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  • NickB. - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    I always heard those poor viewing angles were a "security feature" - how else to explain the consistent use of such panels on business grade laptops?

    /sarc
  • Souka - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    we have a number of kiosks at my work for public use.

    we recently replaced the old 17-19" LCD crap-panels with 22" panels.

    Quickly we had requests for privacy screens because the new 22" panels have good viewing angles.

    so viewing angle can make a difference.

    funny.... but reality....
  • frozentundra123456 - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    This type of machine is one of the few places in the desktop that I see a good fit for trinity. It would have better gpu performance and "good enough" cpu performance. I am not really a fan of AIO systems in general though. Just seems like too much compromise in performance, upgradability, and repairability for the benefit of saving a bit of space on the desktop.
  • JarredWalton - Thursday, September 20, 2012 - link

    And exactly what are you going to do on a kiosk that would benefit from having twice the GPU performance and half the CPU performance? Honestly, I find HD 4000 to be a perfectly adequate solution for everything outside of gaming. A better CPU choice for this system would be the i3-3225 I think -- only two CPU cores, but you don't really need more than that, and at 3.3GHz they're still plenty fast. I've got a system with just such a CPU and with a Samsung 128GB SSD it boots to Windows in about 10 seconds (plus the eight second POST -- I wish motherboard vendors would do more to decrease/eliminate POST times!)
  • Conficio - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    Really what is Dell thinking? Just reading the spec sheet and I see (at least a 1920 x 1080) display, but a TN panel with its bad viewing angles? And the target market of this is kiosk apps, where multiple people might look at a screen and the person's head is likely not aligned with the height of the screen (standing but device on a desk, standing height but people have different height).

    Try again Dell!
  • piroroadkill - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    I'm OK with that, but to be honest they need to offer the perfect device for education, which would be a 19" 1440x900 AIO with a Core i3, 64GB SSD, 4GB RAM, perfectly fine if its TN, better, infact, to cut costs.

    There's a mass market for these kinds of devices, but it's always cheaper to do it from a small manufacturer..
  • StormyParis - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    Why can't they just make a Thin-ITX monitor stand with a VESA mount and the PC in the base, and let us choose our screen ?
  • piroroadkill - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    You've always been able to buy mini-ITX and mount them to a VESA screen. It's just a matter of options.
  • piroroadkill - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    Also, Dell has offered AIO stands that allow you to bolt an SFF desktop to the back of a screen for a long time, and they're damn convenient, one carry handle, the whole thing.
  • TheSlamma - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    Up till now most of the all-in-one business offerings have been limited. 3gb RAM max, 5400 rpm HD's, Pentium D processors, etc.

    Now we get Intel vPro (which is much needed for places trying to eliminate desktop visits.) and it addresses the previous limitations I mentioned. It also has high quality NIC and a good wifi card and runs very cool compared to an iMac.

    While the display isn't top notch, I don't see a problem with it, the 1080 screen is as good as the standard panels that most companies order with optiplex machines.

    While many people don't get the all-in-one, as mentioned int he article one target is public sector, schools, libraries and other local gov do want a smaller footprint. They are trying to do more with the same amount of space when they had Apple ]['s and XT's but with more kids and mobile furniture.

    Did I mention how awesome it is to have Intel AMT on these? vPro + RealVNC viewer plus = WIN!!
  • Rick83 - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    So is AMT actually supported by the BIOS of this machine?
    I agree, that AMT should become ubiquitous, especially for larger scale deployments, it's probably a requirement. But then for home servers, HTPCs and similar application it also becomes interesting for the tinker/enthusiast crowd that has a number of headless units that need to be managed.

