dell

Best ergonomic monitors

When shopping for a new monitor, degrees of swivel, tilt, and pivot aren't usually at the top of the wish list. But ergonomic options are important for the comfort and placement of your work space. Some monitors are designed with no options for adjusting your physical viewing experience, and an inefficient monitor setup can result in bad posture, eye strain, and other physical discomfort.

Whether you use your monitor for work or play, these models are chock-full of ergonomic features to maximize productivity by reducing fatigue and discomfort. Make sure to click on the photos of each monitor to see a demonstration of how they work. … Read more

Dell buyout could be impeded by possible Blackstone bid

Blackstone is reportedly looking to get its hands on Dell before the Silver Lake and Michael Dell $24.4 billion buyout is complete.

According to Bloomberg, the asset management firm is supposedly considering a bid that could out-do what Silver Lake offered for the Dell acquisition. People familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that Blackstone has not yet made a decision and that it may bid as part of a group of investors. Reportedly, Blackstone has already reviewed Dell's finances after signing a non-disclosure agreement.

Dell announced in February that it had plans to take the company private via … Read more

Icahn, Dell enter confidentiality pact

Carl Icahn's quest for greater influence over PC maker Dell has moved into a new phase.

Icahn Enterprises this morning announced that, as of yesterday, it has entered into a confidentiality agreement with Dell. The only other element in the press release bearing the news was this terse and deadpan sentence: "Icahn Enterprises looks forward to commencing its review of Dell's confidential information."

In recent days, activist investor Icahn has been critical of Dell for its plan to transform itself from a publicly traded company into a privately held one. Under that proposed $24.4 billion … Read more

Four months in, Windows 8 needs help

After four months of tepid Windows 8 PC sales, maybe it's time for Microsoft to make a few changes.

During a conversation I had this week with IDC analyst Bob O'Donnell, he volunteered the following statement, which sounded strangely like my experience.

There were certain decisions that Microsoft made that were in retrospect flawed. Notably not allowing people to boot into desktop mode and taking away the start button. Those two things have come up consistently. We've done some research and people miss that.

And there are a lot of people that as soon as they boot … Read more

Dell responds to Icahn's criticism of going private

A Dell committee, made up of four board members charged with deciding whether going private is the right move, has responded to Dell investor Carl Icahn, who says it isn't.

In a February 5 letter, Icahn said that he and others do not "believe that [the Going Private Transaction] is in the best interests of Dell's shareholders and substantially undervalues the company." Instead of going private, Icahn would like to see Dell issue a special dividend of $9 per share. That should result, he said, in a stock price increase to $13.81, which, added to … Read more

Carl Icahn to take up stake in Dell, says CNBC

Carl Icahn is building a 6 percent stake in Dell, as the computer maker prepares to go public, CNBC reported today.

Unnamed trading sources told CNBC that Icahn has almost 100 millions shares and is urging Dell to pursue leveraged recapitalization instead of the buyout proposed by Michael Dell and investment firm Silver Lake.

CNET has contacted Icahn's company, Icahn Enterprises, for comment. The CNBC report said Icahn "wouldn't discuss Dell or any rationale he had for the investment."

Leveraged recapitalization is one of the suggestions made by Dell's top shareholders last month, shortly after … Read more

Bill Gates still world's second richest person

Bill Gates is now worth $67 billion. But he's still only No. 2 among the world's wealthiest people.

Released today, Forbes' ranking of the richest people on the planet found Gates' fortune up $6 billion this year. The increase came not so much from Microsoft stock, which has shown little sign of life recently, but from other financial holdings and private investments.

More importantly, Forbes dubbed Gates the world's most generous person. Microsoft's chairman continues to devote a large amount of his fortune to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation with the goal of wiping out … Read more

Patent suit takes aim at Apple, Dell, others over encryption

A security group has taken aim at some of the biggest computer and software makers, claiming their products infringe on one or more of its patents.

Maz Encryption Technologies, a Delaware company made up of two former employees of Maz Technologies, filed suits last week against Apple, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Toshiba, Fujitsu, Lenovo, and Research In Motion (now BlackBerry).

In seven separate complaints, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, Maz accuses the companies of infringing on one or more of its three patents covering encryption and user authentication technologies -- low level security found in … Read more

Turn any display into an Android PC with Dell's Project Ophelia

BARCELONA, Spain--The days of carrying a bulky laptop around with you might be over if Dell has any say in the matter. Project Ophelia is an Android-powered device that plugs into any TV or monitor, giving access to local files, desktop remote access and any of the apps, movies and TV shows in the Google Play store. Better yet, it's as small as a USB flash drive and will cost less than $100.

The idea is simple: rather than take your laptop everywhere with you, you can simply plug the dongle into the HDMI port of whatever screen you … Read more