The Dell Inspiron 1520 under review here is the latest 15.4” in an ever-growing succession of what can be categorized as “consumer mainstream” notebooks offered by Dell’s Home & Home Office division. Since the release of the Dell Inspiron 1520, Dell has also made available a very similar machine, the Vostro 1500, which can be purchased from the Small Business site. Unlike the Dell Inspiron 1520, which can be configured with any one of eight different colors, the Vostro 1500 is solid black. The Vostro also provides a Windows XP option, which is unavailable in the Dell Inspiron 1520.
It should also be noted, for the benefit of anyone who is somewhat new to this website, that there is plenty of additional information on the Dell Inspiron 1520, including an excellent full-featured review by someone who actually purchased the Dell Inspiron 1520 , as well as a side-by-side comparison of the Dell Inspiron 1520 and the HP dv6500t; this comparison includes a video that is definitely worth watching for anyone considering the Dell Inspiron 1520, the HP dv6500t or any other 15.4” consumer notebook.
Dell Inspiron 1520 Specs:
· Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo T7300 (2.0 GHz/4MB L2 Cache)
· OS: Microsoft Vista Home Premium
· Hard Drive: 160 GB SATA @ 5400RPM
· Screen: 15.4" WSXGA Widescreen (1680 x 1050)
· Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT 256MB
· RAM: 2.0GB DDR2 SDRAM @667 MHz (2 x 1GB)
· Optical Drive: 8x CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/Double Layer Support
· Battery: 9-cell lithium ion
· Wireless: Intel 4965AGN
· Weight: 6.4 lbs
· Dimensions: 1.47-1.65” (H) x 14.12 “ (W) x 10.59" (D)
· Ports/Slots: 1 IEEE 1394 (FireWire); 4 Universal Serial Bus (USB 2.0); 8-in-1
Memory Card Reader; VGA Out; S-Video; RJ-45 Ethernet LAN; RJ-11 Modem; ExpressCard 54mm; stereo in, headphone/speaker out and dual digital mics
This Dell Inspiron 1520 weighs about six and a half pounds and is considered a mainstream consumer notebook. Though Dell Inspiron 1520 allows customization of the lid in up to eight different colors, our model has a conservative looking black lid. Because of that our machine lacks some of the consumer flair a “Flamingo Pink” lid would have offered. Nonetheless, my first impressions had to do with a couple of things that distinguish the Dell Inspiron 1520 from its predecessors:
1. The overall look is very different, in a good way.
2. The hardware, particularly in the form of graphics processing, will allow the Dell Inspiron 1520 to perform about as well as any notebook on the market, with the exception of outlandishly expensive gaming machines that lack any concessions with respect to size, battery life and cost.
These two characteristics are what make the Dell Inspiron 1520 such an impressive achievement. I actually briefly owned the previous Inspiron generation's e1705 model, and reviewed the prior-generation e1405 thin-and-light notebook. I must say, the look of the current lineup is immeasurably more appealing. The old silver-and-white style always got me thinking of things like shag carpet and popcorn ceilings: sure, one can make a case for these innovations, just as one can make a case for thick white plastic trim around a notebook, but in the end (which usually comes within a matter of weeks if not months), the style grows tired, the initial promise hollow. The new Inspiron series design is cleaner, simpler and more tasteful. A cousin of the Dell Inspiron 1520, which shares its look, is the AMD-based Inspiron 1521.
Input and Output Ports Dell Inspiron 1520
The Dell Inspiron 1520 has the following ports selection:
· (4) USB 2.0 Ports
· Integrated 10/100 LAN and 56K Modem
· IEEE 1394a
· 8-in-1 Card Reader
· VGA Video Output and S-Video
· Stereo In, Headphone/Speaker Out and Dual Digital Mics
· ExpressCard 54mm Slot
Battery Life
Under fairly heavy usage, e.g., a lot of hard drive activity, wireless going and the screen set to maximum brightness, I managed to run on the battery for almost three hours. Very light usage and a dim display, but wireless still running, yielded an additional hour or so. I expected a greater disparity, given that my usage for the two tests was at opposite ends of the spectrum, but I did have wireless enabled for the light-usage test, and both times seemed fairly strong for a machine with this power. With a little tweaking, I’m sure others could squeeze more life out of the 9-cell battery.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Dell Inspiron 1520
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment