∞ Dell's desperation shows, says the iPad will fail in the enterprise

Dell has spoken. They say that Apple doesn’t have a hope of succeeding in the enterprise market with its iPad.

[ad#Google Adsense 300×250 in story]Andy Lark, Dell’s global head of marketing for large enterprises and public organisations, was speaking today to CIO Australia when he made the comments about the iPad. While he gave credit to the iPad to the iPad for its sales figures, he said it would fail in the enterprise.

“I couldn’t be happier that Apple has created a market and built up enthusiasm but longer term, open, capable and affordable will win, not closed, high price and proprietary,” said Lark. “Apple is great if you’ve got a lot of money and live on an island. It’s not so great if you have to exist in a diverse, open, connected enterprise; simple things become quite complex.”

Apple is also great if you want to get things done without rebooting your crappy machines like you get to do with a Dell. Apple’s iPad Web site is full of support documents and resources to get started in the Enterprise.

Lark said that Dell’s approach in using tablet PCs and Microsoft Windows would be the winner. Am I going crazy or has Microsoft been trying this strategy for a decade now without success. How is it that Dell thinks things are going to change now?

The tablet has been around a lot longer than Apple’s iPad, but Apple popularized the concept of the modern tablet, both from a hardware and software standpoint.

“An iPad with a keyboard, a mouse and a case [means] you’ll be at $1500 or $1600; that’s double of what you’re paying,” said Lark. “That’s not feasible.”

And that’s how you know Lark is just spreading a bunch of crap. As Macgasm points out the price of getting these items is far less than what Lark says. iPad = $499; Apple Wireless Keyboard = $69.00; iPad Dock = $29.00; and an iPad Smart Cover = $69.00.

The grand total is $666.00, not $1,500 or $1,600.

Nice try Dell, but your desperation is starting to show.