Handheld to handheld combat. Dell vs. HP. Bloomberg Boot Camp, a report on today's technology. For the first time, Dell Computer has introduced its own brand of PocketPC devices... .with two models... .priced at 299 dollars and 199. The number one company in PC sales is taking aim at its chief rival Hewlett Packard... .which through the acquisition of Compaq... has the top selling PocketPC line in the iPaq. While some industry insiders have been whispering that Dell is selling the 199 dollar model at a loss to gain market share... .Michael Dell tells us... the company does make money even at that price...

"We do. You know this is not the biggest opportunity that Dell is focused on but our consumers have told us they're interested in PocketPCs and I think we've come up with a great product that obviously delivers a lot of value." Now that you're in it, what's your goal? Can you overtake HP on PocketPCs and take some overall handheld market share away from Palm? "Well we haven't really announced goals for those products. We think that they're going to offer great value and appear to be very attractive. Initial sales response has been quite encouraging."

At HP, senior VP Alex Gruzen says the new 299 dollar iPaq can stand up to the competition... .

"I'm not concerned. I think if you hold the products side by side, the customers for PocketPC are going to clearly gravitate towards our new product."

The new price points for low end PocketPCs could present a more serious threat to Palm devices... which have been top sellers for years. Bloomberg Boot Camp, I'm Fred Fishkin.