Note this is Dell’s Offer Price and is likely to change.

This is my recommended buy with a couple of caveats.

1) Some users have reported banding where the colours on the left and right aren’t as strong as those in the middle.

2) There may be an Input Lag issue (bad for fast moving objects like video games).

Both these things would perhaps rule out the 2709W for graphic designers or gamers.

However less demanding users may not even notice and outside of these issues the monitor gets a good write up (see cnet review below).

The price is what makes this a recommended buy.

If you purchase this through Dell’s Home and Home Office (i.e. not the business channel). Distance Selling regulations should protect you in the event you are unhappy with your purchase.

You will need to return the goods immediately and I would recommend you purchase with a credit card for additional protection.

Check with Dell prior to ordering your consumer rights in relation to returning goods.

No modern appliance is perfect so do some homework.

Product Link:

http://accessories.euro.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=uk&l=en&s=dhs&cs=ukdhs1&sku=170559

Review Link:

http://www.cnet.com.au/desktops/monitors/0,239029427,339289509,00.htm

If you don’t know what input lag is:-

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dell+input+lag&search_type=&aq=f

I am genuinely excited to see Windows Small Business Server 2008 Standard and Premium reach public beta.

This is the core network operating system used by my clients, or the 2003 version is at any rate.

Ultimately this final release of the 2008 version is sometime Q3 2008.

Hopefully this beta is full of lots of cool stuff worth Screencasting.

Unfortunately I have been working technology long enough to have lived through:-

BackOffice Small Business Server 4.0 (1997)
BackOffice Small Business Server 4.5 (1999)
Microsoft Small Business Server 2000 (2001)
Microsoft Small Business Server 2003 (2003)
Microsoft Small Business Server 2003 R2 (2006)

So What’s new for 2008.

New Management Console
Security Center
Updated Remote Web Working and Terminal Services
Integration with Office Live

And of course the latest Windows Server (2008), Exchange Server (2007) and SharePoint 3.0. Premium comes with SQL Server 2008.

Things you may not know

You need 4gb of Ram and x64 Processor
The cost of this release has increased.
The Premium install now requires an additional server.
Tape Backup is no longer supported.
Single Nic installs only.
Comes bundled with Microsoft’s own security products (Forefront and Live One Care in a 120 day trial).

Ever since the 2003 version SBS has proven to be a reliable choice for business. I am just hoping that their good reputation continues with this new release.

Main Product Page: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver/essential/sbs/default.mspx

For US customers Microsoft have launched a beta service that rolls out traditional Microsoft Offerings Like Microsoft Exchange but offered as a combination of Software and Service hosted by Microsoft.

Also offered are Office Live Meeting and Sharepoint Online.

This is part of Microsoft’s re-invention pushing their existing business products out onto the Internet.

They need to do this before some Internet startup comes and eats their lunch.

They have been talking about this for a while, but reaching beta stage is a pretty significant step forward.

In a world beyond Windows Server 2008 you have to imagine Microsoft are going to promote these services to small business the world over.

Previous efforts in this area like Office Live just didn’t seem to gel.

However products with industry standard pedigrees like Microsoft Exchange and Sharepoint are pretty difficult to argue with.

If you are interested in seeing where Microsoft is with all of this take a look at the link below.

Link: http://www.microsoft.com/online/default.mspx

Tip: This download is not for the typical end user but I.T Pro’s who need to see if anything business critical breaks on Windows XP systems.

Microsoft are getting ready to ship Windows XP Service Pack 3 and the RC2 download turned up on the Public Microsoft download site.

I would imagine they want this tested by as many people as they can.

Windows XP is by far the most dominant Operating system in use today.  So by the time the RC (release candidate) ships to end users via Windows Update they want to see how it performs in the real world.

I for one need to see it for myself, I will do a post about the experience soon.

Link: Windows XP Service Pack 3 RC 2 Download

Every time I use Dell Technical support I write up my experience both good and bad. Hopefully this will help potential customers of Dell’s equipment get a feeling for the aftercare that is on offer.

I had a case of an Dell Optiplex GX280 Small Form Factor desktop. The fan on this machine was running fast and loud. There was a batch of Optiplexes from Circa 2006 that had this problem but it could take a long time to manifest.

So I called Dell Technical Support. The UK based technician was very helpful and said if I did a quick bios upgrade first and if that doesn’t cure it they would send an engineer. I received an e-mail with the link to bios file within moments.

I got the end user to install the Bios Update and we monitored the machine for half an hour. The problem persisted. So I replied by e-mail to the Dell Tech with the site address and got a quick confirmation that an engineer would be dispatched.

The problem has now been resolved and in this case Dell Technical Support gave an excellent service.

To read the other Dell Technical Support Reviews Click Here