Next Generation Latitude release date?

Has anyone heard when the next generation Latitude will be released? I have always been a Latitude customer, but for the last year I have been buying ThinkPad T 410s & 420s because of the weight and design/look of the current Latitudes. I still have several E6410's and E4310's I love...

 

Probably late summer, Dell won't refresh til Ivy Bridge comes in full swing. Hopefully they detract from the current generation's look. It pains me to see my mom's E6420 every single day.

 

New design is on the cards. Release is due sometime between June-September. I'm holding out upgrading my E6400 until I see what the new 13" looks like. Hopefully it will take some inspiration from the XPS 13.

 

Dell are usually a month or so behind the CPU launch with new models, and Ivy Bridge is expected in the next couple of weeks. I'd expect an external design similar, if not identical, to the E6x20 range based on previous form. I'm very hopeful of a low power quad core CPU in the E6230.

Also, I like the styling of the E6x20 - after the hideous and rapidly dated styling of the E6x00 range it's a real return to form. They are all bulky for the screen size though, I'd like to see that addressed.

Dave

 

I wish Dell would bring back the design of the D420/620/820. Those were the most beautiful laptops Dell ever made, IMO.

 

I agree! The 620/30 was what turned me on to Latitudes, the design was a lot better than the consumer competition.

The current machines aren't bad looking either. My least favorite of the recent Latitudes was the initial E family line: the 6400 just looked very plain, dark enough to resemble a ThinkPad. That and they felt a bit cheaper than my D630 or E6420

 

Same here. My first Latitude was a D820 and I fell in love with it instantly.

I am surprised to hear that. Judging from photos, the current Latitudes look awful. The orange border around the keyboard looks odd, the E6420's display bezel is way too thick, and the E6220's "butt" sticks out too far. Perhaps they look better in person?

Some of the older Thinkpads actually looked very nice, e.g. the X2*, the X4* and the T4*. I think my E4200 looks decent, but it definitely pales when compared with the widescreen D family (D*20 ad D*30). I bought this E4200 only because it's the lightest Latitude ever made.

It is indeed obvious that Dell had to cut lots of corners to make the E4200 so incredibly light. That's a price I am willing to pay, however, since I want to drastically reduce my travel weight.

My wishlist for the upcoming Latitudes: 12.5" 1600x900 like the Panasonic CF-NX1, <3 lbs, and smaller footprint than the E6220.

 

I do like the traditional style of the ThinkPad's, but I also really liked the style of the E6410 series as well. Rumor had it Lenovo might be changing to the 'island' or 'chicklet' keyboard on the next generation Thinkpad's, so that in itself is a reason to run. The traditional ThinkPad's hands down had the best keyboards on any notebook.....

 

Thanks for reminding me. I really need to pull my old D420 out of the closet one of these days.

 

To me it took me looking at one in person to make up my mind. The outer lid is very nice looking, a gray brushed metal that has a bluish tinge. The orange border isn't garish at all in person as well.

I think they'll probably do a chiclet/island "look" keyboard like the current latitudes, something that looks a bit more modern yet retains the feel of a traditional keyboard.