Dell Pro Essential laptops get thinner, SteamOS 3.9.6 enters beta

A quiet day: Dell has a new generation of business laptops for small firms, and Valve has a new SteamOS beta.

Dell Pro Essential 14 and 15 get a slimmer body

Dell has introduced the Dell Pro Essential 14 and Dell Pro Essential 15, its laptops for small businesses. Dell says the new models are 11% thinner than the last generation, with a 17.7-millimetre profile, measured on the main body without the feet. The 14 is 16% lighter and the 15 is 9% lighter, according to Dell’s internal analysis. The touchpad is 6% larger, and the keyboard gains microphone mute, dictation and snapshot keys.

Buyers can choose Intel Series 3 or AMD Ryzen 200 Series processors, with memory up to 64GB on select configurations and SSD storage up to 1TB. The panels are FHD+ at 400 nits, and the 14-inch Intel model also comes with a 2.5K screen at 500 nits. Ports include two USB-C, two USB-A, HDMI and an audio jack, and Intel models add an RJ-45 Ethernet port.

Dell lists EPEAT Gold Climate+ and ENERGY STAR certification, with the note that registration may vary by country and configuration. Dell has not yet given prices, release dates or European availability.

Source: Dell

SteamOS 3.9.6 beta fixes frame timing

Valve has released SteamOS 3.9.6 to the Beta and Preview channels. Its notes cover all changes since the stable SteamOS 3.8 release. The new build improves frame timing when the framerate limiter is used, with and without VRR, and fixes games that ran below the refresh rate on displays of 240 Hz and higher. It also fixes a green screen in Steam Remote Play on NVIDIA GPUs.

The wider SteamOS 3.9 notes list a Desktop Mode update from Plasma 6.4.3 to Plasma 6.7.3 and a Linux kernel rebased on Linux 7.2. Valve also adds preliminary hibernation support, which is not yet exposed in the Game Mode interface. It is not enabled on Steam Deck because of an outstanding driver bug, Valve says. To try the beta, owners opt in under Settings > System > System Update Channel.

Source: Valve