Dell Inspiron 1100 - laptop review
 Dell Inspiron 1100
Pros: Cheap, Fast processor and Free Upgrade to CD-RW drive, 2 USB Ports.
Cons: A little heavier than some competitors. The graphic card's memory is a 64MB shared memory - this means that it'll draw memory from the main memory, and so it's not recommended to use with intensive graphics software like video games.
The Bottom Line:
I would recommend this laptop to anyone looking for a laptop computer for email, internet, basic programming, word processing, basic digital picture viewing, non-graphic-intensive games, basic music playing and recording CD's.
(For digital pictures or online trading go with the Inspiron 5100.)
(For video games or extensive graphics go with the Inspiron 5150 or 8500.)
Price: It is darn cheap right now with its base price around $700 if you buy it online. And for this base price you'll get: Intel Celeron 2.0GHz, 14.1" XGA Display, 128Mb Memory and 20Gb Hard Drive, CD-RW, built-in Ethernet card (NIC), 2 USB 2.0 Ports, Windows XP and plus ...
 - Integrated video shared memory
- Integrated Sound
- Front-mounted speakers
(SoundBlaster compatible)
- Integrated 56K modem
- Windows XP Home Edition
- Ports: 2 USB 2.0, RJ-11, RJ-45, speaker/mic jacks, PCMCIA type II slot
- 94Whr Lithium-ion battery
Compare Dell Inspiron 1100 to low-end laptops from other brands - Laptop Comparison.
I recommend that for $50 more you upgrade to 256Mb memory, and for another $50 to a 15" screen, and you'll be set for 4-5 years easily.
Add a FREE 24x/10x/24x CD-RW Drive Upgrade! (from CD-ROM) when buying online to write CD's.
(No Floppy drive supplied. For external USB Floppy Drive add $49 ... or get a USB Memory Key later yourself.)
Add up to a 3 year (or up to 4 year if buying online) Limited Warranty for $119 or a Limited Warranty plus At-Home Service for $179.
Add Microsoft Works Suite for $15 and get MS-Word (word processor), MS-Works (word processor), Encarta Encyclopedia, Money, Street & Trips, Picture It, Photo (digital pictures) and Outlook Express (emails) software.
Adds up to: $749 + $50 + $50 + $179 + $15 = $1043. Still a very comparable price! And remember, there is no tax or shipping fees when buying online.
Warranty: A standard warranty is a 1 year limited warranty with At-Home Service. You may return your new system within 30 days from the date of invoice. A 3-year Dell extended warranty
is priced below the industry level and is worth the money. Three years would be plenty to figure any problems and fix them.
Overall Look: the outside case is a neutral blue with some silver inserts, the inside is silver with blue accents. This gives it a very appealing contemporary look as a high-tech system should be.
Weight: For a 15" display - 7.78lbs (with the battery). The case is made to be pretty rigid. I know that Dell makes lighter laptops but they cost more and some have a smaller screen.
Portability & Dimensions: For a 15" display - Width x Depth x Hight = 13.1" x 10.8" x 1.83". This is neither a thin notebook computer nor a light one.
Screen: comes as 14.1" XGA TFT active matrix that is the most common and large enough. Can be upgraded to 15" at the time of purchase for only $50. With either screen size you'll get a 1024x768 resolution which is perfect to browse internet.
Video Card: Priced at the lowest, Inspiron 1100 doesn't have a graphics adapter card like the high-end laptops. Instead, it has an
integrated shared memory processor chip to control the video. It can share up to 64 MB of total system memory and because of that I wouldn't recommend this model if you intend on using this laptop to play graphic intensive games.
Media/Storage: 24x/10x/24x CD-RW. Very fast at 24x writing speed - takes 5 min to write a 700MB music CD (writes Re-Writable CD with 10x speed). Reads fast with 24x speed.
Ports/Connectivity: 2 USB 2.0 ports provide fastest USB connection (up to 400 MB/sec).
Connect most of the external USB peripherals including mouse, keyboard, monitor, printer, scanner, digital camera, port replicator etc. The Type II PCMCIA card slot lets you install a wireless NIC card or a network card.
Use the Ethernet 10/100 port (RJ-45) to connect to high speed internet such as DSL or Cable modem or to a corporate network. The phone jack connects through a 56K modem. The monitor can also be connected using a 15-pin VGA port.
 Convenience: Keyboard and trackpad - Dell Inspiron 1100 has the typical laptop keyboard and it has the typical touch pad for the mouse movement. Most people prefer to use an external mouse plugged into the USB port.
Battery: Inspiron 1100' battery lasts for up to 3.5 hours - this is not bad at all to compare with more expensive competitors. Uses a 12-cell Lithium Ion battery that is currently the longest lasting rechargeable battery for laptops.
Upgradability: memory is upgradable to 512MB, hard drive to 60GB.
Docking Station: not available
Port Replicator: 2 replicators are available from Dell: see the
USB port replicator and
Universal port replicator.
 Carrying Case: not included in the price. For Dell nylon carrying case (see picture) add $59. It has lots of extra room for accommodating several peripherals.
Conclusion: I've been using the Dell Inspiron 1100 for the past 6 months and I haven't found anything that I don't like about it. It has plenty of processor speed and memory that I can run all of my software, including photo editing and word processing software, do some programming and browse the internet. I've been taking it to work and was able to easily connect to the corporate network using the built-in RJ-45 jack.
Recommended: Yes
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