| PC SATISFACTION |
Originally created in 1985 by Michael Dell as PC’s Limited, the company produced the first computer of its own design — the “Turbo PC”, it sold for US$795. PC’s Limited advertised the systems for sale directly to consumers, and custom-assembled each ordered unit according to a selection of options. This offered buyer’s prices lower than those of retail brands, but with greater convenience than assembling the components themselves. The company grossed more than $73 million in its first year of trading. The company eventually changed its name to “Dell Computer Corp. in 1988.
Some of Dells major accomplishments include purchasing the computer hardware manufacturer Alienware in 2006 allowing Alienware to continue to operate independently under its existing management. Alienware expected to benefit from Dell’s more efficient manufacturing system. In 2007 Dell ranked 34th on the Fortune 500 list, and 8th on the annual top 20 most-admired companies list. And in 2008 Dell announced that the Inspiron 1525 would have Ubuntu as an optional operating system, making them one of the first major manufacturers to offer an operating system other than Windows or Linux.