Dell Waves White Flag At Apple's iPod

Flashback: Kevin Rollins, Dell's CEO, describes Apple's iPod as a "fad" and likens it to the Sony Walkman:

But you do hear about the iPod, and it's not exactly music to Dell's ears. This week, at the Bear Stearns Technology Conference, Rollins officially tipped his cap to Apple and waved the white flag, ceding that part of the consumer technology space to the company Michael Dell once said he would shut down if he ever owned:

following the link Dell provides

For its part, Dell has marketed its own branded .MP3 players - but the devices just never caught on.

Apple iPod fans and Dell haters can get some schadenfreude value out of this news. But for Dell competitors, here's the takeaway: the company and its executives are now willing to admit mistakes and change course. In other words (and forgive me for this), they're not afraid to start singing a different tune.