THE OFFICIAL: Dell Inspiron 9 (Mini I) Thread...

Yes, SIM card slot... However, hardware needs to be enabled for SIM to be read and used with WWAN card. The one thing I did not like was that Dell took out the 'antenna' for the WWAN card... so even if they didn't ship the WWAN card installed users could have bought their own and popped it in... but that is not possible now...

 

Status: Shipped on 9/26/08.

Will have my baby on Monday. Thanks Dell for delivering early!

 

For those of you waiting for higher capacity, it looks like Toshiba and Samsung are preparing 32GB SSDs for netbooks.

http://www.engadget.com/2008/09/26/toshiba-rolls-out-256gb-laptop-ssd-32gb-flash-modules-for-netbo/

 

That's great news to receive on a Friday...Congrat's, now you just have to get thru the weekend!

Thanks for the information & the linky...great info!


Cin

 

Pretty sure that a load. My mini runs great, and has no hangs or anything (now that i have drive compression turned off). The processor works fine with XP and others on here have mentioned that it runs Vista very well (some say better than XP). Do you really think that all these computer manufacturers are going to put the processor in their netbooks if its not going to handle itself?

 

I ordered a black 16GB mini w/o bluetooth or webcam on 9/10. Original ESD was 9/25. I received an email yesterday that gave a revised ESD of 9/30. Today I got another email that said my mini was shipped yesterday.

 

Thank you for the information on the Sim Card Slot. If I turn off Drive Compression on the C: Drive for the mini, does anyone know how much Space it puts back on the C:? With all the bloatware taken out, I have about 10.2GB Left with Compression still on.

Nick

 

For some reason when I restart my mini the resolution reverts to 800x600 isntead of 1024x600. Anyone know how to stop this?

 

Not enough to compensate for the performance loss IMHO. Only saved<1GB with drive compression on Vista Ultimate SP1...

 

Just an FYI.... in case you haven't been watching the Order Status Thread for the Mini's, there seems to be a problem with some orders that had the incorrect version of Adobe Acrobat on them. This is causing the orders to stall, and you have to cancel them and re-order. This obviously makes your order take a few weeks longer. What makes this worse is that this is not something we had a choice on, it's included by Dell and forced on us, and they made a mistake by putting the incorrect version on the order. So it's Dell's fault that the order is delayed.

Check the details of your order. If you have the following:

1 410-1883 ADOBE READER 9.0 MULTI- LANGUAGE

and your order is still in the build stage when you call 1-800-433-9014, then you might want to call customer service and find out what's going on.

If your order is messed up, when they place the new one, you will now have the following:

1 420-7468 ADOBE ACROBAT READER 8.1 DIM/INSP


If you have the 8.1 version of acrobat in your order, you should be fine.

I placed my order around 9/12 so orders around that time frame are suspect.

Check the order status page for the item description and see what you have!

So now my order that was placed on 9/12 is supposed to arrive on 10/23 to 10/27.

6 weeks to get a mini! crazy.

of course, they are trying to get my order 'expedited' but I'm not holding my breath.

 

Wow thats rather weak that orders would be getting delayed due to Adobe Reader that you could download and install yourself...

 

He's right. Ordered 9/13 for 9/29.

My order was just canceled and reissued for a 10/23 ESD.

Only difference in the order is that acrobat.

I called and *****ed as well and was also promised expedition, but like the poster above I have no faith in that.

 

I continue to be amazed at the usefulness of the mini . . .

Using Sprint USB wireless broadband to connect to the net, runs flawlessly. I like having the heat generated by the wireless card outside of my laptop's casing, so the lack of internal broadband on my unit is not a negative from my view. The number of expansion ports on the mini is something not to be forgotten, 3 USB, a SD (SDHC compatible) slot and such really give this a ton of versatility.

I bought a 32 GB SDHC card from new egg (about $150 shipped next day) and now use it as my primary storage. Plenty fast, more than enough room for all of my legal files.

To test its performance, i even dumped a 9GB install of WoW onto the SDHC to see how it played on the mini. Oddly enough, it works so well on low res to even be playable from the SDHC. It actually LOOKS GOOD, really blew me away, sure there are some places where the game slows to a crawl (traveling through big cities) but it does indeed work!

