Dell Latitude Z600 Reviewed: It Will Make You Look Important

The Dell Latitude Z600 is a laptop that is–to coin a phrase–suited up. At just 0.6 inches thick, its the thinnest 16-inch notebook ever, making it a tempting choice for well-heeled execs (or at least those still receiving bonuses). Its red velvety exterior and chrome accents–to say nothing of the wireless induction charging stand and touch controls on the bezel–certainly scream luxury.

But the more we used this desktop replacement with ultraportable guts, the more we questioned its value. As we note in our full review, this $3,806 system’s performance and endurance don’t match the high price. It’s $3,106 without the charging stand and wireless dock.

Perhaps the most innovative thing about the Z600 is its ARM 600Mhz TI 3430 OMAP  processor (and 512MB of RAM), which is only activated when using the Latitude On operating system. While the OS is rather rudimentary compared to ASUS’ ExpressGate–there’s no Skype, music, or movie app, for example–the low power consumption of the ARM processor allowed the Z600 to last for 11 hours and 35 minutes on our LAPTOP Battery Test.

For a more detailed look at this svelte status symbol, check out our full review.