Latitude ON

Latitude ON is an instant on computer system made by Dell. It is a combination of software and hardware^[1][2] developed by Dell and used in some of their Latitude laptops.^[2][3] The system is based on a dedicated ARM processor (Texas Instruments OMAP 3430) that runs a custom version of a Linux OS. It was announced on August 12, 2008 along with other laptops, including a potential competitor to the Asus Eee PC^[4] and arrived a year later on 28 September 2009.^[5]

Latitude ON runs MontaVista^[6] Linux on an ARM-based subprocessor.^[7] This so-called MontaVista Montabello Mobile Internet Device Solution provides a customizable, Linux-based Mobile Internet Device (MID) platform the laptop is able to boot almost instantly and view Email, document reader, calendar, contacts and access the Internet.^[2]

First laptop models to include Latitude ON were E4200 and E4300 released in February 2009.^[8] Last laptop model introduced so far is Latitude Z600.^[9] Dell claims that battery life can be extended to days.

Latitude ON Reader is similar to Dell's MediaDirect where the software is located in a separate partition on the system hard drive and has a dedicated button to power on.

Versions

There are several versions of Latitude ON:

• Dell Latitude ON | Reader - Dell's initial release of the technology. The Reader software resides on the main partition of the hard drive, boots in 15–25 seconds, uses the laptop's CPU, and provides read-only access to e-mail, calendar and contacts from the last synched version of the system's Outlook data.^[10] No Internet browser.^[11]
• Dell Latitude ON | FLASH - runs on a flash module, but uses the system's CPU, without significantly increased battery life. Features: boots in 8–10 seconds, supports Wi-Fi and LAN, thin client capabilities with Web access or Citrix, VMware and RDP clients, multi-protocol IM, VoIP (Skype, using the built-in webcam if present), Microsoft Office document viewer and editor (requires Internet connection), Java, Adobe Flash.^[12]
• Dell Latitude ON | ECM - boots in 2–3 seconds and runs on the dedicated sub-processor, with Wi-Fi or Mobile Broadband support. Includes document reader, and read/write access to e-mail, calendar and contacts, and Firefox, but without Adobe Flash or other media plugins. Supports Novell GroupWise and Cisco VPN.^[11] Long battery life (about 17 hours on a 6-cell battery).^[10]

Latitude ON Comparison Chart

See also

• Splashtop
• HyperSpace

References

External links

• Latitude ON Video