Its more than fast enough for any web browsing, word processing, number crunching and powerpoint generation. I'm sure i wouldn't want to be doing any massive photoshopping on it, but for day to day general business work when away from a heavier workstation, it serves surprisingly well... (even allows you to take your mind off serious matters and tinker around in a game or two)

So far more big thumbs up from one early adopter . . . (and I really had no idea SDHC's came in 32gb sizes now and for not huge$$, amazing how small these things are now....)

 

How can i check whether i have bluetooth or not??

BTW, you can get a 16gb sdhc for 32$ @ newegg, and IMO that`s a better deal than payin 150$ for 32gb.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211245

add to that a

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231163

and a

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826104080

and you`ve got yourself the best possible mini 9/netbook package.

 

Sure, just rub it in!!!

(just kidding, I'm just a little bitter that my two mini's should have been here on Monday, and now it's looking like another month)

 

haha yeah. I like all of those options (looking at the logitech Nano myself).

 

The Nano is great! You can get it a bit cheaper on Amazon. My favorite feature is that it doesn't have a bulky receiver on it. It's the next best thing if you don't have Bluetooth.

 

what`s the "best thing" if you have bluetooth? also how can i check whether the mini has bluetooth or not?

 

Well, for a laptop I've prefer to have a Bluetooth mouse so that you don't have to deal with a receiver which also takes up a USB port. You would know if you have it because you have to select it when you order it. It would also be listed in your device manager in Windows.

 

I think I am in the same situation. I called on Wednesday and was told that my new ESD is Oct 23rd. They didn't tell me anything about cancelling and reordering at all. Upon reading this post, I looked into the my order and found that my adobe is as follows:

Adobe Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 8.1, English
[410-1883]

According to the author, I should be okay. In order to make sure, I called Dell again and the guy on the phone told me that the computer has been backordered but my new ESD is now Oct the 6th... So now I am seriously confused; As you can see Dell has told me about 3 different ESD's.. I have no idea which one is correct... Sigh..

 

It`s listed on my device manager, but i can`t use it.



Should i reinstall XP?

 

Have you tried connecting something to your Mini? Try downloading the latest driver from the Dell site.

 

nope i haven`t. (lol), by "device not found" does it refer to the bluetooth chip, or other devices (like a bluetooth headset for example)?

1 more thing, is there any particular bluetooth mouse that you recommend?

XD

 

Device not found would refer to no mouse, keyboard, etc bluetooth device found. Since there isn't a yellow sign next to the device in your device manager, it is installed correctly.

Microsoft seems to have some very decent bluetooth mice on the market.

 

You may have to confirm that the bluetooth module was infact installed on your I910. Had the same Bluetooth Bus Enumerator driver on the OEM install before I blew it away to install vista even though I didn't opt for bluetooth in my order...

 

Haven't used it yet but I've heard good things about http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000TG4BA0 and it's a better price than I got on it. Use the Bill Me Later and save another $5. Just can't beat that for a bluetooth mouse.

 

thxxx

How can i confirm it?

cooo, thx

 

Microsoft Bluetooth Wireless 5000 FTW...I have it and it's perfect on my 15 thirty..(sorry the persons lappy I am using is missing the *three* key.. LOL

It's nice, small and compact ~ and the battery life is awesome!

I remember you mentioning this....you will love it! It's a great Btooth mouse....


Cin

 

^lol!

thx..

 

In case it helps with the 'illegal sku?' issue...mine ordered on 9/4 and shipped on time (9/19) included sku 420-7468 for Acrobat.

 

I just got my mini =). Setting up WinXP now. Despite other people mentioning this, I just have to say it again. It's a lot smaller than you expect it to be, even the box it comes in. First impression is that it's really well made.

 

Anyone have a picture of a Mini 9 next to a Toshiba Libretto? I would take a picture of my Mini 9 next to my Libretto 100CT (about the size of a VHS case) but Dell f---ed up and now I have to wait another month for mine

 

+1. I have big hands and I LOVE the MS 5000 BT mouse. It's the best mouse (IMO) since the original MS Dovebar mouse.

