Dell Puts Down the MP3 Player Division

Looks like Dell is backing off from the portable players market as it has banned access to its DJ Ditty official webpage.

Even if the company hasn't confirmed the rumors, it is a fact that the Dell DJ Ditty is out of the maker's catalog and no longer available on the market. "Dell won't offer a follow-up product, preferring to concentrate on core areas like PCs and printers, but it will still be a third-party reseller for other MP3 players like Creative Zen," writes Pocket Lint web site.

Dell's first MP3 players were released in late 2003, but they haven't boosted the company's market share until now, so the decision doesn't come as a surprise, as several research firms anticipated the move long before it hit the headlines. Furthermore, the representatives announced in February that they will cease the mass production of the hard-drive-based MP3 players, and are now continuing the company's policy with the flash-based devices.

Dell had to recall earlier this month no less than 4.1 million malfunctioning batteries and the analysts are expecting a huge drop in sales and credibility. However, the manufacturer didn't disclose the cost of this comprehensive campaign but added that: "We would expect it to have nomaterial impact on our financials," Dell's chairman Michael Dell declared on the occasion of a conference held by the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore. "We have been working very closely with Sony to understand what occurred in the process during the period of contamination and to understand what counter measures they have taken. We are confident that they have taken the right counter measures and the process is now secure."

"Consumers should stop using these recalled batteries immediately and contact Dell to receive a replacement battery. Consumers can continue to use the notebook computers safely by turning the system off, ejecting the battery, and using the AC adapter and power cord to power the system until the replacement battery is received," stated Dell.