Dell Inspiron Duo Owners Lounge

Dell Inspiron Duo - "The New Convertible"

Details can be found here:
Inspiron duo Details | Dell

Listed price on the Dell US Home product page as of 11/23 is: 549.99 USD

Specs are as follows (again, according to the 11/23 product page):

Features:
Intel® ATOM_2 N550 (1.5GHz/1MB cache)
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium (32-bit)
2GB DDR3 SDRAM
Intel® NM10 Express Chipset
Integrated Intel® NM10 Graphics
10.1 inch display (1366x768)
2 X 1W speakers for total of 2W standard
Up to 320GB SATA hard drive (7200RPM)
29Whr 4 cell battery, captive factory replaceable
Built-in 1.3M Pixel Webcam
Wireless 802.11b/g/n
Bluetooth 3.0 combo Card

Ports:
(1) Microphone
(2) Headphone
(1) SIM card slot

Dimensions & Weight:
Width: 11.22" (285.0mm)
Height: 1.03" (26.2mm) front – 1.13" (28.7mm) back
Depth: 7.66" (194.5mm)
Starting weight of 3.39 lbs (1.54Kg)

 

Waiting for my quote to come back from EPP. The EPP price is $80 dollars more because it comes with 15 months of A/V vs. Trial on DHS. Stupid that Dell forces this on you.

Expected price on mine is $539+tax shipped.

You can also pre-order the $100 dock for $49 from Microsoft.

Also, I am not seeing the Broadcom Media Accelerator... is it going to play 720p without that?

 

I wonder the the battery life is on this unit.. Dell doesnt list it.. Must be short, only a 4cell

 

Ugh, I know that there's space/cost constraints but this same issue seems to affect every one of the "new" generation of Windows tablets. At least this one doubles as a standard netbook- I'd never consider a "slate" Windows tablet like the HP slate and that ilk...

All in all though...if I had the coin I'd probably get this. i love the concept, and it actually seems to perform well.

 

If it had a better battery option and a better IGP Id be buying it right now. Hopefully this will see the zacate series or at least a decent dual core and IGP combo with a higher capacity battery in q1 2010.

 

Engadget has reviewed it, that paltry 29Whr battery definitely is a shortcoming, I wanted one too.
Dell Inspiron Duo review -- Engadget

The Stage UI crap is also super-laggy from the video.

 

The Stage UI wasn't final software. Engadget said as much, and in their earlier look at it, the Stage UI looked fast. That was the one thing I was happy to see, that the "touch friendly layer" was responsive.

Hopefully Engadget will update the review like they say they will.

 

Well anything is unresponsive and slow with an atom cpu.

 

I ordered one of a week or so ago and had an estimated ship date of 12/20. Today I discovered that it's already shipped and will arrive today. I'll post some relevant information when it arrives.

 

It's arrived!

I don't have much time to do a proper review just yet, but here's my first impressions:

- The netbook/tablet (netablet?) feels sturdy, well-built, and sleek. Without even turning it on, it looks damn good.
- In Windows, I did a quick battery check with the battery almost (90%) full. I was uninstalling some of the Dell stuff that came with the machine, but it said it had 2.5 hours left of battery. Definitely a step down from my previous netbook that had 8 hours on a charge (I realized this would be the case), but I'm going to let the battery charge fully and try that again.
- After you enable the accelerometer sensor (it will prompt you the first time you turn the netablet), the screen will resize based on orientation. It works well, although there's a bit of a delay during resolution changes (the screen flashes off, then back on in the correct resolution).
- Apparently Windows detects the screen as a single-touch display. I attempted to do some multitouch gestures, but had no success. One of the games that comes with the Windows 7 Touch Pack (preinstalled) would not launch because the screen is supposedly not multitouch. My hope is this is either an issue on my machine alone, or a multitouch driver will appear on Dell's website soon.
- Dell does not supply a reinstall disc for Windows, and there's no drivers/software (other than the Dell Support Center) on their website. I'm sure the drivers will show up soon as this is a new machine, but the lack of software in the box is somewhat depressing.
- The screen looks awesome.

I'll work on getting a real review up here soon. Until then, if you have any questions, ask away!

 

Sweet, glad you have one! Yeah, what a lot of reviewers of these don't understand, is that the tablet makers are employing rotation functionality through the Intel IGP driver. If I do the same thing on my D630 with integrated graphics, I get the same flicker. There's nothing anyone can do (besides Intel) about it.

As far as the reinstall disc thing goes, Dell used to do that-even gave you a full untouched copy of Windows, but doesn't anymore. I think you can save your restore image through Dell DataSafe onto a USB drive as an alternative.

I've got a question for ya...how's the "Dell Stage UI" in terms of responsiveness? Is it stuttery or laggy at all, as this was something that others with touch layers haven't done a good job of optimizing.

Again, congrats!

 

A higher spec'd 10" Netbook with tablet capability. I'm sold!

Dell Web Sites: Inspiron? duo | Dell

Inspiron duo Details | Dell

Dell Drivers: Drivers & Downloads

Inspiron duo | Dell

YouTube - Dell Inspiron duo coming soon

YouTube - Start-up - To The Cloud - Windows 7

The Microsoft Store was the first place to pre-order the products at a lower price than Dell.


