Dell slims down its laptops for small business

The new models include the 13.3-inch Vostro 1310, which replaces the existing 14-inch model, and a refresh to the 15.4-inch Vostro 1500 series, the Vostro 1510. A new version of the 17-inch model, the 1710, will be released in mid-May.

The key change is the switch to slot-loading optical drives, resulting in a thinner and lighter design than current Vostro notebooks. Dell says the Vostro 1310 has the same screen real estate as the existing Vostro 1400, but weighs about 20% less.

The Vostro 1310 starts at $749 with a 1.8GHz Core 2 Duo T5670, 1GB of memory, a 160GB hard drive and Intel GMAX3100 integrated graphics. The Vostro 1510 starts at $599 with a 1.86GHz Celeron 540, 1GB of memory, an 80GB hard drive and Intel GMAX3100 integrated graphics. Both are available in today in Europe, Middle East and Africa, and will be available in the Americas and Asia Pacific early May.