E3 2006: Hands on with Nintendo's Wii and new Dell Designs
by Haider Farhan on May 11, 2006 9:40 AM EST- Posted in
- Trade Shows
Dell Reveals New Designs
We were called in on Tuesday, a day before E3 began, to come in for a sneak preview of Dell's latest design ideas which are going to be added to the XPS lineup. Dell provided us with no availability date or specifications of these new XPS systems, the best we were able to get from Dell was "soon."
Dell's new XPS tower is a significant departure from more conservative designs of the past. The case designers constructed the case around optimal air flow: cool air in from the front, it then crosses straight over the CPU/heatsink then out the back. The analogy we got from Dell was, "just like a jet engine."
The case is entirely constructed out of 2.5mm aluminum. The finish is bare to give it more of an aggressive appearance.
Dell has also placed a light in the back which shines downward to illuminate the cables and connectors, making it easy to see what you're doing. There is also a light on the top front which illuminates the front of the case and allows you to see what is inside your CD try when open. This front light will change colors, although we are not sure if the rear light does as well. The front panels will be available in your choice of black or red.
The case was canted forward to give it an aggressive stance with styling cues taken from many objects, such as classic muscle cars. Not only is the case canted forward for appearance, but function as well. According to Dell, by having the case canted even if you have the case put up against a wall you will still be able to reach behind and connect whatever it is you are trying to without having to pull the case forward.
Rather than having the side panels slide towards the back of the case, like most traditional cases, Dell has designed the case panels to swing down, from top to bottom. Dell also states that this case is made for easy upgrading if one desires to do so at a later date, which is a definite plus.
Currently, for all of Dells gaming platforms, at the Dell site, they have opt out solutions for software that is usually included when the computer is shipped. Buyers also have the option of a clean install, which is something we see most serious computer users do so after they have purchased a pre-built system. This takes the hassle of reinstalling Windows out of the buyers' hands.
While this desktop will be shipped with plain aluminum side panels, Dell has gone ahead and created a special edition, called the XPS X-Men: The Last Stand Collector's Edition. Beginning May 10th, 2006 through June 18th, 2006, consumers can enter to win this one-of--kind desktop which is valued at about $10,000.
Not only will Dell be releasing an updated XPS desktop model, but they also have a mobile XPS concept they are looking at producing. These mobile systems are called the Mobile Renegade M1710. These notebooks will be sporting custom paint jobs in which we had the opportunity to view four different styles.
As we mentioned before, Dell didn't release any specs, pricing or availability information to us.
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tonjohn - Saturday, May 13, 2006 - link
So does anybody know what is behind that flap on the front of the Wii?It's rumoured that the tray on the front of the console is a stereoscopic digital projection system.
I'm quite surprised if real, why didn't they demo it.
http://dennispatterson.blogspot.com/2006/04/why-wi...">http://dennispatterson.blogspot.com/2006/04/why-wi...
http://www.gamespot.com/pages/forums/show_msgs.php...">http://www.gamespot.com/pages/forums/show_msgs.php...
http://www.playbomb.com/2005/11/01/18/nintendo-for...">http://www.playbomb.com/2005/11/01/18/nintendo-for...
....
Miyamoto,
"I think maybe if I could do anything, I would make it so you don't have to sit in front of a TV and play. If you could have a machine that you just plugged in and played inside a virtual world that - would be just great."
"It's convenient to make games that are played on TVs," Miyamoto is quoted as saying. "But I always wanted to have a custom-sized screen that wasn't the typical four-cornered cathode-ray-tube TV. I've always thought that games would eventually break free of the confines of a TV screen to fill an entire room. But I would rather not say anything more about that."
http://www.xgaming.com/newsletter/Revolutionary-Te...">http://www.xgaming.com/newsletter/Revolutionary-Te...
tthiel - Friday, May 12, 2006 - link
Those Dells look hideous. Cheap and plasticky and the seams don't even match up. The red looks terrible. Hard to believe this is the best they can come up with but then their forte has always been low cost not design. Now they buy Alienware with their lame childish cases that have stayed the same for years with overpriced hardware and terrible service. It's been a long time since Alienware was cool but I gues aobut anything is cooler than a Dell.dali71 - Friday, May 12, 2006 - link
Agreed, i thought that they had released an air purifier.JarredWalton - Thursday, May 11, 2006 - link
Hey everyone,I just put up a couple of videos Haider uploaded to me in a torrent file. The link is on the bottom of page 2 of his article. If someone can download that file and open it up in a BitTorrent client to make sure it works properly, I'd appreciate it. I *think* my system is configured properly, but I host torrents so rarely that I never know.
FYI, the videos were made with a digital camera (Canon SD400, possibly?), and I used ATI's Avivo Converter tool to turn them into MPEG-4 (DivX compatible) format. That cuts the size to 49.2 MB from 239 MB without damaging quality, but 50MB is still a bit large for our normal server demands (depending on how many people want the files).
Take care,
Jarred Walton
Editor
AnandTech.com
rrcn - Friday, May 12, 2006 - link
Thanks for converting the files, Jarred.Cannon S2 IS. =P
JarredWalton - Friday, May 12, 2006 - link
Okay, judging by the 8+ downloads already started, it's working. Again, let me know if you have problems.--Jarred
Cullinaire - Thursday, May 11, 2006 - link
Loving the new XPS design. Finally Dell's got something badass on their hands. Wonder how much input AW had into this design? Also wondering if this line finally means builing your own is actually going to be cheaper than buying an equally specced Dell. (not including "special editions" and frivolous features like paint jobs)ninjit - Thursday, May 11, 2006 - link
Infrared line-of-sight controls aren't that great in the first place (think of your buddy getting up and walking past you to get a drink while you're in the middle of a fight).But that + motion control?? It's going to be dropping connectivity everytime someone takes a swing within a tennis game, etc.
I'm having a hard time understanding this, I'm surprised that nintendo went this route (there's a good reason why everyone else is going the RF wireless way).
Am I missing something?
rrcn - Saturday, May 13, 2006 - link
After seeing the sensor bar the other day, I had to find out how exactly the wireless remote worked, so I spoke to a developer:Plain and simply, the sensor bar actually emits an infrared "wall" or field directly in front of the TV (it creates this in front of the TV because that is where it's placed, either on top of or below the TV is recommended). As the remote is pointed towards the TV, it will reflect off of the infrared "wall," created by the sensor bar, and this tells the remote how far the remote is from the TV and where it is. The remote then communicates with the console via Bluetooth, sending this information to it, and the action is completed successfully.
The sensor bar doesn't receive any type of signal from the wireless remote. If one actually gets too close to the TV, within about three feet or under, it will not work precisely.
The remote has a gyrometer and accelerometer to allow it, for instance in the tennis game, know when you swung the "racket" with a back hand or regular swing.
Hope this clarifies everything.
Haider Farhan
bigboxes - Thursday, May 11, 2006 - link
If your "buddy" walks in front of you during your "fight" then you won't be able to see the screen. Think about it.