Dell’s new Latitude 9440, so far as I can glean from the pictures, is a Latitude with XPS vibes. It’s a convertible made from machined aluminum, it weighs a bit over three kilos, it’s received a 16:10 show, and it’s received a 91.5 p.c screen-to-body ratio — which is, based on Dell, the very best screen-to-body ratio on a “14-inch industrial ultra-premium PC”. (It’s 12.2. x 8.46 x 0.59 inches.)
Hilariously particular accolades apart, this 2-in-1 system (which doesn’t but have introduced pricing and availability, although I’ll spare you the suspense and predict that it’s going to not be low cost) seems to be like a C-suite-oriented industrial product with just a few funky options that you just wouldn’t essentially count on to see on… properly, a Dell Latitude.
For one, the keyboard is backlit by Mini LEDs, that are mentioned to cut back the backlit keyboard energy utilization by as much as 75 p.c and enhance battery life by “as much as three hours.” (I’ve had battery issues with Latitudes prior to now, so any enchancment can be welcome.) If you happen to take a look at this keyboard, it seems to be strikingly much like that of the Dell XPS 13 Plus. It makes use of the identical keyboard design, which Dell calls “zero-lattice.”
These big keys with a teensy quantity of area between them are presupposed to make it simpler to kind. My expertise utilizing them on the XPS 13 Plus was that they took some getting used to and didn’t revolutionize my typing expertise however had been in the end tremendous. (It was not the second coming of the butterfly keyboard, as I’d feared it is likely to be.) The XPS 13 Plus, it should be mentioned, additionally had non-physical haptic perform keys, which I had a variety of gripes about and which I’m completely satisfied to see that the Latitude 9440 has disbursed with in favor of an old-school perform row.
Elsewhere, the system has a haptic “collaboration touchpad” that features shortcut buttons to entry the microphone, digital camera, display sharing, and chat controls. Ports embody three Thunderbolt 4, an audio jack, a lock slot, and an optionally available nano SIM card tray. It’s powered by Intel’s thirteenth Gen.
Dell has additionally up to date its light-weight 7000 sequence with the Latitude 7340 and 7440 Ultralight fashions, which might be among the many lightest enterprise laptops you should purchase this yr, with a beginning weight of two.17 kilos. These have a brand new 5MP digital camera and 5G connectivity, in addition to a brand new “river” shade (a grayish blue) possibility. They’ve the identical Mini LED keyboard backlight because the 9440 as properly. Port choice is extra numerous than that of the 9440, together with HDMI 2.0 help along with Thunderbolt 4 and USB 3.2 Gen 1.
I lately reviewed the Latitude 7330 (which the 7340 will succeed) and located that it didn’t fairly earn its excessive price ticket. Along with pretty quick battery life, the system had a little bit of a bland design. I’m notably completely satisfied to see that Dell has lastly ditched the 16:9 screen on this sequence in favor of 16:10. We’ll hopefully see how properly Dell has addressed the battery life points when these fashions start to hit reviewers’ desks.
