Dell plans October notebook refresh, rivals look to Pentium Pro

Dell said today it will wait until October before releasing a 150MHz Pentium notebook as part of a revamped Latitude line. The direct seller said it would hold for the all-new range although it was keen to add the device to its range.

"It will be the fastest chip for mobile PCs and we want to include it in our models," said Peter van der Zouwe, product marketing manager for mobile systems. "I don't think there will be a faster one until MMX chips are launched for mobiles early in 1997."

However, two notebook makers who asked for anonymity said that they would skip the 150MHz Pentium in favour of Pentium Pro chips when they had designs that would be efficient at cooling the larger chip. Notebooks based on the Pentium Pro should be available from several vendors by the end of the year, they added.

An end-of-year deadline will also give notebook makers the opportunity to include new features such as 12.1-inch and even 13.3-inch 1,024 x 768 TFT screens, CardBus slots with Zoomed Video (ZV) Port slots and Duracell-licensed battery management utilities.