Dell Inspiron 910 = Impulse Buy

J

jasonlitka

2[H]4U
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Mar 12, 2001
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The screen on my eeePC is too small...

Anyone else buy one of these this morning? If so, what options did you pick? I went with the Windows XP model (1GB RAM, 16GB SSD, Bluetooth, 1.3MP webcam, black) because it turned out to be $30 cheaper if you added all the options that that model comes with and because it was given an expected ship date over a month earlier than the Linux version.

Anyway, my expected ship date is the 19th and I got free NDA shipping, so it should be here by the 22nd at the latest.
 
i wanted to like the inspiron... i really did... but I just cant get over the 8-16 GB SSD. I know netbooks arent meant to hold much data on them, but... dammit... i wish dell offered a regular HD option instead of the current mini-pci solution (see anand review)
 
Waiting for it to show up on my uni's premier site (I don't know why they call it premier--we get shafted). Main reason I plan to get it is because it'll be freeish.

From the pictures and the 1 review so far, the keyboard leaves a lot to be desired. I really hate the right shift to the right of the up arrow and the moving of the [, ] and '. If the 4 GB the cheapest version comes with is very fast I can live with it, otherwise the Aspire one keeps looking better and better.
 
so how long until we know


1. what kind i ram - i assume standard ddr2 laptop ram?
2. SSD drive - can it be changed out for any SSD drive?

How long does this thing last on battery, i would love a small portable to take with me to place or just around the house to randomly use for internet or something.. but i dont like being the first to buy something new, in dells case,.
 
DryFire said:
Waiting for it to show up on my uni's premier site (I don't know why they call it premier--we get shafted). Main reason I plan to get it is because it'll be freeish.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't count on it showing up. My normal rep told me it was only available through the home section of their site, not business. It sucks because I had to use a CC rather than DFS.
 
MrGuvernment said:
so how long until we know


1. what kind i ram - i assume standard ddr2 laptop ram?
2. SSD drive - can it be changed out for any SSD drive?

How long does this thing last on battery, i would love a small portable to take with me to place or just around the house to randomly use for internet or something.. but i dont like being the first to buy something new, in dells case,.
Click to expand...

1. Yes, DDR2-533, standard 200-pin. I plan to upgrade mine to 2GB as soon as I get it.
2. No, it installs in a Mini-PCI slot. Only similar devices would work and I don't believe anything larger than 16GB is available in that form factor at this point. They look like the device at the link below.

http://www.sandisk.com/OEM/ProductCatalog(1388)-Vaulter_Disk.aspx

As to the battery life, the review over at notebookreview.com says:

"Under normal use, backlight at 100 percent and using wireless for web browsing and watching several DivX movies at 75 percent volume, the Mini 9 managed to deliver three hours and 38 minutes of battery life."

http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=4578
 
litkaj said:
I wouldn't count on it showing up. My normal rep told me it was only available through the home section of their site, not business. It sucks because I had to use a CC rather than DFS.
Click to expand...

It showed up on my college's Member Purchase Program page. Nice discounts.
 
I am thinking about this one. It looks to be the best of the mini notebooks out atm. My only question are we still looking at 4GB SSD + what ever you order on a mini PCI-E slot like the current Asus EEE's or do you get a full 8 or 16GB SSD?
 
I'm not an expert, but I think premier is different than the member purchase program. Premier users are contractually screwed. It's still not on our site. It looks like the E4200 is my best bet if I want to get something through the uni without writing a letter and waiting forever.
 
So it's finally out... excellent. Now to see how if performs, but right now it's a toss up as I do find a lot of great things about the Acer Aspire One, not to mention the price. Only 4GB on the base mini? Ouch... Acer wins on that one with 8.

"The war has begun..." :)

Now if Apple gets into the fray soon... then things will really get interesting.
 
Yah, I know. I regularly see the old 12" iBooks that are what, ancient technology nowadays but still commanding premium prices. 12" iBook with a G3 in it, 20GB hard drive, 256MB of RAM, that sort of thing... $750 on Craig's List, sometimes even on fleaBay... those Cult folks are insane. ;)

The Dell looks promising, but, for the cost, the Acer Aspire One offers more in terms of storage. For Dell to have chose just 4GB as the base model... that's sooooo 2007, the base model Eee started that. This is 2008 now, with competition heating up fast, and 4GB for the base model is simply unacceptable to me. 8GB is fine for the basic configuration, but 4... what the hell were they smoking? :p
 
I am interested in a device like this because i can either

1. buy an HTPC system for my down stairs TV
2. buy something like this and run a 15FT HDMI and FIber cable from my upstairs room, downstairs and then use this device to remote to my main rig to watch things

i like the 2nd option better as then i dont have a computer by my tv..

looking around it is hard to decide if this is worth the price vs Asus or others... or for $500 ish i could build a semi decent htpc..
 
