Dell IdeaStorm

proprietary memory

pistaccio — Sat, 31 May 2008 22:36:02 PDT

I have a Dell with 256meg of memory. Checked for upgrade from Dell and they want about $100 for a 500Meg chip. Crucial's scan told me that they had nothing that would match. For about $200 I can get a whole new computer + an operating system.
Why do you make systems with proprietary memory?

Dell Small Business vs Dell Home

jamesmoroni1 — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:15:20 PDT

The split between Dell Small Business and Dell Home has been an endless source of confusion and frustration for price-sensitive customers. I don't see the need for the two separate divisions. I've purchased computers from both, and keeping track of where I bought which machine is very frustrating. It also makes it harder to be sure you're getting the best price.

Dell SB and Dell Home should go away -- it should be just Dell.com. There could be special options for people who want to purchase several machines at once, but there's no need to have separate storefronts -- the needs of small businesses and home users are very similar.

Backlit Keyboards

rarmasu — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 16:57:03 PDT

I find myself many, many times in dark or poorly lit environments having to guess the various keys - would be fantastic to have a backlit keyboard - with backlit individual keys as the best option.

I would actually pay extra for that convenience if the option was available.
This could be done for desktops or notebooks.

Check out Vida_K's comment below on the New Latitude.

Standardize Power Cables for Laptops

badblood — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 14:49:56 PDT

Nothing is more annoying than laptop power cables that are not interchangeable from one computer model to another or from one brand of computer to another. Power cables have been standardized on most electrical applicances, including desktop computers for decades.

Make an effort to promote and implement standard power cables for laptops.

Please see dawn_l's comments below.