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Dell Mini 9 gets built-in AT&T 3G option
It's never been much of a secret that the Dell Mini 9 has been 3G-ready from day one, and Vodafone customers have been able to get a 3G-equipped model direct from the carrier for a little while now, but it looks like folks in the US can now finally get in on the mobile broadband action as well, with a built-in 3G option now configurable on Dell's site. Unfortunately, anyone that already took the plunge on a Mini 9 is out of luck, as the $125 upgrade is only available new orders (and only available on Windows XP-equipped models). If that doesn't preclude you, however, you can also expect to get a $120 rebate if you're willing to sign a two-year contract for AT&T's DataConnect service, although it looks like you'll also have to put up with a delay in your ship date at the moment.[Via Mobility Site, thanks Chris]
Video: Dell's Mini 9 hacked with touchscreen
Add another trick to Dell's Mini 9. The mod-happy netbook has already been seen hanging out with GPS and OSX and now the inevitable: a touchscreen. Fitted with one of those ubiquitous eBay touch panels, user Deldotb of the myDellMini forums loaded up the appropriate Ubuntu drivers and kicked the rather unresponsive USB 1.1 panel to life. Unfortunately, he had to sacrifice a USB port for the privilege. See the Tux Paint "hello world works" video after the break.[Via Jkkmobile]
Dell adds $100 32GB SSD option to Inspiron Mini 9
Sure, the base price of Dell's Inspiron Mini 9 is pretty palatable, but good luck passing through that hard drive selection screen with this option unchecked. Yep, as now, Mini 9 buyers can opt for a capacious 32GB solid state drive (a luxury already available in Japan), which is a $100 upgrade over the standard 4GB SSD. Enticing enough to make you finally pull the trigger?[Thanks, THAR]
Chrysler's Web Edition vehicle package: includes WiFi, iPod touch and a Dell Mini 9
Chrysler has been toying with in-car connectivity for months now, so it's really no shock to see the next logical step being taken. At the San Francisco Auto Show this week, the automaker is set to showcase a "Web Edition" package, which would theoretically be available as a dealer-installed option for most Chrysler, Jeep, and Dodge vehicles. The bundle would include an Autonet Mobile router (branded as Uconnect Web), a Dell Mini 9, 8GB iPod touch, Sony PSP and an Eye-Fi WiFi SD card; couple that with one year of internet service and you've got everything that makes up the $1,999 asking price. Reportedly, a slimmed down option will go for $1,100 and only include the router, service and Mini 9, though there's no indication of when it'll be hitting new whips. Nor if Chrysler will survive long enough to tell us.
Dell's Inspiron Mini 9 and 12 get artist makeovers
In recent months we've seen Dell's design department running wild with new colors and art for a lot of their models, such as the Studio 15 and 17 laptops, and the announcement that customizable jobs were on the table for 2009. It probably should come as no surprise, then, to see the Inspiron Mini 9 and 12 get some love, too -- this time in five patterns by artist Tristan Eaton. Otherwise the same under the hood, the paint-jobbed Minis will run you an extra $50 over the base price of each respective model -- $349 for the Mini 9 and $549 for the Mini 12. Check out two more shots of the upgrades after the break. [Via Electronista]
Dell's 32GB Inspiron Mini 9 netbook blushes pink and red in Japan
What's black and white and now red in Japan? Why Dell's Inspiron Mini 9 of course -- who reads newspapers? Starting tomorrow, Dell's little netbook will finally be available in red to match the initial teaser shots that had the entire laptop world looking Dell's way back in May. Pink too, to offset the decidedly more staid, obsidian black and alpine white versions available elsewhere. Japan also nabbed an Inspiron Mini 9 Platinum Package that features a relative biggie 32GB SSD for a tax inclusive price of ¥54,980 or about $565. No word on a rest of world release date for these Mini 9 updates but we expect them go Stateside in time for Cindy-Lou Who. Mini 9 in pink after the break. [Via Impress]
Dell rebrands its own Mini 9 as the Vostro A90, jacks the price to absurd levels
We're no strangers to rebranded netbooks, but we're a little befuddled as to why Dell's rebranding its own Inspiron Mini 9 as the Vostro A90. Sure, we're digging the stealth looks, but the specs haven't changed at all, and we don't think the Vostro brand really has any more cachet than Inspiron -- they're both pretty low end. Even more bizarrely, the A90 is apparently Japan-only for now, and it's priced at an absurd ¥92,830 ($972) -- yeah, you can get three Eee 900As for that price with more or less the same specs. Must be one hell of a paint job.
