Technology Feast

Dell just announced that its Dell Adamo XPS, a laptop that is only 9.99mm (4/10") thin, will ship this month. The laptop that used to be shown behind closed doors as a "prototype" will now make its debut as a product for this holiday season. You've seen the leaks, the photos, the teasers, and now you're finally getting the real price: Adamo XPS starts at $1799.

Dell has gone through a lot of trouble to design an ultralight that is thinner than the Macbook Air, its direct competitor and the incumbent in this category. The Adamo XPS is indeed thinner, but it has a similar weight (3lbs or so) to the Air. On the other hand, the Air has a faster CPU and graphics processor, plus a longer battery life (Apple claims 5hrs, while Dell claims 2h30 with the standard battery). The Adamo XPS can receive a bigger battery, but I haven't seen what it looks like and I can't imagine that it would be a good thing for the slim line of this laptop. The Adamo XPS has 4GB of memory, versus only 2GB for the Air, and memory can make a big difference, depending on what you do.