A Snazzier Look for Business Laptops

Market Watch

H-P, Dell work to improve design for corporate users; Apple sets standard

Hewlett-Packard's business computers looked so drab and dull about five years ago that Todd Bradley, then newly-named head of the company's PC group, compared them to Soviet tanks.

Things have changed since then, as H-P, Dell Inc. and other manufacturers have worked to give laptops targeted to business users a cooler, snazzier look.

That's because, much like the Montblanc pen, the business notebook has become an expression of style in the corporate world, says Stacy Wolff, H-P's director of notebook design.

"You go into a conference room and people used to set these gorgeous pens on the table," he said. "Not unlike the smart phone, the PC has become that."

To be sure, laptop makers have continued to focus on staple issues such as computing power, lighter weight and longer battery life and energy-efficiency. But cosmetic design elements typically found in consumer devices have also become critical, such as offering more color options other than black, grey or silver, and the use of metal casings to exude a classier feel.

Gartner analyst Leslie Fiering said the trend began about four years ago, adding, "In the last year, it's really breaking loose and something that all the vendors are participating in."

Just this week, H-P rolled out a new line of notebooks and tablets for business customers that come in such color options as "caviar" and "bordeaux."

"Sort of brown and maroon," analyst Roger Kay of Endpoint Technologies Associates said of the new HP machines. "They're clearly aiming at a classy corporate image."

Last September, Dell introduced new versions of its Latitude laptops targeted at so-called "impression makers" such as entrepreneurs, creative professionals and salespeople. These touted such elements as "lean tapered design," "soft-touch black cherry finish" and a "silky-touch backlit keyboard."

"Users, given the choice, between that big, really, ugly battleship and something that is slim and light and modern-looking, they are going to pick the latter," Fiering said.

That's because, unlike desktops, Kay said, notebooks are "more personal". "You carry it with you," he said. "People see it since it's on your desk instead of under it."
 

Generational differences

Wolff of H-P attributed the trend to the rise of a younger, more tech-savvy workforce who grew up using refurbished laptops with more pizazz. "They've been a companion from high school, to college, to MBA," he said. "It's been part of them."

Ken Musgrave, director of experience design at Dell, echoed this view, pointing to the rise of the Generation Y professionals, who "have always lived around digital technology, maybe had a cell phone when they were 12 and grew up with the Internet."

"They're saying, 'Why do we have to be stuck with drab, boring refurbished notebooks in my work life, while in my home life I have the technology I want,"" he said.

For PC makers, cooler designs are also a way for them to stand out at a time when the insides of the machines have become, more or less, standardized. "What's under the hood in enterprise PCs is becoming less and less differentiated," Fiering said.

She also pointed to the Apple factor, she said. The Cupertino, Calif.-based company is not a major player in the corporate PC market, but Fiering said Apple's "design language is just so compelling at a gut level."

However, Kay noted that Apple also is in a position to charge more for the cost of producing better-designed discount laptops because "part of its brand image is being in the higher price range."

That's not true for most notebook makers that compete in a highly price-sensitive, and steadily growing market. Worldwide professional mobile PC shipments have jumped roughly 20% from about 60.8 million in 2007, to 73.1 million in 2009, according to Gartner. H-P controlled about 20% of that market last year, followed by Acer and then Dell.

"If they add another hundred bucks to make it cooler, they may not be able to recover that money from their buyers," Kay said. Then again, he added, "If, by better design, you can win on that basis, it never hurts to have a better-looking box."

Still, there are lines that PC makers will probably not cross when it comes to business customers.

"The business world is not ready for pink used notebooks," Dell's Musgrave said. "I'm not sure they ever will be."

Dell Looking to Electronic Medical Records for New Market

Austin Business Journal

Dell Inc. has formed a partnership with the American Medical Association to supply computer hardware and support to medical practices using the group's new electronic medical records platform, according to reports Monday.

The move is the latest in the Round Rock-based computer maker's efforts to diversify. Dell already provides computers, servers and storage hardware to hospitals and medical groups, and about half of the recently purchased Perot Systems Corp.'s business is from the health care industry, according to the Associated Press.

The service is being rolled out in Michigan initially and will be offered nationally by the end of the year. The AMA product also includes e-prescribing and laboratory services.

Doctor's groups are faced with meeting national deadlines to transfer patient medical records to digital format and AMA is one of many providing the service. Additionally, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act includes about $17 billion for hospitals and health care groups that adopt electronic medical records, beginning next year.

The Dell deal was announced during the first day of the annual health care technology conference hosted by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society.

The Big Guide to Little Netbooks

Fox News / Harry McCracken

I'm a netbook fan -- and I have plenty of company. Their affordable portability makes them a pleasure, whether you're kicking back on the sofa or heading out of town on vacation. Here are few questions to ask before you buy (or don't buy) one.

