Buying a Dell mini

[ShellyLynn3630]

Has anyone purchased a new Dell mini computer? Do you have to have some sort of internet card with them to gain internet access or will it work with your home internet system. My daughter is wanting one of these for Christmas and it seems like a great gift, but we are not going to pay for another internet service other than the one we already have at home. TIA

 

[celina in canada]

comes with both wireless and network adapter (ethernet port)

i like my mini...get the extra capacity battery.worth it...its small but i love it..using it write now..

 

[worm761]

How old is your daughter? The down side to the mini netbooks is that they don't have a CD drive. So everything you put on it must be downloaded from the internet. We looked at them for DS13. We decided to go with a regular laptop. Best Buy has a Toshiba that is a pretty good system for $329. That is the regular price. http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9368169&type=product&id=1218092959299

DBF is a tech geek and this is what he decided we will be getting DS. It isn't fancy but will work just fine for a teenager. I homeschool so this is for him to do his school work on too.

 

[3boymthr]

We have the dell mini 10. It came with both the wireless card and the internet cable. Something to be aware of: the Dell wireless modem operates on 802.11 technology there is either an "a" or "g" after those numbers (I can't remember which ) - before buying make sure those numbers match the broadcast of your internet modem - we found this out the hard way . Several phone calls and a software upgrade to the modem later and we were good to go but oh the problems before that .

 

[java]

We got dd an Acer instead of the Dell. Longer battery life, for less money. So we chose that(and it came in pink!) My tech son talked me into it. Said I would be paying just for the dell name- and the quality wasn't as good.

My dd loves hers *and vera bradley just came out with a netbook carry case- that'll be a Christmas present.

 

[RACHELSMOM1]

And, Disney just came out with the ACER one in Disney version, for sale at ToysRus. I thought I would check it out for DD for Christmas. I have wanted the Acer Aspire One in Pink since they came out, it is on my list.

 

[LKHomemail]

The Dell mini 9 was recently under 200 directly through Dell. Mini 10 was another 50 dollars ? not sure cant recall that price exactly.

If you used Bing cashback I believe you got another 10 percent off ? Sorry cant remember.

Check the bing thing out and check with Dell website / use the chat to get connected to a representative and get the prices.

I would expect if you don t buy now , you can buy by Christmas , should get cheap.

I believe the external CD thing was 65 ?

Sorry , too much on my mind and can't recall all the specific details.

Good Luck.

 

[boettj]

Mini's aka Netbooks are nice. Depending on what you are going to do with them. Below are some pros and cons:

Pros:

• Long battery life - up to 10 hours. Make sure you get the bigger battery.
• Lightweight. A regular laptop cannot compare.
• Portability - due to the weight, it's easy to take anywhere.
• Great for surfing, email and lightweight computing.

Cons:

• Smaller keyboard. You should really try them at the store before you buy.
• Single core CPU - great for power consumption, but not great when you want to run multiple applications or heavy duty apps.

Recommendations:

• If you get a Netbook, make sure you it can take 2GB of RAM. And buy it.
• Get the larger 6-cell battery. Makes a difference on longevity.

Personally I've gone away from Dell. Their quality is sub-par in my book. ASUS, ACER and SAMSUNG all make very good Netbooks. Granted the price is a bit higher.



Just my 2 cents.

 

[jrmasm]

My dd loves hers *and vera bradley just came out with a netbook carry case- that'll be a Christmas present.

Can you point me to the bag? I'm having trouble finding it. Thx

 

[luvmy3]

I have a mini10v and no longer use my desktop. If you look in the Dell outlet you can find a "previously ordered new" or a refurb for around $200. They release a 15% off code every few weeks it seems and they always have free shipping.
One thing to consider is harddrive size. If you go with an SSD you will only get 8GB (I think that is what the Disney one is). Some netbooks may go up to 16MB but that does drive the cost up.
Mine is 160GB but its not SSD.

 

[bridget]

I wanted a netbook, but my dh (computer nerd) convinced me to get a laptop. I got a toshiba for $314 at Office Max! It is faster and has so many more features. Best Buy has a similar one.

 

[ckeckthat55]

Compaq is the best option.Dell performance is not so good.Also itz costly

 

[Crystal0608]

I'm also looking for a mini or netbook for my dd, 9 who has $110 she has saved and wants to pay 1/2 of one for her Xmas gift. She usually plays online games or for MP3's. Does a mini or netbook usually support these ok? I work on a pc 9 hrs a day and really know little about them .

 

[Theta]

I am in the market for a simple system for my son. He has dysgraphia (trouble with writing) is allowed to use an Alphasmart in class. This is a simple keyboard that displays 3 lines of writing at a time. It met it's purpose last year, but this year he needs to organize, set up files for each class, draw tables, etc.

Could someone recommend a simple laptop for this purpose? I don't think a dell mini would be a good choice with the smaller keyboard. He has big hands and although he is fairly competent at word processing, I think a smaller keyboard would be frustrating for him.

 

[boettj]

I'm also looking for a mini or netbook for my dd, 9 who has $110 she has saved and wants to pay 1/2 of one for her Xmas gift. She usually plays online games or for MP3's. Does a mini or netbook usually support these ok? I work on a pc 9 hrs a day and really know little about them .

Email/internet/mp3 is a sweet spot for Netbook/mini's. Ideal for kids in my opinion. Only downfall is no CD/DVD player. Though this can be overcome easily.

 

[worm761]

I am in the market for a simple system for my son. He has dysgraphia (trouble with writing) is allowed to use an Alphasmart in class. This is a simple keyboard that displays 3 lines of writing at a time. It met it's purpose last year, but this year he needs to organize, set up files for each class, draw tables, etc.

Could someone recommend a simple laptop for this purpose? I don't think a dell mini would be a good choice with the smaller keyboard. He has big hands and although he is fairly competent at word processing, I think a smaller keyboard would be frustrating for him.

My DS13 has Asperger's Syndrome. Writing is just not something he can do very well. It is painful for him. He can type but the small netbooks are just too small for him. I would suggest the Toshiba that I suggested above. This has been discussed with both his doctors and then my tech geek boyfriend picked out they laptop. It is a good laptop and should do everything you need.

 

[disneymom2one]

My DS13 has Asperger's Syndrome. Writing is just not something he can do very well. It is painful for him. He can type but the small netbooks are just too small for him. I would suggest the Toshiba that I suggested above. This has been discussed with both his doctors and then my tech geek boyfriend picked out they laptop. It is a good laptop and should do everything you need.

Is is lightweight? We're in the same situation and the current laptop we have is too heavy for our 13 year old to carry from class to class. Any suggestions?

 

[boettj]

Thought I'd post my opinion of the ASUS EEE 1005HE. I recently purchased this for my DD7 and DW. Here is what I've found:

• Battery life is amazing. Easily get 8 hours out of a full charge.
• Pretty quick with 2GB of RAM running windows XP.
• Keyboard does take some getting use to.
• Perfect for browsing/gaming on the internet.
• Screen takes a bit of getting use to
• With firefox, I had to turn off certain tool bars to get a better view of the screen
• Very light.
• Love the touchpad. Personally I hate touchpads, but this one is good.
• Having a problem with the charger. If we leave it plugged in, it stops working. Almost like it's over heating. However, when you touch it, it's not hot.
  • Leave it unplugged for an extended period and it works again. ASUS is replacing it for us.
• We like is so much, we are getting another one.

More of my 2 cents.

 

[worm761]

Is is lightweight? We're in the same situation and the current laptop we have is too heavy for our 13 year old to carry from class to class. Any suggestions?

The Toshiba weighs five and half pounds and is an inch and a half thick.

 

[1PrincessMomma1]

[