BTW, if you don't have the BT module onboard and want to add BT cheaply, take a look at the IOGear GBU421 Micro USB adapter. It's so small you could probably leave it in a USB port permanently. I bought one so I could use the 5000 mouse with my desktop - that's how much I like the mouse.

 

that SKU was the correct one for Acrobat 8.1

Lucky you!

 

Using Sprint USB wireless broadband to connect to the net, runs flawlessly

I was wondering what the above is and how you get it? As my Sprint broadband card doesn't fit.. ? THanks sorry if dumb question.
Jane

 

I'm using this Dell Bluetooth Mouse on my Mini. Works well and complements the look perfectly in black & silver. http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/products/I_O_Devices/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=330-1823

 

Of those who have already received their Mini 9, is anyone brave enough to take it apart and scan both sides of the motherboard? I want study it so I can start planning any modifications possible. I also want to know if the only difference between the ones with and without the WWAN port is the port itself, or if any other electronic components were left out such as resistors, capacitors, etc.

If its as simple as just adding the connector, then I wont be too dissappointed. I dont necessarily plan to use a WWAN card, but another SSD card could be useful.

 

For S+G yanked the SSD out of the I910 and stuck it in the WWAN slot of the Studio. Wasn't recognized by Vista upon bootup even with the WWAN enabled in the bios...not sure what the diff is between the pin-out of the mini-PCIe between WLAN/WPAN/WWAN and SSD slot but this may or may not work...

By the way, doesn't hurt the SSD by sticking it another Mini-PCIe slot...still boots the I910.

 

Thanks for that info. The WWAN slot should have USB lines going to it so theres still a possibility of mods with that. Think of a mini USB hub with MicroSD cards and adapters connected to it

 

Quick question for those with a Mini:

How much play is there in your power connector?

Mine can be wiggled horizontally a bit but not at all vertically. Connection is solid with no drops in power in any case. I realize some play is probably a good thing, but it seems like the connector hardly had any give at all when I first got the system.

Just trying to figure out how much is 'normal'.

Thanks.

 

No worries about the power connector. Mine has wiggle too, but still seems like it's connected well.

 

Can someone please take a screenshot of Device Manager with all the branches expanded? I want to get the exact names of all the devices so I can get the drivers to make an nLite version of Windows XP to have ready for when I get the Mini 9.

 

Hope that helps!

 

Hey everyone...here is a nice short article via Engadget regarding:

How would you change Dell's Inspiron Mini 9? (posted 9/26/08 at 6:30 pm)

http://www.engadget.com/2008/09/26/how-would-you-change-dells-inspiron-mini-9/2#comments

For me:

• 
  More color choices

• a much needed *tweaking* (or overhaul) of the keyboard and adding function keys

• 
  More RAM / SSD

• 
  Backlit keyboard

• 
  Longer Batt' life

• 
  Screen res. options??

Oh, and get a better *handle* on these shipping delays that a lot of peep's are incurring right now

Cin

 

More drive space: 32GB would be nice. And better apostrophe/enter keys.

Also a version with a scratchproof possbly slightly tougher case. Something designed to be put into a bag without a slipcase and still look good.

 

I would like to see more color choices and 1gb ram across the board.

SSDs i don't much care about as long as I can add SD memory, and I don't want to see things like a backlit keyboard that will drive the price up.

 

Hey thar NanK

Yeppers...I agree..those would be nice changes also!...And, it would be great to see something designed like that while still maintaining *a sweet, sleek, streamlined look*


Cin

 

Would this 4GB memory module work on Dell mini?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231202

It works on Thinkpad T61.

 

Nope... I9 should only accept up to 2 GB modules...

 

This may have been mentioned already, but I picked up this case:

http://www.caselogic.com/neoprene_dvd_player_case/product_detail/index.cfm?modelid=105110

Cheap, shipped fast and fits the Mini pretty well. Not too tight on the sides and while its roughly an inch too long it was easy enough to add a piece of velcro to the flap to make sure it stays closed.

Also available in pink for the girly types out there.