Any Inspiron Mini 12 owners?

I'd be interested to hear any feedback from Dell Inspiron Mini 12 owners. What is your overall opinion? Is the 1GB RAM limit a problem? Likes/dislikes?

Thanks!

 

I am curious also. I have a Vostro 1310 that I really like. It is a bit heavy for it's size, but that size and weight mean a really well built and functional Laptop. But everything is relative, this Laptop is small and light compared to 15.4" Laptops.

So is it simply battery life that drives the 12" and by extension, the netbook sales? Is a couple of pounds or couple inches in length or width that critical? I assume that thickness really doesn't mean much, as in most cases the difference in thickness is less that one half inch...

 

Thread

 

My best friend's job keeps him on the road Mon-Fri every week. He has a ThinkPad T61 for work, but it's not for personal use. His personal laptop is an Inspiron 1520 (over 6lbs and chunky) and it's not worth the trouble to take it on the road with him.

So...I ordered him a NEW Mini 12 from the Outlet today. With a 15% coupon I had, I managed to get one for $341 (would've cost $524 if ordered NEW). It's 2.72lbs and barely 1" thick, so it'll be easier to toss in his laptop bag alongside the T61.

The Mini 12 is very unique, at least for the moment, because of the 12.1" WXGA (1280x800) LED display. All other netbooks are 10.2" or smaller and have 1024x576 or 1024x600 resolution displays that require a lot of scrolling. It was also the first to use the Intel Z520/Z530 Atom processors (and requisite Intel GMA 500 graphics)...the Mini 10 is now using the same hardware.

The Mini 12 uses 40/60/80GB PATA 4200rpm hard drives, which are slow even by netbook standards. Most netbooks are upgradeable to 2GB of RAM, but the Mini 12 has 1GB onboard (integrated) and that's it!

Still, I'm hoping the 1.6GHz Atom Z530 and XP Home will perform well enough for casual web surfing and watching YouTube videos.

I plan to write a review when it arrives and I have time to run benchmarks...before I turn it over to him.

 

The Mini 12 is not unique anymore, see the Samsung NC20 which has a Via Nano processor. And also the Mini 12 does not have an LED screen.

 

The Mini 12 has a CCFL display, my mistake!

However, the Mini 12 is unique until the Samsung NC20 is available for sale in the U.S. It will be sold exclusively by Newegg and was originally scheduled for a March 16 release date. That's been pushed back to "early April"....but it will certainly be a welcome addition when it is finally available!

 

Heh...what about the Mini 10 that now has a even larger resolution option?

 

I didn't realize that it had actually been added to the option list yet! It wasn't available at launch, but they have quietly added...very cool!

So the Mini 10 has a standard 1024x576 and optional 1366x768 display. The option is only $35...I'm loving that! The HP Mini 2140 has been promising the same upgrade for months (since intro) but it doesn't have it yet...

Dell needs to market the Mini 10 and that available high-res display...there's definitely a market for it!

 

I really wish the Mini 12 didn't have the 1.8" 4200rpm PATA hard drives (and max 80GB capacity). The Mini 10 has conventional 2.5" 5400rpm SATA drives up to 160GB.

I doubt the Mini 12 could be retro-fitted because it's actually 0.2" thinner than the Mini 10. Surprisingly, the Mini 10 weighs .14lbs more than the Mini 12.

I wonder if a 1.8" SSD would work in the Mini 12?

 

Assuming it's PATA interface and not SATA, I don't see why not.