Dell Inspiron mini 9 is here

Well the Dell Inspiron mini 9 has now been released - http://www1.euro.dell.com/content/produ ... ref=homepg
I have to say it looks very good, and well priced at £299 all in.

In some ways I kinda feel like I should have held out and got this instead of my Aspire One, but its always the way with technology, and I am no good at waiting.
I think its a real contender in the Netbook arena.
Still here are the specs.

Inspiron Mini - Only in Black at the Moment
1.6Ghz Atom
XP Home Edition
1.3MP Camera
8.9" TrueLife Screen
1GB Ram
16GB SSD
Intel 950 Graphics Card
Wireless b/g (Not sure on chipset)
Bluetooth
4 Cell Battery

 

funky keyboard from the looks of it ... and higher priced then rumored in America ($349 4GB SSD 512MB Ram vs the rumored $299) however the unbuntu remix would be nice indeed.

oh wow.. you have to pay if you want a webcam on the ubuntu one... wth $25

spec'd out equal to my A110 it would be $90 more than i paid (nearly 30% more)


however the trackpad looks???? nicer maybe?? well at least the god damned buttons are to the sides


meh... hopefully someone I know will buy one so i can mess with it... I was super gung ho to get a eee 901 till I actually had a chance to use one and figured out how horible the keyboard is

 

looks nice but like above, isn't too much off specs of aa1 and similarly priced as well so I think it's down to personal preference.

 

I don't care. I'm married to my One, man.

 

Its uglier.
Its got a bizarre keyboard.
Its more expensive.

The only reason to go with the mini 9 is a (hopefully) fully-working install of Ubuntu netbook remix.

Once the A1 can boast that its no contest in my opinion.

 

Another plus is for those people (not me) who want to run Windows on an SSD device.
The One seems to struggle without alot of tweaking to make it really usable.

 

I agree with the previous posts on the keyboard. As a former ASUS eeePC 701 and 1000H owner I could never get used to the small right shift keys (even remapping the page up and right shift wasnt ideal for me) which the dell mini inspiron also appears to have.

I dont have my One yet but have typed on one extensively at the local circuit city and, IMHO, think the keyboard is far superior to the ASUS 1000H (dont even get me started on the 701 it was nightmare with my big hands). Better tactile feedback and, most importantly, "normal" shift keys (both right and left). I type fast 60 wpm+ so the keyboard was really important to me. When Im not working I like to watch video so the 120-160GB hard drive is also nice as opposed to the SD in the mini inspiron. Guess it all just depends on what is important to you.
(Anxiously awaiting my 6 cell aspire one.......)

 

lowest price $349 gives me

4G SSD HDD
no webcam
512RAM
Ubuntu
no BT

Not exactly as I hoped, I was hoping it starts at $299 for that, and has comparable hardwares like AA1 WinXP at $349....AA1 is still the best buy at its price. No question about it.

 

it's another option...especially with Ubuntu. Not that I want the custom dell interface, but that means Ubuntu has the appropriate drivers for your own "custom install".

However, I think you still get a lot more for your money with the aa1 as long as you stay away from the SSD. Perhaps dell is using a decent ssd though, that would make a huge difference.

I'm still satisfied with the new aa1...at least in theory. we'll see when it gets here, lol!

 

i read a review of the mini 9 that says it has no cooling fans at all. completely silent. that's a big plus. they also said it doesn't get too unusually hot without the fans.

AA1:
cheaper
function keys readily accessible on keyboard

mini 9:
more expensive (one with specs i want is around $500)
ubuntu should work 100%
silent (no fans)
better battery life (4 cell vs 3 cell)

 

i need to see real world battery test to decide if that 4 cell is better.

Cells is not a standard for judging the battery life.

 

Keyboard wise, I like the trackpad and the large backspace key. A half-Shift key :x is a no-no (though all too common in this category), the Function key setup seems bizarre (though outside of F11 for full-screen view in various programs, I rarely use F keys unless I'm playing a game), and the keyboard in general is just plain screwy if you ask me.

Laptop mag has a review:
http://www.laptopmag.com/review/laptops ... linux.aspx

I think it's still instructive to read articles on it, and interviews with Dell folks, because the Aspire One comes up, as does this category (netbook/mini-notebook) in general. Like so...

