June 2009 - Direct2Dell

Windows 7 General Availability
Today on the other side of the world, at the Computex show in Taipei, Microsoft confirmed that later in the year, on October 22nd to be exact, you will be able to purchase Windows 7 factory installed on your favorite Dell PC. YEA! We have been working with Microsoft for the last three years to develop the best possible computing solutions for you and we are excited to see our work come to fruition. Globally, Dell will have a broad selection of netbooks, laptops and desktops available for you on both www.dell.com and on the store shelves of our retail partners.  

Dell Windows 7 Upgrade Program
Microsoft also confirmed that as with previous Windows launches, they are partnering with PC manufacturers like Dell to offer the Windows 7 Upgrade Option program. Later this summer, if you purchase select systems through retail or directly from Dell you may order a Windows 7 upgrade kit. It’s important to note that the Windows 7 upgrade kits will not be shipped until AFTER Windows 7 has officially launched (Oct. 22 as noted above). Once the Windows 7 Upgrade Option program is officially announced more details will be available including supported PCs, languages and countries.

Windows 7 Release Candidate testing feedback
I also want to provide new details since my last post on how our internal testing and developments efforts are coming along with Windows 7 release candidate code. So far so good…Overall we’re impressed with how well the operating system is working on our systems. Here are some of data points that we have captured over the last 4 to 6 weeks:

• Solid Improvements in boot time (ie hitting the power button and getting to the desktop)
• Suspend results are looking much better (versus Windows Vista)
• Battery life is still trending to be as good as Windows XP (and better than Vista)

And this is more qualitative than quantitative…the systems just feel faster in a good way.

We’re looking forward to adding Windows 7 to our compelling notebook and desktop systems later this year.

There was some buzz back in December around Dell generating over $1 million in revenue by posting offers and responding to questions on Twitter.com/DellOutlet—there’s still mention of it on Twitter even today.  Since we started back in 2007, we’ve earned more than $2 million in revenue at @DellOutlet, attributed directly to our Twitter activity.

We’ve surpassed $2 million in revenue in terms of Dell Outlet sales, but we’re also seeing that it’s driving interest in new product as well. We’re seeing people come from @DellOutlet on Twitter into the Dell.com/outlet site, and then ultimately decide to purchase a new system from elsewhere on Dell.com. If we factor those new system purchases that come from @DellOutlet, we’re actually eclipsed $3 million in overall sales.

I started tweeting for the U.S. Dell Outlet in June of 2007 based on a suggestion from a colleague who learned about Twitter at the SXSW Interactive conference, and the response had been very positive.  But I knew we could do more.  So I started tweeting more regularly and doing more Twitter-exclusive offers, which created more buzz and helped us to grow our follower base (we’re now over 600,000). Our followers responded by re-tweeting @DellOutlet messages to their followers, and our numbers rose even more. The chart below (click on it to see more options) shows our growth over the last 3 months—right around the time we began introducing more exclusive offers, when we were at about 11,000 followers.

@DellOutlet followers

@DellOutlet followers. Source: TwitterCounter.com

@DellOutlet is getting close to the top 50 most followed Twitter users according to TwitterCounter, sharing the stage with brands like @Zappos (Lionel asked me to mention that Tony rocks), @Woot, @JetBlue and @WholeFoods.

Deal-hunters are especially attracted to Dell’s Twitter presence. Dell Outlet sells refurbished Dell products at great prices, but inventories fluctuate, making it difficult to know when products are available or on sale. Dell Outlet uses Twitter as a way to message out coupons, clearance events and new arrival information to those looking for Dell technology at a discounted price. 

There are also deals to be found via other Dell Twitter properties like @DellHomeOffers and @DellSmBizOffers, but Dell doesn’t limit its Twitter presence to the United States. Shoppers in the UK and Ireland can find deals by following @DellOutletUK and @DellOutletIE, and bargain hunters in Australia and Mexico and check out @DellHomeSalesAU and @Ofertas_Dell_MX , to name a few.  To help customers find the Twitter account most relevant to them, Dell created Dell.com/Twitter to show a list of properties complete with descriptions and links. We’re in the midst of re-vamping that page to make things a bit more clear. Stay tuned on that front.

But @DellOutlet continues to be the most popular Dell Twitter property.  We’ll try to keep it that way by offering a mix of Twitter-exclusive offers, Dell Outlet deals and Outlet-specific updates and information.

Without question though, it’s our customers who make it successful. For that, I’d like to extend a huge thank you to our followers who have offered tremendous support, encouragement and valuable feedback in addition to all the purchases you make through @DellOutlet.

Please don’t hesitate to send a note to @StefanieAtDell on how we can make @DellOutlet more useful to you and thanks again to all of you.

With the recent buzz around the forthcoming TomTom navigation app for the iPhone and recent report that demand for GPS devices is expected to grow steadily over the next few years, there's no question that there's a lot of interest in the technology. We're betting that location services will be a hit in netbooks as well. Starting next week in the United States, we're offering the Dell Wireless 700 location solution for our Mini 10 netbook that is a combination of hardware and software.

The hardware part is an internal GPS card with built-in Wi-Fi locationing.  These two technologies work in tandem, which means the technology works both indoors and out. In other words, it can calculate your position using Wi-Fi access points or using GPS satellites. The Dell Wireless 700 is powered by Broadcom's A-GPS and Skyhook Wireless' Wi-Fi position solutions.

