Being the tech geek that I am, I had to get a Dell mini. I didn't need it, mind you. Between my Blackberry, my 17 inch laptop, a desktop at home and a desktop at work, I had communication pretty much covered. But the Dell mini looked cool.
I ordered mine through the Dell Outlet site. Total with shipping for a Mini 10 came to under $300. Figure that includes Windows XP and it makes you wonder how good could the machine possibly be. I didn't care. The Dell mini looked cool.
In three days time, a package not much bigger than a box of Kleenex showed up with the Dell name emblazoned all over it. Upon picking it up I assumed it had been tampered with. It may have been under $300 but the cost per pound is killer. This is a serious lightweight making me think back to the Wendy's ad campaign inquiring "Where's the Beef?". Upon unpacking, my initial assessment revealed a handsome, well built, scale model of a computer. It looked cool.
Booting the machine took just slightly longer than a typical desktop machine. The screen is pleasantly bright, even running under battery power. The resolution is respectable for such a small device. I would not call it "easy" to read, but not particularly challenging, either. It strikes a nice balance between size and usability. Keep in mind that this is not a replacement for your desktop machine, or for your Blackberry, so a tempering of your expectations is in order. But remember, it looks cool.
The device detected the various wireless networks in the area. Entering my security key gained me access to my home network in seconds. Since my security key is about four billion random characters long, It was a good test of the keyboard, which is purportedly 91% of full size. No real issues to report in that area, with the notable exception of the absence of a CAPS LOCK indicator. Although you can choose to display what you are typing as a security key, by default it just displays asterisks. Thus you really don't know what went wrong if your security key fails. This gets frustrating with lengthy keys and passwords. It would look cooler with a caps lock indicator.
Surfing the web is a mixed bag. The speed is adequate, but by no means speedy with the preloaded internet explorer. I have not ventured on to other browsers as of yet. Checking email and doing quick research is comfortable. I would not want to do a bunch of programming on this thing, but for basic communication and web surfing it fills the need. And for under $300, that's cool.
The next order of business is getting a protective case. Dell provides no such item with the mini. Countless hours searching online auction sites reveal a plethora of slip cases at under five bucks each, but they all look like purses, which is totally unacceptable to a guy like me. Practicality goes out the window if it looks like a purse. I finally settled on a leather "binder" that zips up and has a pocket inside. The mini slides right in like it was made to be there. Adding the charger to the mix results in a bit of bulk, but we are talking extra ounces here, not pounds. And with the classic leather, it looks cool.
As for the mini itself, my sleek black unit looks great... until you touch it. This thing collects fingerprints faster than a crime scene technician. You can't even look at this thing without leaving a mark on it. And the slick surface could use some texture. Having it slip out of your hands is definitely a risk you take. My suggestion is to order a "skin" pronto. It will reduce the likelihood of droppage, and keep the fingerprints to a minimum as well. The fingerprints just don't look cool.
Turning back to practicality, I can see my NPO staff members using these. They are inexpensive, yet strike a great balance between usefulness and overkill. They are perfect for use in meetings due to their size. The keyboard is large enough to allow for note taking, but I would think twice before scripting your autobiography on it. The mouse and it's built-in buttons take some getting used to, and many hate it upon introduction, but in short order it becomes quite likable.
The life of my particular three cell battery is rated at an unimpressive three hours or so. Rumor has it that a six cell battery will be the norm with this device shortly, though. A car adapter is available, but does not ship with the unit. The battery situation might very well dictate whether you grab a mini now, or wait for the better battery to become standard.
Also noteworthy is that the device does not have a CD or DVD rom. It has a media card slot, and three USB ports to accommodate your flash drives, but if you insist on disks you will have to go with an external device. And if you do that, plan on a bigger case to carry your charger and drive. As you can see, the mini is starting to gain some girth. If you have software that you need to install from a CD-Rom, you have provide a workaround via the network connection, the flash drive route, the media card route, or getting an external drive. Something to consider if your work style involves a bunch of this kind of stuff. Bluetooth is an available option, or you can buy a USB Bluetooth adapter like I did. The ones I bought were quite literally a penny each, with the requisite $4.95 shipping. Under five bucks solves the Bluetooth issue.
With the mini 10, you get 1 gb of ram. That is it. You can't even expand upon it. While this initially causes worry among some people, eventually you realize that anything that requires much more ram than that is not really in the target market of the mini. You are not going to be playing the latest shooter games, and the reason is NOT because of the lack of ram, but rather the lack of screen size. My point is that one gig of ram proves adequate due to the inherent limitations of the device, rather than the simple lack of an extra memory slot.
To summarize, this is not a desktop replacement. This is not a Smart Phone replacement. It is not even a laptop replacement. The Dell mini strikes a balance square in the middle. Only you can decide if it is right for you.