Dell includes LoJack with XPS laptops

Round Rock (TX) - Dell includes a one-year subscription to a theft protection service on some of its notebooks.

The company said it is now providing buyers of the XPS M1210, 1710 and the M2010 computers access to LoJack’s one year of theft protection service free of charge. After the first year, users will have to subscribe to the regular LoJack service, which currently goes for $50 per year.

The LoJack for Laptops service does not require GPS functionality, but works with a relatively simple call-home software. Computers with the LoJack contact the monitoring center of the company when connected to the Internet. If a notebook is reported stolen, the device is placed on "high-alert" and it will try to call home every 15 minutes, allowing the LoJack recovery team to track down its position.

The company claims that it can recover three out of four stolen laptops. If it is not recovered within 30 days of a reported loss, the company will provide a refund of the $50 purchase price of its "AbsoluteSoftware".

However, the LoJack service will only provide one Laptop recovery per one-year service. Upon recovery, the service contract is terminated, without refund of the remaining time to the customer. To continue theft protection, customers will have to enter a new service agreement with the company (for an additional annual fee).