I asked our wireless team for a bit more about the underlying technology, and here's what they told me: The Dell Wireless 700 uses Wi-Fi access points and Long Term Orbit (LTO)-based Assisted-GPS (A-GPS) technology to determine location information. It provides a fast, accurate and reliable location source to applications and services by leveraging the strength of each underlying position technology.

 And here's how the wireless team explained Wi-Fi positioning:

The Wi-Fi Positioning System (WPS) can determine the location of Wi-Fi enabled devices. All Wi-Fi Access Points broadcast a signal beacon known as a MAC address, notifying nearby devices of their presence. WPS refers to the mapped locations of millions of Wi-Fi MAC addresses to pinpoint the device location. WPS is complementary to GPS. It works best indoors and in urban areas, while GPS is limited by physical obstructions of ceilings and tall buildings.

On the software side, the Dell Wireless 700 location system features CoPilot navigation software to provide turn by turn directions. I offers things like 2D and 3D map views, lets you save up to 50 addresses for one trip, offers trip optimization to provide the most efficient route, can provide instant detour information when you encounter expected delays and provides continuously updated information about the trip.

Another piece of the location-based services that we're bringing to market is a location aware portal. For it, we've partnered with Skyhook Wireless and Loki.  Loki is a browser plugin that comes preconfigured for Internet Explorer and Firefox. It works with Loki-supported sites to improve local search functionality by providing you details from nearby restaurants store locations and your friends' location information from supported social media sites like Flickr, Loopt and  BrightKite.

In the OS department, initially, it will support Windows XP. Vista and Windows 7 support will come later. The Mini 10 is the first system that we'll offer with the optional Dell 700 Wireless location solution. Stay tuned for more details about more supported systems, accessories and more regions.

For those that have been keeping up with Microsoft's Windows 7 development effort, Brandon over at Microsoft made it official today—the Windows 7 upgrade program will be here tomorrow on June 26. That's when we will begin Dell's Windows 7 Upgrade Option Program in multiple regions.  Our upgrade program includes more than 55 countries and over 20 languages.

Here's what this means:

• Customers purchasing specific Dell consumer and business PCs with qualifying Windows Vista versions (Vista Home Premium, Vista Business and Vista Ultimate) will be able to register to receive a free upgrade kit for Windows 7.
• This offer applies to customers who purchase their systems either on dell.com or through their favorite retailer or reseller. Shipping and handling fees may apply depending on retailer or reseller. Program terms vary by country.
• Dell will ship the Windows 7 upgrade kits on or after the official launch of Windows 7 on Oct. 22.
• Customers can visit www.dell.com/windows7upgrade to check eligibility.Customers will be able to register for their free* Windows 7 upgrade kit through www.dell.com/windows7upgrade when we get closer to the Oct. 22 launch date
• Microsoft has designed the upgrade program with consumers and small business customers in mind and will not allow more than 25 upgrade kits to be sent to any one address.

Overall we are looking forward to bringing Windows 7 to market on October 22^nd. Early feedback from our customers and Dell engineering testing efforts is that Windows 7 on Dell clients is making everyday tasks faster and simpler for our customers.  Key pundits and analyst are also very bullish about the new operating system. Dell's engineering and services partnership with Microsoft will enable customers to deploy on day one when Windows 7 ships.

* Shipping and handling fees may apply

Update from Lionel: Since Daniel published this post about the Windows 7 upgrade program, I've gotten several questions from customers like jrporter40, kdsreferee and hartwilson about eligibility requirements.

The upgrade program is for customers who have ordered an eligible Dell system on or after June 26, 2009. The order date is one of three determining factors. System eligibility and operating system version are the other two. Eligible systems ordered between June 26 and December 31, 2009 qualify for the Windows 7 upgrade. If you qualify, then you need to register for the upgrade at www.dell.com/windows7upgrade.

You'll need to enter your service tag number in the registration process. If you do not yet have a service tag number for an existing order, have further questions about the program or need to discuss your specific situation, please contact Customer Service.

Customers in the United States can call 1-800-624-9897. Customers outside the U.S. can do the following to find the correct phone number to call:

• Go to support.dell.com
• Choose your country or region from the drop-down list
• Choose the Contact Us link
• Choose Technical Support
• Choose Call Technical Support

For Dell customers who have been running Vista for a while, Ars Technica and other sites have written about an option that's available to you. Microsoft recently rolled out a Windows 7 Pre-Order Offer that allows customers running Vista to purchase retail versions of the upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium and Windows 7 Professional for a discounted price.  See more details about the dates and countries that can take advantage of the Windows 7 pre-order at the bottom of this post from the Windows Team Blog.  

By the way, according to CNET's Ina Fried, the Windows 7 preorder has proved to be a pretty popular item on Amazon.com.

Hate running out of ink? Even more, hate getting to the store, staring at the hundreds of options and trying to remember your "cartridge number"? Dell's new InkSave program is a quick and easy automated reordering service. It's simple - the program starts you out with ink in your printer and a spare. Once your current ink cartridge is empty, use the spare and use the prepaid envelope provided for you to mail in the used cartridge.  Shipping is free and you're charged automatically for the new cartridge when we exchange your old one. You will receive an email notification when the cartridges are received at the processing center and when a new one is on the way to you.

Sign up, it's free! You'll receive a welcome kit with your first round of ink as well as prepaid envelopes to return the used cartridges. It's also easy on the environment - all cartridges returned are 100% recycled. Check it out and let us know what you think.