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review of
Dell Mini
by
taniagail
Jan 10, 2010
Love is: Dell's Green Swirl Netbook
Rating:
+4
Dell Inspiron Mini 10 Netbook - Green Swirl limited edition
Dell netbook with a bold green swirl cover design by Mike Ming. My netbook is #1450 of 6300 - I feel special. To make this more authentic, I'm writing and researching information for the review using the Dell netbook itself.
Why purchase this model? I've owned Dell laptops for the past 3 years and am well acquainted with the devil in the details of Dell laptops. Professionally and personally I've found myself increasingly attending conferences and workshops. In doing so, lugging around my laptop, photo gear and assorted items tends to get in the way of my work. To alleviate the problem, I've been researching options to minimize my gear without sacrificing quality and technology.
Basic specs on this netbook are as follows:
- Intel Atom 1.6 GHz
- 10.1 widescreen display
- Windows 7 Starter
- 1 GB DDRD SDRAM (synchronous dynamic RAM)
- 160 GB 5400rpm SATA (serial ATA) HD
- Wireless 802.11g mini card
- 6 cell battery estimated to give around 8 hours of work time.
- Built in Webcam and 10/100 ethernet connector
Netbooks are quickly becoming powerful mobile tools thanks to their size and technical power. Before purchasing one it is wise to know a few key ideas about what is packaged in a netbook. You want to consider SDRAM, the type and speed of the processor, the Operating System and battery life. This netbook is not a replacement for your desktop or laptop computer, but a powerful mobile assistant.
I've owned the Inspiron Mini 10 netbook for approximately 24 hours. This is a truly fresh out of the box review of the netbook. I was attracted to the Dell for its light weight, battery life, digital card reader and its aesthetics. The green swirl design is way cool! First impressions are how small it is in comparison to my laptop,. You can see the size difference in the photos provided for this review. The touch pad is unique and works in a similar manner as an iphone. After a few minutes working with the touch pad, I installed a wireless Logitech mouse.
Pros:
Brilliant, sharp display - better that I expected a 16.9 aspect ratio. Use the touch pad to easily zoom in on a document for easier reading.
Decent responsiveness with multiple programs open - I did notice some but not considerable lag time.
Lightweight and small - this netbook easily fits in my briefcase and purse.
No problems linking up to my home network or printer.
The notebook likes IE, but I managed to get Google Wave installed.
The netbook cover art is quite attractive.
3 USB ports and an HDMI port - WOW!
Keyboard feels solid, with the keys well spaced.
The machine is very, very quiet.
This Dell is green - and I'm not talking about the cover art! This model is Energy Star certified.
Decent responsiveness with multiple programs open - I did notice some but not considerable lag time.
Lightweight and small - this netbook easily fits in my briefcase and purse.
No problems linking up to my home network or printer.
The notebook likes IE, but I managed to get Google Wave installed.
The netbook cover art is quite attractive.
3 USB ports and an HDMI port - WOW!
Keyboard feels solid, with the keys well spaced.
The machine is very, very quiet.
This Dell is green - and I'm not talking about the cover art! This model is Energy Star certified.
Cons:
The ball of my hands rest naturally on the Touch Pad causing deletion of words or moving the cursor somewhere else on the screen. I have to constantly be aware of the position of my hands while typing.
8 hours of battery life - I'm very skeptical and at this point have not done any testing of that claim on this netbook. I speak only from experience.
No ability to increase RAM - conservation is the key, then again, this is not meant to be a full fledged laptop. 160 GB HD is acceptable and you can always backup your files to external storage.
1.3mp webcam - forget about it and continue to use the Canon Vixia HG10.
Battery packs make for a non sleek silhouette.
8 hours of battery life - I'm very skeptical and at this point have not done any testing of that claim on this netbook. I speak only from experience.
No ability to increase RAM - conservation is the key, then again, this is not meant to be a full fledged laptop. 160 GB HD is acceptable and you can always backup your files to external storage.
