As more people look for inexpensive, lightweight secondary laptops to fulfill basic computing needs like web surfing and e-mail, they are turning toward the ultra mobile PC (also known as netbooks).

Ever since, Asus started the craze for the mini laptops other manufacturers have been readying themselves to enter the market. Now that these smaller PCs are gathering momentum and becoming extremely popular, Dell have launched their own version – the Dell Inspiron Mini 9, which promises all the typical netbook weight savings and construction, but with the quality build and after sales care that has made Dell so popular.

The Mini 9 packs similar componentry as other mini notebooks with 1.6GHz Intel Atom CPU, 1GB of RAM, a choice of XP or Linux operating system and a choice of 8GB or 16GB solid state drives (SSD).

The move to SSD over standard hard disk drives (HDDs) means the Mini 9 is virtually silent – no fan or disc noise whatsoever and gives an incredibly quick boot time.

The solid build quality of the Mini 9 makes this netbook stand out from the crowd with a fantastic black glossy finish befitting the pricier full size Dell laptops we are used to. The battery life is also praiseworthy; the 4-cell battery gives a significant shot of extra power compared to more standard 3-cell offerings and lasts around four hours of ordinary operation.

At £299 the Inspiron Mini 9 is worth a serious look. The Mini has three USB ports, headphone and mic jacks, a VGA out, SD card slot and an Ethernet jack — a fairly standard set of connections in the netbook world. The screen is a handsome 8.9-inches wide displaying 1,024×600 pixels and includes a webcam above and two small speaker grilles below.

Although the Inspiron Mini 9 is not radically different from most of the netbooks on the market, the fact that Dell has entered the market it is time to take these little power PCs seriously. If you haven’t tried one yet – it is worth getting your hands on one – you may be surprised how captivating they are.

Check out the CNet Mini 9 review

 

StuffTV’s Review: Dell Inspiron Mini 9 vs. Asus Eee PC

Posted by admin on Friday, November 7th, 2008