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    Should I buy a Mini 12?

    Discussion in 'Dell' started by CrazyDesi, Dec 19, 2008.

  1. CrazyDesi

    CrazyDesi Notebook Geek

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    I am wondering if anyone actually recommends a mini 12? Almost anyone that I have seen review it says it isn't a very well built netbook. I would love a twelve inch netbook but haven't seen a similar one anywhere. Anyone have reports on an update to this netbook or a similar one?
     
    CrazyDesi, Dec 19, 2008
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  2. gary_hendricks

    gary_hendricks Notebook Evangelist

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    The Dell Inspiron 12 is a great deal - I think sells for about $700 and has the following features:

    - Weight of only 2.72 lbs
    - Only 0.92 inch thick
    - Windows Vista® Home Basic
    - Built-in webcam
    - 1 GB of RAM
    - You can choose a 60 GB or 80 GB hard drive
    - Built-in Bluetooth and 802.11b/g wireless

    Other models you might want to consider are the ASUS EeePC, HP Mini Note and the MSI Wind. The MSI Wind is in my opinion, the best deal out of the three.
     
    gary_hendricks, Dec 19, 2008
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  3. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    Don't know if you read it but the Laptopmag.com review isn't very positive. Mainly because of Vista, the small battery and slow hard drive.
     
    Phil, Dec 19, 2008
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  4. CrazyDesi

    CrazyDesi Notebook Geek

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    Yes. I have read almost all the reviews. They are almost all unanimously negative. I just can't find an equal replacement :(. Might just get the new Macbook.
     
    CrazyDesi, Dec 19, 2008
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  5. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    Have a look at HP 2230s.

    12" and much cheaper and lighter than the Macbook.
     
    Phil, Dec 19, 2008
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  6. Cin'

    Cin' Anathema

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    I hadn't seen those, Thanks Phil! :D



    Cin ;) :)
     
    Cin', Dec 19, 2008
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  7. CrazyDesi

    CrazyDesi Notebook Geek

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    Wow those seem perfect! Any idea on the battery life? Matte Black too!! My favorite!
     
    CrazyDesi, Dec 19, 2008
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  8. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    3:30 hours according to the NBR Review:
    http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=313530&highlight=2230s
    Should be more at lower brightness.

    Yes it's a very nice option, it's high on my list. It's seems to be a well kept secret. There's very little information on NBR with only one owner it seems.

    I currently own a Samsung NC10 10" but the size and the resolution of the screen is starting to tick me off.
     
    Phil, Dec 19, 2008
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  9. CrazyDesi

    CrazyDesi Notebook Geek

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    Hmm. Might be too short battery for my case. I googled it really quickly and it seems most people are only getting 2-2.5 hours. I would put Ubuntu on it though and maybe that might raise battery. Seems a tad bit thicker than the Macbook too :(. I might still get it though. I have also been looking at the lenovo u330.
     
    CrazyDesi, Dec 19, 2008
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  10. CrazyDesi

    CrazyDesi Notebook Geek

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    CrazyDesi, Dec 19, 2008
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  11. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    When Kevin says he got 3:30 hours with the right energy profile I have no doubt I can get 3:30 hours.

    Thing is, many reviewers don't mention what energy profiles they selected.

    Nice deal by the way!
     
    Phil, Dec 19, 2008
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  12. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    Please note that the NBR review was done with P8400 CPU, while the deal you linked to is T5670.

    I'm not sure how large the difference will be in battery life.
     
    Phil, Dec 19, 2008
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  13. CrazyDesi

    CrazyDesi Notebook Geek

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    I'm sure it won't be much of a difference. I just bought it off of ebay for 600 new :). Same price as the Mini 12 and with a cdrom and all the other features! I believe that even if the battery life is 2.5 hours I will be satisfied. I tend to keep my brightness to the lowest setting anyway.
     
    CrazyDesi, Dec 19, 2008
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  14. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    That's pretty amazing. You're getting so much more computer for your money that way.
     
    Phil, Dec 19, 2008
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  15. Cin'

    Cin' Anathema

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    Sound like you got a good deal...better than Dell's high pricing on the I12's.

    Nice!


    Cin.
     
    Cin', Dec 19, 2008
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  16. mick4394

    mick4394 Notebook Evangelist

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    That Compaq is an excellent deal.

    If I was looking for a 12 inch machine, I'd pick up a tx2500z. That is one sweet machine at a helluva price. At times, I regret buying my I13 over it.

    It's really hard to look at the Mini 12 and think it's a good value, though. It treads way too close to real laptops in terms of size and price, but you sacrifice so much in features and performance.
     
    mick4394, Dec 19, 2008
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  17. CrazyDesi

    CrazyDesi Notebook Geek

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    Yes thank you guys for the help :). I really like this forum everyone is friendly regardless of others newbness. Great and rare quality in a forum.
     
    CrazyDesi, Dec 19, 2008
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  18. Cin'

    Cin' Anathema

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    Your welcome...Everyone here likes to help out, where and when they can! ;)

    Let us all now when you have rec'd your new gadget, and how it's working out for you!


    Cin ;) :)
     
    Cin', Dec 19, 2008
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  19. CrazyDesi

    CrazyDesi Notebook Geek

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    Hey guys. Just as an update. I recently got my HP 2230s and am loving it. The guy on ebay provided free over night delivery :)!!! The keyboard is a full size keyboard from what I can tell other than the shift key on the right which is about half. The battery life is around 3:30 minutes like the review which is fine for me because I don't ever really use it for much more than that without charging. The great thing about the computer is the weight! It might not be as weightless as the Mini 12 but this thing weighs much less than other notebooks I have seen. It came with both windows vista business and windows xp! I suggest this to pretty much everyone that is waiting on a Mini 12. On a side note, the battery is one of the smallest in weight as I have seen. One could easily carry 3 batteries without much bulk. It is an amazing weighing battery. One of the bests. Thanks for everyones help :)!
     
    CrazyDesi, Dec 20, 2008
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  20. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    Phil, Dec 20, 2008
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