1.3mp webcam - forget about it and continue to use the Canon Vixia HG10.
Battery packs make for a non sleek silhouette.
In summary, this netbook makes for a robust addition to your computing needs. It is powerful, compact and lightweight. A great mobile netbook that does not leave you lacking in computing power when you are away from your home or office network. I'd suggest this model for professionals who travel, bloggers, vloggers, and new media consultants. Individuals who have limited needs for a computer but want to keep up with this technology will also benefit from the cost and performance Dell's Inspiron Mini 10 netbook.
Disclosure: I've not received any financial or material compensation from Dell in exchange for this review.
Great review - the mousepad in the way of the keys is such a dumb design problem and I've had to adopt "hovertyping" to avoid the issues you mentioned. I think the built-in camera is also pretty low-spec (but amazingly helpful when you get stuck at the airport and need Skype!). Otherwise they're pretty neat machines.
On January 13, 2010
Reply
Thanks for the review -- you touched on the two items I've been concerned about when considering a Netbook -- the spacing of the keyboard keys, and the performance. I was thinking I'd have to go down the Linux pathway to really get the most out of a Netbook, but you've been happy with the Win 7 performance?
On January 11, 2010
Reply
Ahh, Linux! Way back in the day, I converted a windows 2000 box to a Linux Mandrake box. Stunning how much Linux offered in an operating system. This model does come preconfigured with Unbuntu if you request it when ordering the netbook. I picked this netbook off the shelf at Best Buy and had no say in which OS to install - Windows 7 was the only choice. The netbook is running on Win 7 starter - not the full package. So far, so good - all I can say now regarding the OS - it is NOT Vista.
On January 11, 2010
I gave up trying to buy a Dell in Canada but ended up with Toshiba instead due to being taken on a ride with its customer service. Hopeless! But Dell is a fine product. I have had a laptop in end 2008 which has a great screen as you mentioned (although I still prefer my Sony Vaio). Anyhow, glad you like it!
On January 11, 2010
Reply
Yes, I am well acquainted with Dell 'lack of' Customer Service. I am happy with the resolution of the display, and am still checking out its capabilities.
On January 11, 2010
I was given a free world tour with its outsourcing, you know, long distance for free but getting nowhere. It's kinda like a cruise to nowhere & imagine doing that to a VTer ;-) Hehe, may be in recent times I'm desperate when it comes to traveling but hey, not THAT desperate!
On January 12, 2010
Cheesy, but I'm green with envy for your green swirl netbook! I actually looked into getting this a while back, but I haven't really travelled so much in the past year. When my travelling picks up though, I just might! I'd be curious to hear how long the battery actually lasts. I have gigantic clunker of a Dell laptop, and it has about a two hour battery life. Pretty impressive for a larger machine. Thanks for the breakdown, Tania Gail! :)
On January 11, 2010
Reply
Did forget to add the processor - it is the N450. I've my eye on the tablets as well. I'm quite impressed with this netbook, with the understanding of its limitations.
On January 10, 2010
Reply
The Green Swirl cover is too girly for me but it does look like a nice netbook. What is the screen resolution? Do you know if the Intel Atom processor in the N270 or N450? The N450 is newer and should give longer battery mileage. I got an HP Mini netbook with 16GB SSD last year for use as an off-road GPS with topo maps. But I think I'll get one of the new tablet/slate computers that were just announced at CES.
On January 10, 2010
Reply
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A line of subnotebook/netbook computers designed by the American multinational technology company Dell.
Facts
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The Dell Inspiron Mini Series is a line of subnotebook / netbook computers designed by the American multinational technology company Dell, Inc. The series was introduced in September 2008 amidst the growing popularity of low-cost netbook computers introduced by competitors, and now consists of the Inspiron Mini 10v, Mini 10 and Mini 12; with the numbers representing the diagonal screen size in inches.
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