Q&A: One on One with Dell Inspiron Mini 9 Product Manager
http://blog.laptopmag.com/dell-inspiron ... -unplugged

I would expect Dell to be a lot more aggressive in marketing their product (their magazine advertising budget seems endless -- I've yet to ever see an AA1 ad in a magazine, or really anywhere at this point). Whether that would be any more successful than "letting the product sell itself" via good word-of-mouth (as Acer is largely doing, and it seems to be gradually working ), or just be a waste of Dell's ad budget, remains to be seen. :?

 

HoHum... One less card reader and a funky KB. Webcam is optional? I wonder if it is as good as the One? This thing works in almost complete darkness.

 

Well I don't know about others, but I personally got min AA1 for $250 from Best Buy. I would rather have this that have a (slight) maybe upgrade to a Dell Mini 9. Now if it was what they were first advertising? I'd be all for it.

Just so you know, what they were advertising in thier "leaked info" was:

1.6 Atom Processor
Bluetooth (built in)
3G Network Capability
1GB RAM
120 GB Hard Drive
10" Screen
Ubuntu (100% Working, special Dell Configuration)
85-88% Keyboard
and a bunch of other crap.

All this for $299 American. But they didn't even come with a big hard drive, the screen is just as small, the keyboard is suckier and bluetooth cost extra $$ to get integrated. Jeez...

Now, Dell flubbed up, just like everyone else did, and released a too-low price and super specs just to create hype. Acer is the only one that didn't do this, and they are offering thier product for $329 and $349, and are now even giving 6 cell battery options.

Dell has had every opportunity to make thiers bigger, better, faster and more awesome then the competition. I don't think that its worth $150 extra dollars to get *LESS* of a machine than the $349 Acer Aspire. But thats just me I guess.

 

The whole Dell mini announcement was very underwhelming. I've always wanted the One, I knew the dell wouldn't persuade me differently, but coming into the game this late after the competition started, you should at least have a 1 up on the hardware offering. But Dell couldn't pull that off, not even close.

 

Indeed - with this specs, for most people looking for a *netbook* as a *netbook* (that is, a cheap, simple, lightweight WiFi-equipped Linux-based computer - the latter to keep it extra-cheap) the Acer One will be the better option.

Apart from that, Dell is failing European customers for only giving the option of a Windows-based version for 369 euros - where you can get a lighter, cheaper Acer One for € 299. And that's before any price reductions come into effect. :?

 

re the laptopmag review

- nowhere that I could see does it say it is fanless. It just says it got "uncomfortably hot" when used.

- its unlikely that the SSD is much better than the one in the A1. Its not got the SLC boot drive that the Eee PCs do.

- their "verdict" is laughable... they "recommend" you pay $90 more and get the Dell over the Acer 110L "for those users interested in Linux" when what they obviously should have said - had they not taken Dells marketing money - was "we recommend the Aspire One 150X for everyone except those who want Linux"...

- and anyway, paying $90 for Ubuntu? The Linux guys here on the forum have it fully working on the A1 within a month, you'll see.... and it'll be free.

 

Dell's mini computer is not a hit... :?

1. The $500 (1gb ram) compares to the $350 Acer One (120 gb version with 1gb ram), more exp. for equal specs

2. The mini is BIGGER than the one with the same screen size and a more messed up keyboard, :roll:

3. one plus i can think of is the fan less ness, easily solved on the one with the AA1 fan control prog, (an AWESOME prog :mrgreen: )
personally i like having the ability to actively cool my comp when needed (power user)

4. another plus is the 4 cell battery, however, a time test does need to be done

5. largest offered with HDs is 16gb

my 2 centz

 

I went and checked on the US Dell website for the Dell mini 9 and it is nothing special....from the service I have had before, and the price that it would cost to get what I want, they can have it...Dell customer service is the worst I have ever dealt with and not even a bigger SSD can convince me otherwise.

 

http://blog.laptopmag.com/dell-inspiron ... ortunities


Here are the guts. I wonder if you can upgrade the ssd by yourself ....