP and Dell are likely waiting Intel launches the new CPU platform later this year as well as watching the public’s reception of the first batch of ultrabooks. The average consumer should probably take the hint and wait as well.


Company: HP
Website: hp.com
Launch Date: 1939

At HP we don’t just believe in the power of technology. We believe in the power of people when technology works for them. To help you create. To make the digital tangible. To harness the power of human information. At HP we work to make what you do matter even more.

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Company: Dell
Website: dell.com
Launch Date: 1984
IPO: January 7, 1988, NASDAQ:DELL

Dell is an end-to-end solutions provider that has evolved from a PC manufacturer to an enterprise IT solutions partner with servers, storage, networking, software and services that enable customers to drive results, create competitive advantage and expand their opportunities.

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