Cheap Dell Inspiron Laptops
In this article, we are going to talk about the Dell Inspiron 1420. I agree this is not the cheapest laptop around as there are other cheap Dell Inspiron laptops on the market. But the term “cheap” is very vague and it depends on how much each of us earn. A $1000 laptop may be cheap for some and rally expensive for other. So, just to make things clear, we are going to consider cheap any laptop that offers good specs for a low price. As long as the balance is in favor of the components rather than the money, then that laptop can be considered cheap.
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The Dell Inspiron 1420 is a 14.1 inch notebook which is available at a starting price of $770. You will read later in this article that is has some nice features for the price. There is nothing particularly special about the design of this notebook. It follows the usual Dell pattern with a solid chassis. I think that this habit of using similar design on all Inspiron models actually contributes to brand awareness and makes Dell look as a whole. But back to our notebook now. As we all expected, the standard color of this laptop is black but it is available in 8 colors just like most Inspiron models are. This is the beauty of Dell, it gives you the chance to buy a notebook in a color that represents you. When you open the lid and see the silver shiny interior you will feel just how solid this notebook is. Not only is the chassis made of hard plastic, it also has some magnesium alloy touches in the proper places. This doesn’t mean you don’t have to protect this notebook any more. You should still handle it properly and when you put it in your bag or backpack, make sure there are no sharp objects in the same compartment because scratches will be visible and ugly.
If you choose to buy the notebook which has the standard specs (with the price of $770), you will end up with a weak graphics card, which is the integrated Intel X3100. The unit reviewed has the nVidia GeForce 8400M video card which should support some serious game playing. Other specs of the reviewed unit are the 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500 processor, 2 GB of RAM upgradable to a maximum 4 GB plus another 160 GB of free disk space. The 14.1 inch display offers and excellent 1440 x 900 resolution which mean colors are now sharper and richer. The silver keyboard has no flex and it is very pleasant to use, offering positive feedback. The touchpad is also a great plus for this notebook. There are special marked scrolling areas and the left and right mouse button work properly and the clicking noise is not disturbing at all. Above the keyboard you will find multimedia control buttons which will surely come in handy for you sooner or later. These button have incorporated LED which turn off a few seconds after you pressed the button.
We were happy to see that Dell has placed the speakers of this notebook above the keyboard instead of placing them somewhere at the bottom. This means that sound will come out much more clear for you to enjoy your favorite tunes or even play a movie without having to use headphones or external speakers. Besides, if you look carefully you can see that the headphone jack is located on the front edge of the notebook which isn’t the most ideal place to put a port where you plug in speakers. No noise should bother you when you are using the Dell inspiron 1420 even if the processor is quite powerful for a 14.1 inch notebook. It stays reasonably quiet and it even keeps heat totally under control. You will notice that the places with higher temperatures are exactly where the hard drive and the memory are located (under your left hand). Still, you can use this notebook on your lap without having to worry about any burns.
This notebook has 4 USB ports, one FireWire port, an S-Video and a VGA out, an Express Card slot, an amazing 8-in-1 card reader (which is not a very common feature in notebook), the Ethernet port plus the headphone an microphone jacks. Of course, you get a dual layer DVD burner but a Blu-ray drive is also available (this is an optional feature). Above the display you will notice a 2.0 mega pixel webcam which is pretty good. In fact, considering that most 1.3 mega pixel webcams are good we can consider this one great. The images are really clear, especially if you use the webcam with the Skype video chat application. The standard operating system is Windows Vista Home Premium but if you choose to upgrade the RAM to a maximum 4 GB let’s say, then it is highly recommendable you go with Windows 7 operating system.
I have noticed that battery life is never too impressive with cheap Dell Inspiron laptops. If you use the standard 6-cell battery that comes with the Inspiron 1420, you will get about 2 hours of battery life you set the brightness of the display at medium level, keep the wireless function turned on and use the Windows Vista power setting to “power save” mode which helps maximize the battery life. You can purchase the 9-cell battery which is available on the market and you will get approximately 3 hours and 51 minutes of battery life. Of course, this battery will add a little more weight to the total 5.3 pounds of the laptop but if you plan on keeping this laptop away from a power outlet for too long, we would even dare to say that you should have both batteries (fully charged) with you.
As you can see, this is a good notebook and it offers good specs at a reasonable price. The fast processor plus the RAM will offer you the necessary speed for multi tasking. It is a durable laptop and is has a good keyboard and a good touchpad. If you are not into game playing, you can always choose the standard model that has the integrated graphics card to save some money.