Man, if only this would have came out 5 months ago before I left Dell and it's employee discount..... :( I'm so thinking about selling my Inspiron 600m on Craigslist to get one of these bad boys. This would fit me perfectly.
 
omegafiler said:
The 910 is also limited to 1GB of DDR2 memory, MAX. :(
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Where'd you hear that? That's the same thing that they said about the eeePC when it came out and the only real restriction was that the kernel was compiled to only see 1GB. Once updated it ran with 2GB just fine.

Given that this has a Windows XP option (which I ordered) I'd think that it would work out of the box. That said, they could have crippled the chipset as the tech specs page claims that it's a 965PM/GM chipset but that it comes with GMA950 rather than X3100.

benzino_86 said:
It showed up on my college's Member Purchase Program page. Nice discounts.
Click to expand...

Not the same thing as Premier.

DryFire said:
It looks like the E4200 is my best bet if I want to get something through the uni without writing a letter and waiting forever.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm planning on buying that as well. The 910 is for sitting in my living room to look up stuff while watching TV.
 
Joe Average said:
Yah, I know. I regularly see the old 12" iBooks that are what, ancient technology nowadays but still commanding premium prices. 12" iBook with a G3 in it, 20GB hard drive, 256MB of RAM, that sort of thing... $750 on Craig's List, sometimes even on fleaBay... those Cult folks are insane. ;)
Click to expand...

Tell me about it. My sister's an art student (cultism required), and needs to replace her 4 year old g4 ibook. She can't afford new, and used prices are crazy. I have to wonder if at least part of it isn't that there's no giant stream of old corporate macs being tossed at 3-5 years age to pound down the prices. I suspect the rest is apples refusal to sell a sub $1k new laptop or full featured desktop.
 
just a note, for the price of the dell/eee/acer, there are a bunch of thinkpad X series tablets on ebay. (which are the same width as the acer, etc)


/kind of like buying a used honda versus a brand new ford pinto.
 
brucedeluxe169 said:
i wanted to like the inspiron... i really did... but I just cant get over the 8-16 GB SSD. I know netbooks arent meant to hold much data on them, but... dammit... i wish dell offered a regular HD option instead of the current mini-pci solution (see anand review)
Click to expand...

The keyboard is HORRIBLE on it too, and the other specs are lacking... plus it's highly priced. I got an Acer Aspire One for $250 with a 30 gc back by mail, love it... even the MSRP is only $350, has an Atom, XP Home, 120GB disk, 1GB RAM, nice 9" screen, AMAZING keyboard, etc. Everything this Dell is not... oh, and it uses normal SATA 2.5" laptop HDD's if you want more space.

http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?sduid=127188&t=902577

Bad 910 keyboard for typing... low travel (how far they press in) I hear too :( :

bad910keyboardrt6.jpg


Acer Aspire One ($350 MSRP with deals available to lower it to $250, available at Best Buy or online):

aceroneqa2.jpg
 
@GoldenTiger... how you manage to get one for $250?

still waiting for the non-bilingual keyboard Acer Aspire One AOA150-1447. hope to see newegg stock it really soon. so tempted to get the 120gb/3cell one for 350$ but i want that long battery life the 6 cell version has.

AOA150-1447 $400

160gb hdd
xp home
1gb ram
6cell battery. 7+hr runtime

edit:

zsr72f.jpg


the 3cell looks a little top heavy? lol
 
DDR4040 said:
He posted the link to the slickdeals forum. He paid $350 but got a $100 credit for signing up for broadband.
Click to expand...

Yes, with no early termination fee and no contract. Signed up, printed coupon, went to store and bought the acer, came home, called to cancel internet :). You technically can just print the coupon since it's non-unique, but I actually did do the whole process. The $100 credit was instant, so I paid $250+tax out the door.
 
Ryle said:
so tempted to get the 120gb/3cell one for 350$ but i want that long battery life the 6 cell version has.


the 3cell looks a little top heavy? lol
Click to expand...

See my other response on how I got it for the price I did. Easy deal :).

Battery life-wise I get around 3 hours with my Acer One tethered via a USB charging/communication cable to my phone (HTC Titan AKA Verizon XV6800). Phone is fully charged at the end while the laptop is dead ;). If you really need/want the long battery life and can't bring the charger wherever, the 6-cell is an excellent deal but it does add to the size a bit as the battery juts out from the back that way and downward, also restricting how far the screen tilts back. I like the small/slim 3-cell, as I really don't need 6+ hours where I couldn't access an electric outlet.

I *love* the One though, it's an amazing netbook.
 
2GB... nice... very nice, but I'm still leaning towards that Acer for a variety of reasons. I usually have a preference for Dell hardware (after hating them with a passion during the mid to late 90's) but, I'm still more interested in the Acer at the present time, weird.
 
mashie said:
Has anyone tried to play WoW on the 910 or Acer Aspire One?
Click to expand...

Low settings 1-1.5GB ram and it has to be a Hard Drive version or a Modded Hard Drive Version or Upgraded faster SSD for comfortable WoW Play.
On Acer Aspire One 110 and 150 versions.
 
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