Dell Exec: Upgrade Cycle Still On Horizon

Dell Computer

"I'll tell you we know there's a lot of machines out there that are getting quite up in age," Rollins said. "You've got over 150 million computers out there that are greater than three years old. Seventy-five percent of the installed base cannot run Windows XP."

Rollins made his remarks in a conference call with financial analysts, following Dell's release of its most recent quarterly results.

The company on Thursday reported earnings of $456 million on sales of $8.1 billion for its fourth quarter ended Feb. 1.

Dell executives also said they expect a normal, seasonal decline in shipments of about 10 percent this quarter over the fourth quarter.

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Taking the seasonal decline into account, Rollins painted an optimistic outlook for the upcoming quarter, saying he expected Dell to perform ahead of the industry.

Further out, he anticipates a upgrade cycle to kick in. "When we talk to (CIOs), they are pretty apprehensive" about how outdated their systems are, Rollins said. "We believe the upgrades are going to come, but it's going to depend on the economy."

For the full year last year, Dell saw a 2.3 percent drop in revenue from the previous year, to $31.7 billion.