Dell Inspiron Duo convertible PC - Buy from Microsoft Store


Dell Inspiron Duo Audio Station - Buy from Microsoft Store

 

I have an order in through MS and awaiting my couch companion. I got it because it's a 10" netbook with higher end specs and it's meant to accompany me on the couch connected via WiFi. I want to use a Mozilla-based web browser in portrait mode for reading web sites; using a virtual keyboard for sites not in my bookmarks and entering login information where appropriate. That is the main purpose of the tablet for me.

I don't need to watch movies with it because I have a home theater for that. I don't want to listen to music with it because I have a stereo for that. I don't need to play games with it because I have a PC for that. I also don't need to use the netbook to output lesser quality web media to my HT because I have real equipment and media for that. I just want to have a netbook with a real keyboard for typing e-mails and anything longer than username and password. And did I mention web browsing in portrait mode...because wide screen aspect ratios suck for computers...leave them on HDTVs.

What's this real web browsing you say? Like, full Adobe Flash, Oracle Java support and every other supported Windows program out there. It's all about real programs and not crappy web links disguised as "apps" because the lack of hardware horsepower on lesser devices. Android and apple tablets fail at the real web (the way it was meant to be) because of the lack of support for all web sites. Android is on the right track with somewhat workable Flash support but the apple is rotten because it's dreams of HTML5 support some day. Android belongs in my pocket for now (G1 and G2 owner) and has a long way to go with their non-gmail e-mail client. And apple in it's whole can stay with the gullible.

Oh, and since I wrote this on my Android device with a real keyboard, I just remembered how much I hate being redirected to a mobile site because I'm on a lesser platform. Changing the UA String only works for certain sites. And let's not forget all the sites banning mobile device (goggleTV, ipone etc.) streaming from those lesser platforms. Remember, the real web rocks. I'm looking forward to streaming VUDU - Home on this thing to show the local star*ucks kidz how it's done.

 

Merged with Owner's Lounge.

 

Yeah, I figured as much. Perhaps someday when Intel realizes that their chip targets tablets, they'll get on that

The lack of software doesn't surprise me, as I've seen them going in that direction for awhile. I'm more or less saddened by the lack of drivers on the website at the moment.

The Stage UI worked extremely well for me. It pops up on the screen when you go in tablet form within 1-3 seconds. Once you're in, everything is responsive. The only item that was slow for me was the Drawing/Painting program (and that necessarily wasn't Stage's fault--that's just the external program taking forever to load).


Also, after showing off the tablet to some friends today, I noticed that multitouch seemed to return without me doing anything (other than a reboot). Hopefully it's here to stay.

 

As of today, Dell and Microsoft report initial shipments of December 27. Apparently pre-orders and normal orders haven't shipped yet.

 

I must be pretty lucky then, as I'm posting this from my Duo right now

 

Preview version and not a final order version? Pics, video with today's date on it?

 

I would assume final order version, as I purchased it through dell.com. Submitted the order 11/26, was shipped 12/2, delivered 12/3.

No video, but here's some pictures I just took. Enjoy! Inspiron Duo - Imgur

 

I just finished a chat session with a Dell rep. I was told that the drivers for the Duo should appear on the website in the next 4-5 days.

 

Very nice! And thanks for answering my questions.

 

Did you pay for express shipping or something? Man, I ordered two on 11/24 and they aren't supposed to be here till 12/22. I am envious.

Btw, I think I read somewhere that windows 7 allows you to create a backup disk anytime. I am upgrading from xp, and have read alot of top 10 things to do first with windows 7 and I swear one of them said you could make a backup disk. Assuming you have an external burner that is.

 

You can create a backup disk using the Dell DataSafe software or through Windows 7 via the Backup and Restore center.

 

Does the SIM card slot allow you to use GPRS/GSM networks or do you need an external USB/PCMCIA/PCExpress card?

 

Hey, hope you are enjoying your Duo jackertberry! I had a couple questions, I'm looking to get one of those. I do a fair amount of traveling and I am looking for something light and small. My use-case would be mostly, the kindle app, pdf reading and some media. But I am also looking to use it in class, how is it running office (word and excel). On a side-note I am doing some windows phone 7 development, I don't suppose you've tried running visual studio on it? Some times in class inspiration hits and I'd love to be able to do some light development on it. Nothing big, that's why I have a desktop and big laptop. thanks for any insight you can give!

 

From the pictures you've seen, it'll probably feel and look a little heavier and bigger than you'd expect. Knowing this, it's not so heavy that it's burdening. When it's in tablet mode, it definitely feels like a tablet and doesn't feel like it's too heavy (just a little heavy).

MS Office apps run just fine on it. They're a little slow to start, but I'm blaming that on the extra software that's installed on it now (they have yet to put the drivers up on their website).

I have installed VS.net 2010, but I haven't run it yet. I'll do that tonight and update you.

 

Yeah, I did next-day shipping. Otherwise I end up like this.

 

Wait, is the display not multi-touch? Really???