When showing off new netbooks -- those low-cost, undersized laptops -- otherwise exuberant corporate executives start knocking their own products. Netbooks are cramped and underpowered, they argue. Yes, the very netbooks they sell.

Why the lack of love for this wildly popular class of computer? In part, it's about profit -- or lack thereof. Most netbooks cost between $230 and $400, so it's hard for PC makers to make a buck selling them. But in the insanely competitive PC market, no major manufacturer is willing to ignore netbooks. They take a deep breath, grumble, and then offer them anyway.

(Okay, one big name has steered clear of netbooks. That would be Apple, who thinks you should buy an iPad instead, starting later this month.)

PC companies may accentuate the negative when it comes to netbooks, but I'm a fan -- and I have plenty of company. Their affordable portability makes them a pleasure, whether you're kicking back on the sofa or heading out of town on vacation. When I fly, I find 15" laptops virtually unusable in most coach sections; a netbook, however, fits just fine even if the traveler in front of me reclines all the way.

If your main system is a desktops or big-screen laptop, a netbook can be a worthwhile second computer, as long as you understand their pros, their cons, and the differences between similar-looking models. Here are few questions to ask before you buy (or don't buy) one.

What are you going to do with your laptop? Netbooks may be basic, but you hardly need a supercomputer to browse the Web, do e-mail, balance your checkbook, and run an office suite. On the other hand, their processors and graphics capabilities are too wimpy for serious 3D gaming. And their screens are too dinky for some high-end applications. (I installed Adobe Photoshop on an Asus Eee PC and couldn't even see the bottom part of its user interface.)

Bottom line: The more casual and Web-centric your computing activities, the better a netbook will handle them.

Are you just looking to save money? Even if you've got a netbook-sized budget, you don't need to settle for a netbook-sized computer. As I write this, BestBuy.com has six full-sized laptops under $400. They're econoboxes, without the cutting-edge technologies and sophisticated engineering of costlier models. But with their roomy screens (mostly 15.6") and built-in DVD burners, they make much more sense as a primary computer than any netbook does.

How are the screen and keyboard? Some of the first netbooks had displays under 9" in size, which was enough to leave almost anyone squinting. Today, most have 10.1" screens -- small, but not unbearably so. Screen resolution still varies; a netbook with a screen that packs an unusually large number of pixels, such as the 1,366-by-768 model on Sony's VAIO W, can show more of a Web page, word-processing document, or photo with less scrolling.

In a perfect world, netbooks with more spacious screens would be commonplace, but they remain rare beasts. HP's Mini 311 (with an 11.6" display) and Lenovo's IdeaPad S12 (12") are standouts.

Keyboard quality is inextricably related to screen size, since the display's dimensions determine the case width. Even the nicest 10.1" netbooks can't quite accommodate a full-sized keyboard; some do come close, however, such as Toshiba's comfy NB305. The best way to gauge keyboards is to trust your fingers -- if possible, try out a netbook in person before plunking down your money.

What's the difference between a cheap netbook and a not-so-cheap netbook? Lower-cost models are more compromised than their pricier competitors: They tend to have creakier processors and graphics, clunkier keyboards, slower networking, and lower-resolution screens. They also have three-cell batteries vs. the six-cell models with higher-end netbooks, which saves on weight but also slashes the number of hours you can go completely mobile before you have to plug in.

The slickest netbooks, such as Nokia's aluminum-clad Booklet 3G, sell for $500 and above. But if you can set aside $350 or so, you won't lack for solid choices.

What version of Windows do you get? Many netbooks still come loaded with Windows XP. It's the world's most familiar operating system, but it's also less modern, secure, and pleasant than Windows 7. Others come with Windows 7 Starter Edition, a stripped-down version that won't even let you change the desktop wallpaper. The best, most full-featured option -- usually found on models that cost a little more -- is Windows 7 Home Premium.

Are you willing to do some upgrades? Netbooks usually include 1GB of RAM, which is on the tight side, especially if you want to run a bunch of programs at once without overtaxing the system. So I recommend investing about $40 and a few minutes of your time to buy and install a 2GB memory module. You might also want to invest $80 or so in a portable external DVD burner, a handy add-on for installing software and backing up data.

Maybe you want something a little beefier? When PC manufacturers explain to me that netbooks are too dinky and sluggish, they usually follow up by saying that consumers would be better off buying a "thin and light" notebook with a larger screen and a more potent processor. Which conveniently ignores the fact that most of these machines cost much more than typical netbooks. Still, if your budget permits, I'd recommend looking at these systems too. In fact, I own and like a $675 Asus UL30A-X5, which I bought to replace an Asus Eee PC netbook. (The latter laptop is still in use, too -- my fiancée adopted it.)