    For my server, this made me look at Supermicro boards, as the ASUS C216 based board removed the 82579 in favor of a second 82574 NIC, and probably wouldn't have done the required BIOS/Firmware work to get it supported.
  • BoloMKXXVIII - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    I am not knocking Dell, I just don't understand the point of AIO PCs. Does a mini case behind the monitor really take up any more room? With heat issues, lack of expansion options and additional cost of repair I can't imagine purchasing or recommending a AIO PC. If space is that much of a premium get a laptop or a tablet with a keyboard.
  • frozentundra123456 - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    I totally agree with you, but all in ones seem to be taking over from traditional desktops
    At least in the best buy I went to recently. I guess they do look cool initially, but I think a lot of people don't realize the compromises of the design. Personally I would choose either a traditional desktop or a laptop.
  • Dug - Thursday, September 20, 2012 - link

    Depends on time and money.
    If the machine is priced right, you either have next day warranty which is pretty standard with Dell, or you have a replacement ready to go while the other goes out for repair.
    Labor is too much to do repairs in house, when there are far more important things for IT to be doing.

    The benefit of AIO is just that. You don't have multiple configurations, multiple wires everywhere, etc.
    If someone has to move, its much easier to pick up one device and carry it over then dealing with multiple wires, power supplies, video cables, etc.

    We currently deploy iMacs with Windows 7 on boot camp.
    Using Clonezilla for a base image to deploy makes it very quick for setup and deployment.
    The fact that it has camera, mic, speakers, bluetooth, wireless, wireless keyboard and trackpad, a very nice screen that's easy on the eyes, no noise, makes it very nice machine for $1100. That and you only have one cable connection.

    We tried to find something comparable, and there are alternatives, but everyone else fails at the complete package, mostly the screen. If someone has to sit in front of the computer for 8 hrs a day for the next 3 years, it's easy to justify a little more for a good screen and a product that has a great track record for reliability.
  • NARC4457 - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    There are 2 major items that are wrong with this machine based on how my business operates.

    1) We replace machines at the end of their 3 year warranty. But we have kept monitors throughout many replacement cycles, and tend to be much more resilient than desktops. Replacing both units together is a waste for our situation.

    2) These specs are too high for a general business user. SSD? Core i7? WAAAY too much horsepower. Give me a 5400rpm and a core i3 with HD-2500 and that's all I need.
  • ggathagan - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    1) Then don't buy them.
    On the other hand, the monitor portion is probably not as high a percentage of the total cost as it might have been in past years. The TN panels get less and less expensive every year.

    2) It's rare that Dell locks you into one processor or one drive option.
    You can get anything from a G860 to the i7-3770S in the review and there are 6 different drive options.
  • mr_tawan - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    > SSD prices have fallen like rocks over the past year while the flooding in Thailand coupled with arguably anti-competitive mergers have made the value proposition of mechanical storage less compelling.

    Well at least having flooding in my homeland could cause a good things!! (Well I'm kidding).

    And this year flooding might come back to Thailand. I don't know. I believe we have serious problem with water management nowadays (given that we have Ms. Barbie PM lol).
  • nbrownksu - Wednesday, September 19, 2012 - link

    The author seems to be ignoring the fact that you can customize these machines. He states that they're overpowered for use in a computer lab or library setting, and he's right, but I just went to Dell's website and configured one of these with a Core-i3 and 4GB of RAM for exactly that reason.

    We've been begging Dell for a form factor like this for our campus computing labs for years in order to simplify deployments and clean up the look of the labs compared to a traditional desktop system. For us the cheaper monitor is a benefit to the system.
  • MrVan - Thursday, September 20, 2012 - link

    http://www.hp.com/united-states/campaigns/workstat...

    At around $2000.00 each, HP Z1's have transformed our Graphic Design department as serious Mac replacement with its 27-inch, 2560x1440 IPS display.

    No, I am not a reseller or HP employee, I simply enjoy the experience of owning these machines.
  • Dug - Friday, September 21, 2012 - link

    That's a very nice machine.
  • niaz - Monday, June 24, 2013 - link

    i broke my optiplex 9010 screen where can get one at what price

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