Some Inspiron Mini 9s shipping with partition issues
Early Dell Inspiron Mini 9 customers who sprung for a larger drive may want to check their partitions -- Dell apparently used a static 4GB Ubuntu image during some initial manufacturing runs, leaving the OS in a 4GB partition and the remainder unused. The problem's been fixed now, but if you were unlucky enough to get one of the wrongly-formatted units, Dell's saying that you'll need to restore from the System Restore disk, but there are some live partition options out there if you're feeling brave.[Via Boy Genius Report]
Inspiron Mini 12 pops up on Dell's website: it's a done deal (almost)
We can't call it official with a straight face, but seriously, what else could you call it? A not-at-all mysterious Inspiron Mini 12 (1210) has emerged on Dell's website in the Product Support pages, hinting (and we're using that as loosely as possible) that a 12-inch netbook could be fast approaching to complement the current Mini 9. We're talking about a User Manual, Setup Guide, Troubleshooting documents -- the whole nine. Packed within the Setup Guide is a nice list of basic specifications, including your choice of an Intel Atom Z520 or Z530 CPU, 1GB of DDR2 RAM, 10 / 100 Ethernet, Bluetooth / WiFi, optional WWAN, three USB 2.0 ports, VGA out, audio in / out, and a 12.1-inch display with a 1,280 x 800 resolution. It'll also feature a 1.3-megapixel camera, 3- or 6-cell battery and weigh around 2.73-pounds. Oh, and we get the impression there will at least be an option for Ubuntu. Feel free to dig around in the read link for as long as Round Rock keeps it active, and in case everything collapses prior to the formal launch, we've screened capped a few looks below.[Via CMSReport]%Gallery-34624%
12.1-inch Dell E Slim laptop spotted in the wild?
It's hard to say what we've come across here, but if our retinas aren't deceiving us too badly, this looks to be an in the wild shot (sans blur, amazingly) of Dell's forthcoming E Slim. If you'll recall, we caught a glimpse of said device way back in June, and the two look at least marginally similar using the oh-so-scientific eyeball test. But look, even if this thing isn't the E Slim (though we're guessing it is until proven otherwise), we've been told on numerous occasions that Dell is mulling the idea of pumping out a netbook with a 10- to 12-inch display. An accompanying screenshot of the unit's internals was also provided, and while the model may say Optiplex1210, we're guessing that's just there for prototyping purposes; besides, the listed CPU matches up quite nicely with the aforementioned E Slim specs that slipped out this summer. So Round Rock -- when are you going to come out and get official with your 12.1-incher? Before or after this coming Tuesday?[Thanks, Anonymous]%Gallery-34219%
Dell Mini 9 gets snug little GPS hack
Word is that Dell's Mini 9 is a modder's paradise, rife with precious little alcoves in which to squeeze teeny-tiny new stuff. The confirmation: MyDellMini forum user Tom Beauchamp bought a USB GPS receiver (not much larger than a quarter) and snugly fit it inside his Mini's case. He's provided images and instructions so you, too, can illegally navigate with your notebook computer in the passenger's seat of your car. We can't recommend that sort of irresponsibility, but if you want to mod it just because you can, hit the read link for the instructions and images. Beware, of course, that a minimum amount of technical savvy is required to avoid breaking a perfectly good little laptop. Like that was ever going to stop you.
Dell Mini 9 hacked to run OS X
We're assuming Apple will eventually give up and release a netbook of its own, but until then Steve had better get used to seeing OS X hacked to run on all manner of tiny laptops -- the latest to make the switch is Dell's Inspiron Mini 9. Nothing too complicated about this hack, since most of the work was already done for the internally-similar MSI Wind, but you'll have to dig up some extra Broadcom drivers to get WiFi and sound working. Seems like a fun little project for the weekend -- anyone going to take the plunge?
How would you change Dell's Inspiron Mini 9?
Once we all understood that the netbook was more than just a craze to be dominated by ASUS and its Eee brand, it was inevitable that Dell would join in. Sure enough, out popped the Inspiron Mini 9, priced competitively and loaded with hardware good enough to satisfy most in the market. Now that the first wave of machines have hit doorsteps (and subsequently, office desks, airplane tray tables and bathroom ledges), we're curious to see if Dell's foray into the already crowded netbook market was a play well made. Are you happy you chose Dell's option over the others? Are you pleased with the value? Is the keyboard comfortable enough? Satisfied with the battery life? There's too much competition in this space to let someone get away with a halfhearted effort, so feel free to really spill your guts on this one.
