Ah, it's good to be a consumer today, what with all these computer companies competing for control of our laps. When it comes to the "consumer portable" bandwagon, originally there wasn't much of a band; it was mostly just Dell trying desperately to ape Apple by shipping an obviously iBook-inspired laptop in multiple colors. But now IBM's jumped on board, too-- faithful viewer Shane Burgess sent us to a Reuters story describing Big Blue's "new line of notebook computers targeted at consumers," and some parts of the description are going to sound downright familiar-- and we're not just talking about the pathetically obvious stuff, like how this new line of IBM consumer laptops is called the "ThinkPad i Series." (Is it really that hard to find an original name?)

In particular, we zeroed right in on this little gem: "standard local area network wireless capability, which will allow for Internet access without a cable attached," a feature which IBM says is "first-of-a-kind." Now where have we seen that before? Regular viewers will recall that we damn near had an aneurysm a couple of months ago when Dell announced that its upcoming notebooks would have wireless antennas built right in, and CNET gushed endlessly about how that innovation would let Dell "stay ahead of its rivals." Er, hello? iBook with built-in AirPort antennas, August of 1999? Dell laptop with built-in antennas, September 2000? Someone please do the math and then smack CNET upside the head with the calculator.

Oh, wait... maybe someone already did. Because this time around, CNET's coverage is a heck of a lot more accurate: "IBM, Dell trail Apple in wireless networking push." It's chock full of choice quotes like "that's a feature Apple Computer has offered for more than a year on Mac notebooks, however, and for much less money than what either Dell or IBM will charge." Hey, a solidly Apple-positive article from CNET! Pardon us while we dial 911, because it's aneurysm time again-- but at least this time it's because of a pleasant surprise, which makes the recovery all that much more bearable.

So, as far as we can make out, it's a race for second place. Whereas Apple's entire product line is AirPort-ready and has been for a while, Dell originally planned to catch up with an integrated wireless laptop sometime this month, but may not deliver until "mid to late fourth quarter"-- and IBM says it's launching the i Series in October. Note, however, that IBM's i Series might beat the iBook on price: apparently once it ships, a ThinkPad i Series with the wireless gear built in will cost "around $1400," which is a few hundred bucks cheaper than a similarly-equipped (but, we assume, far classier) iBook. Then again, with the Apple Expo mere days away and a new iBook probably waiting in the wings, here's hoping that Apple plans a price break to keep Dell and IBM on their respective toes.