Product Notes: Dell Inspiron Mini 10

October 13, 2009

First released in February 2009, Dell's Inspiron Mini 10 (10-inch widescreen) netbook recently added the availability of a significantly higher resolution display that removes one of the primary drawbacks of most 10-inch netbooks. Like previous Minis, the Mini 10 is based on Intel's tiny Atom processor.

Design and Changes

The Inspiron Mini 10 enclosure (along with all current Inspiron Minis) has a wide bezel around the display and a glossy black and aluminum look and feel. The keyboard is 92% of the size of a mid-weight notebook keyboard and a small multi-touch trackpad is included.

The Inspiron Mini 10 weighs 2.6 to 3.0 pounds depending on battery with a travel weight of about 3.0 to 3.4 pounds including the power adapter. An HDMI output and a 1.3 megapixel webcam are standard. Three USB ports are included, with one being powered. As with all netbooks, there is no onboard optical drive.

The Inspiron Mini 10 has received a Bronze rating from EPEAT. It is not Energy Star certified, but has a reasonably efficient power envelope - details are listed in the Approximate Desktop & Notebook Power Usage page.

Ordering Notes

Several considerations when ordering an Inspiron Mini 10 through Dell's Premier Page for the University:

1. All Inspiron Mini 10s include Intel's Atom processor. Information Systems & Computing (ISC) strongly suggests the 1.6 GHz version instead of the 1.33 GHz, as processor speed is one of primary weaknesses of most netbooks.
2. ISC suggests purchasing the Inspiron Mini 10 with Windows XP instead of Windows Vista, because netbook processors do not have the power to run Windows Vista. When Windows 7 becomes available in late October 2009, ISC expects it to run acceptably on the Mini 10.
3. Dell offers both a 32 GB solid state drive (SSD) and a 160 GB hard disk drive with the Inspiron Mini 10. ISC believes that the hard disk drive is the best choice for most netbook users.
4. Dell offers two displays with the Inspiron Mini 10: a 1024x600 (0.6 megapixel) screen and a 1366x768 (1.0 megapixel) screen. The higher resolution screen represents a significant upgrade from the previous screen. However, it does result in dense pixels which may be too small for some users - at 155 pixels per inch the resolution is almost as dense as that of an iPhone or an iPod Touch. ISC suggests that potential users view the screen with applications they use prior to purchasing.
5. The Inspiron Mini 10 includes a 802.11g/n WiFi connectivity and Bluetooth 2.1 connectivity options. After a seven year development process, the 802.11n standard was finalized in September 2009, so currently shipping 802.11n products may not work correctly without a firmware update. ISC believes that Bluetooth is a relevant protocol for many netbook users.
6. Dell offers integrated WWAN cards from AT&T and Verizon with the Inspiron Mini 10.
7. As with any netbook, ISC suggests that LSPs consider purchasing both a mid-capacity (6-cell) and a low-capacity (3-cell) battery along with an extra AC power adapter for the Inspiron Mini 10.

See ISC's Netbook Purchasing Guide for more configuration hints. As of October 2009, configuring a Inspiron Mini 10 to the netbook specification can be done for approximately $400 to $500. The University's Computer Connection (PennKey authentication required) has an Inspiron Mini 10 configuration available.

Analysis

The Inspiron Mini 10 with the high resolution screen addresses one of the major issues with 10-inch netbooks; that of sufficient resolution. It does not, however remove the other major issues with almost all netbooks: poor input devices (cramped, non-standard keyboards and trackpads) and marginal processor speed. In the University environment, netbooks are currently suitable only as a complementary device to a more capable desktop or notebook - they should not be deployed as a user's only computer.

ISC will follow up with a full review of the Inspiron Mini 10 as soon as testing has been completed.

Inspiron Mini 10 graphic courtesy of Dell

--John Mulhern III, Lead for Client Technologies, ISC Technology Support Services (October 13, 2009)