Dell Inspirion "Mini"

DrXThirst · Post by **DrXThirst** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:23 pm

Do you guys think any of these new "Mini 9's" are worth it? Click [Here] for a link to them.

Here's basically what it is:
8.9" Long
Glossy 8.9 inch LED display (1024X600)
White/Black
Intel® AtomTM Processor (1.6GHz, 512KB L2 Cache, 533MHz FSB)
Genuine Windows® XP Home Edition SP3
Ubuntu Linux 8.04 with custom Dell interface
1GB 533MHz DDR2 SDRAM.
Intel® Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator 950
Up to 16GB configured with a Solid State drive. (

)

You can find the rest by clicking the link I provided above. I think this would be nice to get for school, but I just want to get you guy's opinions first. Also, I'm just using this for school notes/bookwork, so I think this is damn near perfect for just that.

Research Results:

4+ Hour Battery Life
2.3lbs in Weight
Optional Linux/Ubuntu OS
NO DISC DRIVE (Reads/Writes CDs)
1 Main Speaker under screen

GametagAeonFlux · Post by **GametagAeonFlux** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:30 pm

It sounds neat as a notebook, but I'd be worried about my hands cramping up from typing on such a small keyboard.

ScottyGEE · Post by **ScottyGEE** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:31 pm

Not very powerful (expected I guess), tiny harddrive, the ubuntu version would suck, Doesn't advertise battery life (leads me to believe its shocking because generally it gets advertised as super portable orsm) its 4 cell though, mine is 9, standard is 6 if that means anything to you.

Its pretty damn cheap though.

Really depends what you do for school.

DrXThirst · Post by **DrXThirst** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:33 pm

ScottyGEE wrote:Not very powerful (expected I guess), tiny harddrive, the ubuntu version would suck, Doesn't advertise battery life (leads me to believe its shocking because generally it gets advertised as super portable orsm) its 4 cell though, mine is 9, standard is 6 if that means anything to you.

Its pretty damn cheap though.

Really depends what you do for school.

4 Hour battery life, meaning I'll only have to charge it in 1 class.

Long battery life: No need to sacrifice weight for battery life. The Inspiron Mini 9 provides over 4 hours of battery life while keeping the weight of the system under 2.3 pounds.

JK-47 · Post by **JK-47** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:35 pm

I'd say it's worth it. That would be perfect for school. I would love one, considering my laptop is ridiculously large.

Ombre · Post by **Ombre** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:36 pm

ScottyGEE wrote:Not very powerful (expected I guess), tiny harddrive, the ubuntu version would suck, Doesn't advertise battery life (leads me to believe its shocking because generally it gets advertised as super portable orsm) its 4 cell though, mine is 9, standard is 6 if that means anything to you.

Its pretty damn cheap though.

Really depends what you do for school.

Long battery life: No need to sacrifice weight for battery life. The Inspiron Mini 9 provides over 4 hours of battery life while keeping the weight of the system under 2.3 pounds.

I don't know what a normal laptop has, but 4 hours doesn't seem like a huge amount. (I'd want at least 6).

xbox · Post by **xbox** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:38 pm

6 is very long

ScottyGEE · Post by **ScottyGEE** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:39 pm

My 9 cell is (or more accurately, was) 9 hours on vista. If they advertise it as 4 hours, then prepare for 3 or less if you use wifi or like a bright, readable screen.

Also, sorry, I obviously missed it but I read the entire thing

Sure I'm pessimistic, but I'm basing it off all my other laptops. Anyway, it could be pretty damn cool. Its also very light, which is something quite good. Tell us if you get it

MoDFox · Post by **MoDFox** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:42 pm

Sounds like a good old person computer, Something cheap and not over the top.

DrXThirst · Post by **DrXThirst** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:42 pm

Yeah, I was hoping for at least 6 as well. 9 would be fantastic.

That's my only concern, and there's no option to upgrade the battery.

EDIT: Scotty, my Mom said to wait until Christmas, but I told her the deal would only last a few days (shh) and she said we might get it soon then. If I do get it, I'll make a 'ViDoc' on it.

JK-47 · Post by **JK-47** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:44 pm

Is there not a disk drive? I'm not seeing one in the pictures..
Also, for the battery.. My laptop only lasted about an hour tops. As long as you get an opportunity to plug it in for a little, it should be fine.

DrXThirst · Post by **DrXThirst** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:46 pm

I didn't see one anywhere. I'm about to REALLY check out ALL of the upgradable/customizable features, and see what results I can come up with.

EDIT: There's not much to choose from, and there's not a disk drive. You can choose to get an external one for $85, though.

My teachers told me that they'd give me a CD with the information on it that puts my books/workbooks/worksheets on my computer. I guess I'll have to extract the files, and put them on a jump drive.

latinomodder · Post by **latinomodder** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:59 pm

Not good for any other purpose other than taking notes, music, video, and internet

Probably no gaming capabilities+ it could be quite slow due to its processor

DrXThirst · Post by **DrXThirst** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 6:06 pm

I only plan to use it for school.

I know of 3 applications that I will be installing on it. AIM Pro, FireFox, and Google Chrome (When in a good stage).

I also know that I'll be installing Microsoft Word, Excel, Access, Powerpoint, and One Note.

This shouldn't take up my 16GB.

I doubt there's really anything else I'll have to install, besides basic programs like Windows Media Player, etc.

guysullavin · Post by **guysullavin** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 6:14 pm

i say your pretty damn lucky to have 1gb of memory, i've never heard of Intel® AtomTM before... thats pretty weird

RaVNzCRoFT · Post by **RaVNzCRoFT** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 6:46 pm

I think it's too small to be practical.

Until we can have holograms, I think laptops are fine the way they currently are.

AbeFroman · Post by **AbeFroman** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 6:57 pm

RaVNzCRoFT wrote:Until we can have holograms,

only problem would be that seeing through the screen would be somewhat distracting

RaVNzCRoFT · Post by **RaVNzCRoFT** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 7:00 pm

AbeFroman wrote:
RaVNzCRoFT wrote:Until we can have holograms,
only problem would be that seeing through the screen would be somewhat distracting

But you get the idea. Until laptops can be EXTREMELY convenient, I don't see any point in trying to make them much smaller while still being a hunk of machine.

Ragdoll_[temp] · Post by **Ragdoll_[temp]** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 11:27 pm

It's an amazing deal, and I really have grown to love Ubuntu. I will probably end up putting xp on dual boot though. This is more of a backup/travel computer more than anything.

ScottyGEE · Post by **ScottyGEE** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 2:04 am

Yeah, installing ubuntu on that thing might actually make it run rather well. It has open office and firefox preinstalled. Its just that its a Dell spinoff mini version if I read it correctly.