Dell's Mini 9 netbook gets unboxed on video
We already found that Dell was shipping out the first wave of Mini 9s to eager consumers, so it's perfectly logical to see that at least one particular owner was able to stifle his excitement long enough to video the unboxing process and upload it to the intartubez. Not like there's anything there you'll be shocked about, but the comparison shots with a much beefier sibling really puts things in perspective. Check it out in the read link.
Tesco leaks 12-inch Dell E Slim specs running "Ubunto" -- October 6th launch?
Hard to say what's going on exactly what this clusterfrack of a listing over at Tesco. While the Dell laptop shown is the £299 Inspiron Mini 9, it's labeled with an Inspiron Z530 title bellowing a 12-inch display. Moving down to the specs, we've got a spec-for-spec match to the unreleased 12.1-inch E Slim exclusive we brought you back in June: same 1.6GHz Atom processor; heavier 1.2kg (2.6-pounds) weight; bigger 12-inch WXGA (1,366 x 768 pixel) display; wider 29.9-cm (11.8-inch) dimension; and 40GB hard drive spinning Ubunto Ubuntu Linux. So Tesco, October 6th you say? Full Tesco specs listed after the break because that read link won't be up for long. P.S. Dell doesn't sell a Atom-based 12-inch laptop under any model number presently, nor does it have a Z530 in its product roster.[Thanks, GeorgeJ, Craig and Yau]
Dell's Mini 9 now shipping, arriving on doorsteps everywhere
The headline pretty much sums it up -- it appears that Dell hasn't wasted any time getting the first batch of Mini 9's out from Round Rock (or China, or wherever), as the earliest of adopters have already had the pleasure of peeling away the shipping label and firing one up. Hit the read link for two unimaginative shots of the netbook on a dirty desk, but only after you've phoned up Dell in search of your own tracking number.[Via thegadgetsite, thanks K.C. Kim]
Dell Mini 9's secret 3G not all it's cracked up to be
Well, it looks like anyone hoping to give their stock Dell Inspiron Mini 9 a 3G boost is in store for a bit of disappointment, as the netbook's supposed unofficial 3G-readiness is apparently not as exploitable as some had assumed. While the netbook does indeed have a vacant WWAN slot, as Gearlog learned from Anne Camden of Dell Corporate Communications, "the Mini doesn't have the internal antenna infrastructure needed to support mobile broadband," which makes that aforementioned WWAN slot quite useless. As you might have guessed, the antenna was simply left out to keep costs down. So, if you do want a 3G-equipped Mini 9, it seems like you'll just have to wait for a non-hindered version like the one Vodafone is offering in Europe.
Doing the math on that $99 Inspiron Mini deal
If you're anything like us, the idea of a $99 Inspiron Mini 9 was enough to make you seriously consider picking up a new full-featured Dell laptop, but since the math is a little confusing given Dell's shady history and the number of promotions on its site, we thought we'd break it down for you. Essentially, Dell's charging close to full price for the large machine in order to absorb the cost of the Mini -- so while a $1,259 Studio 15 with a 1.86GHz processor, 3GB of RAM, a 250GB drive, and a 3 year warranty goes for $699 on Dell's fall deals page, it's $1098 with a Mini. Hey, the difference is just about the Mini 9's $349 list price, isn't it? Same story with the other Studio 15 and XPS M1330 / M1530 configurations that apply for the $99 Mini deal -- you can find cheaper deals, but they're all about $300 - $400 less than the CTO price, so adding in a Mini 9 essentially washes out. So much for that hot two laptop $700 impulse buy -- we'd say it only makes sense to pull the trigger on this if you're actually in the market for a new full-featured machine. Let us know if you manage to work the numbers any differently -- our credit card hasn't gone too far.[Thanks, Matt] Read - Dell $99 Mini 9 promo page Read - Dell fall deals page
Dell's Mini 9 Product Manager chatted up, promises more where this came from
As if you needed any confirmation that Dell wasn't just going to abandon the Inspiron Mini 9 all by its lonesome in the marketplace, Laptop Mag spoke with Dell's Senior Product Line Manager John New, who had some comforting words for the multi-SKU crowd. John confirmed that built-in 3G is in the works, a dedication to cramped SSD drives and a potential six-cell battery. He also said that "As we get into the category, we reserve the right to do more," which could mean a 10-inch version, though we're also getting wind of a 12-incher in the wings.
Dell's Mini 9 tear-down reveals a modders' playground
Here you go modders and Eee PC lovers: Dell Mini 9 tear-down gore courtesy of the boys from Round Rock themselves. The Dell service manual has been posted on-line and reveals the Mini 9 as a modders paradise. So go ahead, impress us, we'd like some extra memory and disk space by the end of next week, k thanks.[Via jkkmobile]