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Dell Announces New Music Player, Download Service

Posted by CowboyNeal on from the we-can-do-it-too dept.

gotr00t writes "It appears that Dell Computer Corp. has announced that by the end of the year, they will have released their digital audio player, known in short as the 'Dell DJ.' Along with the player, there will also be a digital music download service. Looks like Dell is also joining Apple in the consumer products category."

6 of 453 comments (clear)

  1. Apple blew this one... by Skyshadow · · Score: 5, Interesting
    I can understand why Apple decided to release their service as a Mac-only affair for the first couple of months, but I absolutely can't agree with it.

    Apple's stockholders should be storming Infinite Loop right now with pitchforks and torches -- in excluding Windows users, they went out and squandered the sort of lead (time-to-market wise) that CEOs have wet dreams about. And do you think they sold any more Macs than they would have otherwise? I doubt it...

    All in all, I think Dell is in a great position on this one *assuming* that Microsoft doesn't get away with another violation of antitrust law ("You must include a desktop link to our music software or we won't sell you any copies of Windows").

    I wonder what Dell will become if they escape from being Just Another Wintel vendor...

    --
    Every year during my review, I just pray the words "slashdot.org" aren't mentioned.
    1. Re:Apple blew this one... by goat_attack · · Score: 5, Interesting
      Apple's working on a PC version of iTunes as we speak. It should be out in October I believe.

      A simultanious PC release of the iTunes Store probably would have led to widespread problems. (BuyMusic.com anyone?) And it would be tough to recover from the PR fallout of a disasterious launch. Better to do it right first, than fix it later (if only more companies worked this way...)

  2. Can You Say Apple Envy? by THotze · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Has anyone used a Dell PC lately? I've had to fix SO MANY fairly recent (ie shipped with Win XP) Dells that its not even funny. Now, admitadely, a MP3 player isn't as complicated as a space heater... *ahem* I mean, a Pentium 4 3GHz system... but, well, Dell seems to be almost entirley concerned with undercutting competitor's prices and offering slightly better #'s where it's the facts and figures that are a selling point (Basically, I figure that if you take an iPod, add 5GB of space and take $50 off their selling point, you've got what Dell wants to sell their device as). Of course, the catch is, it WON'T be an iPod, it won't have the same sex appeal, it won't have as nice of headphones, etc.

    I've been under the impression, however, that Dell was still by enlarge a corporate/business PC manufacturer. I'm wondering what Dell is thinking, trying to do this... even their PDA's can be explained as trying to expand themselves into a 'one stop shop' for corporate computing, like some sort of HP or IBM, but a MP3 player? Weird. And I can't see how they'd expect to get Dell-like margins out of this.... which makes me think they've probably cut quite a few corners.... everywhere.

    And my understanding from the Apple iTunes store was that the only way that Apple managed to pull it off was because of their goodstanding with the industry... being Apple and all. Were they a trailblazer making it easy for Dell, or is this just going to be a really inoperable service with none of the music I want?

    I guess we'll see.

  3. Re:Holy crap that thing's ugly by LionMage · · Score: 4, Interesting
    Yes, I have. Although Apple has very low market share among all personal computer manufacturers, they have very large market share (well over 50%, last I checked) among all vendors of digital audio players.

    The iPod pretty much dominates the market for MP3 players. Making the iPod compatible with PCs was a brilliant move, and it'll take a lot more than Dell's share of the personal computer market to shove the Dell DJ down people's throats.

    Some market share stats for the iPod: There's been an explosion of iPod sales this year, fueled initially by the availability of an iPod version for Windows, and then later by a version that works with both Macs and Wintel PCs, and supports both FireWire and USB 2.0.

    And yeah, the Dell DJ really is ugly as sin.
  4. Re:Another "Apple is our R&D dept." idea. by LionMage · · Score: 5, Interesting
    In a recent Newsweek article, Apple let slip that iTunes for Windows has been moved up, apparently because development has progressed faster than expected. They're citing an October release, now, less than a month away:
    And Apple, NEWSWEEK learned, quietly informed some music insiders that it's moved up the date for expanding its current Mac-only iTunes for the vast universe of Windows-based PCs to mid-October. Apple couldn't be reached for comment.
  5. Re:Holy crap that thing's ugly by maddskillz · · Score: 4, Interesting

    They might have had good tech support, but have you tried calling them lately? They have really cut corners lately. There corporate support is still good, but there consumer report is absolute crap.