Hands-On: Dell Launches Venue 8 3000, Venue 8 7000, Venue 11 7000 With Core M, Tablets At Dell World
Dell just launched a trio of new tablets at its Dell World conference, currently taking place in Austin, Texas. One of the tablets, the sleek and ultra-thin Venue 8 7000, we’ve already shown you, because it was first unveiled by Michael Dell at IDF a couple of months back. But the other two are brand-new products that target completely different market segments.
First up is the new Dell Venue 8 3000. As its name suggests, the Venue 8 3000 is an 8” slate. It features an IPS display with a native resolution of 1280x800 and is powered by an Intel Bay Trail-based quad-core processor, backed by 1GB of RAM and 32GB of solid state storage.
The Venue 8 3000's Glossy White Back
The Dell Venue 8 3000 also packs 802.11 b/g/n WiFi with Miracast support, BT 4.0, and 1.2MP front facing and 5MB rear facing cameras. The device’s dimensions are 215mm x 131mm x 8.9mm and it weighs in at only 391 grams.
The Dell Venue 8 3000 runs Windows 8.1 and will be available in black with a spindle-pattern finish or white with a glossy finish for only $199.
Dell went in another direction with the Venue 11 7000. The Venue 11 7000 is a larger, more powerful and feature-rich device built around Intel’s relatively new Intel Core M series Broadwell processors. There will be one model featuring the Intel Core M 5Y10a (4MB L3 Cache, 2.0GHz Dual-Core) and Windows 8.1 and another with a Core M vPro 5Y70 (4MB L3 Cache, 2.6GHz Dual-Core) and Windows 8.1 Pro.
The Back Is Removable For Easier Servicing
The 10.8” IPS display in the device has a native 1920 x 1080 resolution and support for 10-point multi-touch, and there will be 4GB or 8GB memory options, and 64GB, 128GB or 256GB of solid state storage. Other features of the Dell Venue 11 7000 include 2MP (front) and 8MP (rear) camera, Intel 7265 Dual-Band 2x2 802.11 ac WiFi (with Miracast) and Bluetooth 4.0, a Micro-SD Card Reader (SD, SDHC, SDXC, supporting up to 64GB), 1 x Full size USB3.0 port, headphone/microphone jack, 1 x micro HDMI, NFC, and a Sensor Hub (Gyro, G-sensor, Proximity). The Dell Venue 11 7000 is about 10.75mm thin and weighs in at 733.4g (1.62lb). Pricing will start at $699.
Which brings us to the Dell Venue 8 7000. The super svelte, 6mm, 309 gram Venue 8 7000 is equipped with Intel's RealSense camera, which gives the slate depth perception similar to the human eye. Using the RealSense camera, the Venue 8 7000 can measure 3D images by capturing different layers. It can then determine the distance and size of a real-world object, though in time, it will be interesting to see how developers take advantage of the technology.
At 6mm, the Venue 8 7000 Is The Slimmest Tablet Made
The Venue 8 7000 sports an 8.4-inch OLED display with a 2K (2560x1600) resolution that looks absolutely fantastic. An edge-to-edge screen makes the most out of the available real-estate. There's also a micro-USB 2.0 port for charging the device, a volume button, a power button, and front-facing speakers on the bottom. The device runs Android 4.4 KitKat (though we're told a Lolipop upgrade is coming) and is powered by an Intel Atom Z3500 Series (Moorefield) quad-core processor paired to 2GB of RAM.
A Full Line Of Accessories Is Coming With All Of Dell's Tablet's
Look for the Dell Venue 8 7000 to be available this holiday season--the first units have just begun rolling off the assembly line. Pricing isn't being disclosed just yet.