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Wal-Mart reveals its full Dell lineup
For some reason we kinda doubt that many Engadget readers are in a hurry to load the kids into the station wagon and head on down to Wal-Mart for some cheap computer action, but we'd be remiss in our journalistic duties were we not to give you the final lowdown on that pair of Dell bundles hitting the retail behemoth this weekend. Since we already knew the specs of the 'high-end' $698 package, the only real surprise here is that you're getting almost the same machine for $498 -- the only difference being a 250GB vs. 320GB hard drive -- with the price drop instead coming at the expense of "extras" like a monitor, speakers, and memory card reader. A little later in the month, those lucky enough to have been accepted into Sam's Club will have their choice of an $828 multimedia bundle featuring the same Dimension E521 desktop supplemented by NVIDIA GeForce 6150 LE graphics and another gig of RAM, or a 15.4-inch dual-core Inspiron 1501 notebook with a DVD burner, 2GB of RAM and a 120GB hard drive for a few cents under $900. Seems like Wal-Mart should be able to push a pretty decent amount of these out the door -- which is good news for Dell, because Michael and friends need all the help they can get to reclaim their top spot from those crafty competitors over at HP.
Sunday's Wal-Mart ad confirms $698 Dell specs
A couple commenters confirmed those leaked Dell specs we posted earlier, and now we've gotten our hands on this Sunday's Wal-Mart flier -- the first to feature Dell's new in-store action. The numbers on the $698 Dimension E521 pictured line up with everything we've heard -- dual-core Athlon, 1GB RAM, 320GB hard drive, Vista Home Premium, and a 19-inch monitor -- but there's nary a mention of the rumored $498 model. We suppose Dell and Wally have got to keep us guessing until the 10th somehow, right? A close-up of the ad after the break.
Specs and prices of Wal-Mart's new Dell desktops revealed?
We just received an anonymous tip regarding the two new Dell desktops Wal-Mart will be carrying starting Sunday. We have no way to verify the claim but the specs -- which were apparently read directly off the packaging -- certainly seem reasonable and are in line with Michael Dell's own admissions on the models. The first system is said to be a $698 Windows Vista Home Premium model E521B-001W sporting a 19-inch "E197FPB" LCD monitor, dual-core Athlon 64 X2 3600+ processor, 2x 512MB (1GB total) DDR2 667MHz memory, 320GB SATA disk, Integrated GeForce 6150LE graphics, a 16x DVD +/-RW optical drive, USB keyboard and mouse, 13-in-1 media card reader, 10/100 Ethernet, integrated 7.1 channel sound, and 56k PCI Data Fax Modem. For comparison sake, that's about $50 cheaper than a Dell Dimension E521 (pictured) configured on-line with the "exact" (you never know with Dell) same components only with a 19-inch widescreen SE198WFP LCD which is faster, brighter, and features a higher contrast ratio than the Wal-Mart E197FPB (which we presume to be the SE197FP listed on Dell's site). The second system is a $498 E521SA-001W offered sans monitor and a 250GB disk -- exactly $1 cheaper than a similarly spec'd E521. So, if the specs are to be believed, then it's a wash in terms of pricing. Really though, what did you expect from the razor thin margins of the home PC market? Again, these are unconfirmed so you'll have to check for yourself on the 10th when Dell's systems find their way into the godless hellscape called Wal-Mart.