As I said about the great "PC or Mac?" question, the best thing about Windows PCs is that they come in an array of shapes, sizes, and price points. Netbooks don't have to be all-purpose powerhouses -- they just need to be the right computers for some of the people some of the time. If you've got one, I'd love to to hear your real-world report.

Microsoft to Make Web-Based Programs a Billion-Dollar Business, Elop Says‏

Bloomberg

Microsoft Aims for $1 Billion in Web-Program Sales

Microsoft Corp.’s business-software unit expects to get at least $1 billion from Web versions of its Office and e-mail programs in the next three to five years, said Stephen Elop, head of the division.

Over that period, Microsoft predicts about half its customers for e-mail and collaboration software will switch to so-called cloud versions of the programs, which are stored and run from Microsoft’s server farms.

“Three years, five years, is it a billion-dollar business? I’m quite certain it will be,” Elop said in an interview on Bloomberg Television. “Because so much of what we’re doing is focused on this particular area, we’re seeing very large customers making large commitments in this direction. You’ll see it grow rapidly.”

The rising revenue will mean Microsoft can increase profit at the unit, Microsoft’s largest, even as analysts predict margins will narrow, Elop said. The company is readying its first Web-based versions of word-processing and spreadsheet software to match Google Inc., which is trying to steal Microsoft’s corporate customers and win over consumers.

Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft is also pushing cloud versions of its Exchange e-mail program and SharePoint, which allows employees to work together on projects and set up corporate Web sites.

Microsoft wants to use that software to lure users away from International Business Machines Corp. More than half of customers for these Microsoft programs are switching from IBM’s Lotus, Novell Inc.’s GroupWise and other competitors, said Microsoft Vice President Ron Markezich in an interview this week.

Microsoft rose 7 cents to $28.67 at 4 p.m. New York time on the Nasdaq Stock Market. After gaining 57 percent last year, the shares have lost 5.9 percent in 2010.

EU: 100 Million Microsoft Users to Choose Browser

BRUSSELS (AP) - The European Union said Tuesday that some 100 million Europeans using Microsoft Corp. software will be asked to choose among rival Web browsers by mid-May under a deal it struck with the company to settle antitrust action.

Microsoft is starting this month to send updates to Windows computers in Europe so that when computer users log on, they will see a pop-up screen asking them to pick one or more of 12 free Web browsers to download and install, including Microsoft.

The EU's executive commission said giving consumers the chance to try an alternative to Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser that comes with the widely used Windows operating system would "bring more competition and innovation in this important area."

EU antitrust regulators in December dropped their last pending antitrust case against Microsoft after the company offered to let users choose between its browser and others. This ended more than a decade of legal trouble that racked up euro1.7 billion in fines for Microsoft.

Rivals had complained that attaching Internet Explorer to Windows was an unfair way for Microsoft to put its Web software on most of the world's computers.

The top five browsers - Microsoft's Internet Explorer, Mozilla's Firefox, Google Inc.'s Chrome, Apple Inc.'s Safari and Opera, will be given prominent placement on the pop-up choice screen.

The selections will rotate from computer to computer, so none of the these five browsers will always be first.

Far smaller competitors such as Avant Browser, Flock, Green Browser, K-Meleon, Maxthon, Sleipnir and Slim Browser also will be displayed, if the user scrolls sideways.

The EU said greater browser choice also would boost the use of open Web standards - a set of guidelines on how Web sites are designed.

Rivals claim that Microsoft has not always followed these standards closely, forcing Web designers to make sites compatible with Internet Explorer - the leading browser - instead of working smoothly with other Web software.

Microsoft's browser choice screen will be used for five years in the 27-nation European Union plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

Microsoft could be fined 10 percent of its annual revenue if it doesn't stick to its commitment to distribute the browser screen as agreed and to avoid any retaliation against computer manufacturers who install other browsers as a default on the computers they sell.

Users in the U.S. and elsewhere won't see any change.

Digital Signs Point to Marketing Success

Internet Evolution

It's not like the iPhone needed any extra advertisement when it debuted back in June 2007, but when AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) needed to educate and engage its consumers, they turned to seven-foot digital display kiosks for help.

Coupled with actual iPhones located near the base of the kiosk, the signs allowed users to experience the iPhone's interactive abilities and familiarize themselves with the now iconic touchscreen, at a time when such designs were not as common. Furthermore, the stores featured guided selling kiosks where salespeople and customers could explore, research, and purchase products and services.