 

The display is multitouch.

 

When I first got the machine, Windows reported that the screen was not multi-touch.

It was after the first reboot that multi-touch magically appeared.

 

Great information. Any insights on how VS 2010 runs? That's a big deal for me as I hope to use this to do some WinPhone7 development. Not hard-core development, but more like breaking it out when I get some inspiration. Thanks for your insight.

 

VS.net runs fine once it's loaded up. It took about 30 seconds to launch, but after that it was fine. The screen doesn't feel too crowded either..

(The launch time may have been skewed since I did tell it to launch soon after I logged into Windows)

 

that thing looks pretty cool.. I wonder how it would work on linux?

 

Funny you should ask.. I'm planning to throw (dualboot) arch or gentoo on it after the holidays. At the very least, I'll post an output of lspci soon.

 

Merry christmas everyone , anyone got them already ?

guess when will Inspiron duo reach australia ? or other country ?

 

Bump , anyone know when will it available or release at other country ? Australia ?

 

I got it last Wednesday and have been playing with it on and off. So far I've gotten up to about 4 hours of battery life on it. It's a bit heavy for a netbook and the screen mechanism probably has much to do with it. My wife thinks it's heaver than her notebook (she's nuts!) and my little one can handle it on her lap for a bit.

The MS Store added stuff to the default Dell load and even did the favor of removing crapafee for me and put on MSE, but not v2 (I updated it). Most of the stuff was up to date except for one patch, I think; even Adobe Reader, Flash and Shockwave were the latest versions. The MS store added the Touch Pack but left out the Microsoft Surface Lagoon. What's the Microsoft Touch Pack for Windows 7?

I added the Surface Lagoon and it didn't load because of the on-board video. I didn't mind because I wasn't expecting to play real games on this, it's a NETBOOK as in looking at web sites and doing e-mail - simple tasks. The Broadcom Crystal HD video decoder has been doing a pretty good job with Hulu, vudu, Netflix, HBOGo, YouTube, Nick Jr. Flash games etc. I experienced minor pauses at times only on some things like YouTube (it happens everywhere I go and with different equipment - good old google) but I'm also running it on a G (up to 54Mb) network. The Atheros AR9285 802.11b/g/n WiFi adapter is only capable of single stream N (up to 150Mb) and only does 2.4GHz. My current N router doesn't do simultaneous 2.4GHz/5GHz (I keep it on 5GHz) and waiting on Netgear's new v2 router sometime soon so I can do some dual action. WNDR3700 Wireless tethering this thing with my G2 is awesome.

The touch screen is better than expected, but it does take getting used to when running browsers with small buttons and other selectable things since the web sites I go to aren't touch friendly (that's where we get the app crap on phones). The on-screen keyboard integrates better with IE but not Sea Monkey; I let it float to the side and call it when I need it. Reading in portrait mode is preferred by me and seems to be less tiring than landscape.

The docking station has decent sound for streaming web-quality music like Slacker. I wish the power cord was longer like the docking station's. As much as I really hate people touching my screens, there's NO avoiding it with this although I don't notice it much as I type, except for the crusty smudges (pizza maybe?). So that means I'll have to really be anal and wipe this thing down more.

Had I been trying to type this on an on-screen keyboard I would have gone mad, so I used the real keyboard. Had this been an Android device I would have been really pissed because I would have crashed at least once during this long post.

Here are the drivers: Drivers & Downloads

 

Thanks for the review ,
Right now it's only release at US and UK but when will it release on other country ?

 

I tried the live usb version of Ubuntu on it a couple of weeks ago, but wireless didn't work so I dumped it. I've always found Ubuntu cumbersome anyway.

I then installed MeeGo on it and it loaded up just fine. Everything worked except for the touchscreen. Wireless worked out of the box, the screen resolution was perfect, and all of the special function keys were mapped properly. I haven't spent the time to try and figure out how to get the touchscreen to work.

 

I've had the Duo for about 3 weeks now, and it is a lot of fun. Playing Plants vs Zombies on it is a blast.

Here are some of the configuration changes that I have made:

1. I turned off the accelerometer. I always have the display in landscape mode and it would switch to portrait when i didn't want it to.

2. I installed Google Chrome, and put on 2 extensions specifically to help with touch:
>> chromeTouch - to enable panning and zooming by touching and dragging the page
>> Double Click Closes Tab - It's hard to hit the tiny tab close button in Chrome with your finger, so this allows you to just double tap the page and the tab closes.

3. I uninstalled the Dell Stage software. It worked well enough, but was a little slow.

4. Installed Microsoft Origami experience, which is the UMPC shell for Windows. This also lets you resize the windows controls (like minimize and maximize buttons, scrollbars, etc.) to make them easier to hit with your finger.

Download details: Microsoft Origami Experience 2.0

All this makes the interface easier to use when in tablet mode.

 

Thanks so much for the extensions!

Does anyone know how to change the xml to root the internet icon from IE to Chrome?

 

Just purchased the duo directly from Dell.

Which and how do I get rid of junk software?

Any other ways to make the laptop increase speed in loading webpages?

CH

 

is there any tool to overclock his atom n550?