Using digital signs is a strategy that proved successful for AT&T and one that Aberdeen Group Inc. suggests can increase brand awareness by 15 percent, and see return on investment in 9.5 months on average. The analyst group's latest research report surveyed 138 companies -- mostly in the IT consulting and services, software manufacturing, and retail. The takeaway: Companies cannot ignore the growing range of technological solutions that include hardware, software, and mobility.

"Success with digital signage comes down to people, process, and technology," says David Hatch, SVP of research and co-author of the study. "Best results occur when the right people are dedicated to the task and are supported by management. Furthermore, the ability to track customer behavior must become part of the overall marketing process."

In order to coordinate its digital signage strategy, AT&T chose to use a content  task management software system that was largely platform-agnostic. The software was Web-based and allowed AT&T to centrally manage configuration, reporting, playlist control, content scheduling, and distribution.

Scalability was also a factor as the carrier said it needed to support around 250,000 devices simultaneously.

Stop & Shop, the supermarket chain, is another enterprise banking on its digital signs for both customer engagement and revenue growth. The company says it uses its signs to enhance their weekly sales programs and coupons.

"For us, the big advantages of digital signage are the Web connectivity and the ability to operate more in real time," says Robert Anderson, director of Stop & Shop's CRM and Digital. "With the understanding and data we have on our customers, we are able to use displays and kiosks to enhance their specific shopping experience."

The company says its most engaging form of digital media is the "Scan It" handheld shopping device. This is activated with the shopper's frequent-shopper card and delivers a message that is personally relevant to them. It also allows customers to scan and bag their own items as they shop, keeping a running total and saving time through the checkout process.

"We have more than 270 stores with Scan It today and more than half of the customers who receive the targeted offers take advantage of at least one of them every week," Anderson says.

In addition to recommending digital signage, Aberdeen's report also points out that the full potential of digital signage lies in its ability to connect related products and services to the audience through data organization A successful setup may include a rules-based decision engine, content management software, media server systems, database management software, and an advertising delivery and management platform, as well as mobile device data integration and digital dashboards.

It's important to remember the backend systems, for without a method for capturing and accessing this information, a company cannot take full advantage of its shiny new digital toys, can it?

WebCam Spying Suit Triggers War of Words

eWeek

A high school assistant principal in the Lower Merion School District in Pennsylvania lashes out about the Webcam spying allegations, while the student at the center of the case says her denials fall short.

The Webcam spying allegations that have rocked Pennsylvania's Lower Merion School District turned into a verbal sparring match Feb. 24 when a high school administrator offered an emotionally charged rebuttal that the family suing the district said does not constitute a denial of relevant facts.

The parents of Harriton High School student Blake Robbins filed a class action lawsuit (PDF) Feb. 11 alleging that the school remotely activated a Webcam and took a picture of their son, which they accuse Assistant Principal Lynn Matsko of citing as evidence that he was engaged in "improper behavior in his home."

In response to what she termed "many false accusations reported about me in the media," Matsko denied any involvement in spying on Robbins or any other student.

"If I believed anyone was spying on either of my children in our home, I too would be outraged … At no point in time did I have the ability to access any Webcam through security tracking software," Matsko said. "At no time have I ever monitored a student via a laptop Webcam, nor have I ever authorized the monitoring of a student via security tracking Webcam either at school or within the home. And I never would."

She continued, "In my 10-plus years as an assistant principal I have never disciplined a student for conduct he or she engaged in outside of school property that is not in connection with school, or a school-related event. That is not, has never been and never should be my role."

Calling the allegations "abhorrent and outrageous," Matsko said she has been subjected to numerous "offensive and threatening" e-mail messages since the controversy broke.

After her statement, Robbins read a statement to the media in which he stressed that the intent of the suit was not to disparage Matsko, but to take the school board to task for green-lighting the technology involved in the accusation.

The students' MacBook laptops were outfitted with task management software called LANrev that could be used to remotely activate the Webcams. The district has characterized the technology as a security tracking feature intended to recover lost laptops, and has reported that the software had been used for this purpose 42 times as of Feb. 19.

In his statement, Robbins noted that Matsko did not deny seeing a Webcam picture and screenshot of him in his home—she denied having authorized or activated the Webcam.

"We have no reason to doubt Ms. Matsko's statement that she did not personally activate the Webcam on my computer, but that has never been the issue," he said. "The issue is that we know someone accessed my Webcam and provided Ms. Matsko with a screenshot and a Webcam picture of me at home in my bedroom."

In an interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer, an attorney representing the Robbins family claimed Matsko told the student directly that he had been observed via the Webcam "trying to sell pills."

After being notified of the lawsuit, the district disabled the feature and pledged not to re-enable it without notifying students and their family members. Meanwhile, the FBI and local investigators have reportedly opened up an investigation into the case.