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

Oh yes, I think I have seen this. I think Mick linked it.
I don't think I would want that on my I9. It's sweet the way it is


Cin

 

actually mine is very stiff.
i watched it as i pressed it down and it actually is tipping forward when i press it. (forward meaning towards the letter keys) instead of moving straight up and down like it should be.

its so annoying and hard to type with it i think i will call the big D today and see if i can get them to send me a new keyboard.

 

Like Cin, my girlfriend's Mini keys were a little stiff for the first day or so. After that (Mini was received in October 2008 and she has used it every day since) she has not had any keyboard problems.

When my girlfriend's Dell Mini arrived she used it for about 2 weeks before I received the 2gb of Ram. One day when she was not home I swapped the RAM out and forgot to tell her. After a couple of days, and when I remembered, I asked her if she saw an increase in performance. She replied that she had not really seen an increase. She uses the mini for Microsoft Word 2003, e-mail and web browsing.

Other people at mydellmini have noticed. Some have not.
http://mydellmini.com/forum/2gb-ram-t1290.html

http://mydellmini.com/forum/2gb-ram-upgrade-guide-t78.html
On this thread the posts about increase (or no increase) in performance are intertwined with posts about the process of installing the new RAM.

I remember reading another thread on mydellmini where a guy stated he saw increase in performance when using Google Earth -- for whatever that is worth.

 

So i set mine to Always On while examining CPUz, on all other settings i tried the atom only ran at 800mhz on battery, with always on it switches between 800 and 1600 based on load, hence the massive speed increase.
It seems very odd to me considering that even at full burn the atom uses a mere 2.5 watts.

The odd part is that 1.6ghz it runs 1.313 volts, just a touch higher then the .9-1.1 volts specified by intel. It seems to stay at 1.313 after it goes up to it, too.
Temps while doing this and loading it with a winamp stream and flash game are up to 46*c, from ~27-32 previously, and battery life is down decently.
However, when downclocked it won't really run the combo, the flash game goes sloooooowwwww.

Now set to home office/desk it switches from .8 to 1.6 and the voltage follows it, 1.013 at .8 and 1.313 at 1.6.
Performance is the same as Always On, but the temps drop fairly quickly when the load is removed.


Anybody else run into this?

I haven't tested it plugged into the wall yet, as that kind of defeats the purpose of a netbook

 

thanks for the help NYC

 

Yes, give them a call, they will prob's ship you a new keyboard!

Yeps! I actually enjoy typing on mine, that's its *broken in* per se.
I should time myself to see how many keystrokes/word per minute I can do on the I9.

Nope I haven't ran into this.

Cin

 

just got my mini that i ordered 1 week ago from the outlet. i was VERY pleasantly surprised that the version of xp sp3 it comes with was already tweaked to fun fast. i looked at an xp tweaking guide and it was already tweaked, except for a few things i changed cus of personal preference. i could have just uninstalled a few unwanted programs without going through the whole process. also, it came with the latest A04 bios and drivers.

 

Hey...Congrat's on the arrival of your new I9!

What color did you order? Mine came with XP also, and all the tweaks and such went really well..too!~


Cin

 

What tweaks are there for xp?? I want to make sure im running as fast as I can.
thanks!

 

thanks cin

i wanted a red one to match my 1330 but i bought during the daytime coupon frenzy so i had to pick fast and got black. i really wanted a red one but after getting the lappy the black (and probably all of the other colors) looks really good in person so no big deal. this is my first netbook and i bought dell cus i've had a bunch in the past but mainly, because the synaptics pad and mouse buttons are better than any other netbook. synaptics pads are so good i've stopped using mice when i'm on a lappy.

after a few tweaks here and there and playing with it for a few days i'm surprised, it does run pretty well and definitely fast enough. my tweaks were nothing major, not like my 1330 where i basically got it and reformatted it on the first day

dell did a really good job of shipping the unit with the latest drivers and an already tweaked version of the OS, although all netbook manufacturers probably are using the same tweaked version that comes on the dell restore cd. my unit is a fully loaded xp from the outlet. i am a tweaker but i didn't buy the unit with the mindset that i would buy a bare bones and upgrade the entire thing since i've never had a netbook before, so now that i've had it for a few days i can definitely see the argument behind that.

tweaks (hope this helps someone):
-uninstalled unwanted programs
-removed unecessary programs from taskbar and system startup (webcam is a startup resource hog)
-added 2gb ram and changed page file to "system managed"...big internets debate here on whether to turn it off or not
-using firefox, kaspersky, media player classic, irfanview and winamp instead of m$ programs (free-codecs dot com)
-turned off indexing...i was going to turn off hibernation, system restore and compression and they were off by default from dell
-uninstalled the dell mousepad driver and installed the generic synaptics one...huge improvement in webpage up and down scrolling action using your finger on the right side of the pad
-going to get a 16gb sd card. after installing some albums, pics, vids and a movie file there's not much room left on the 16gb ssd.

**i can't tell whether the ram upgrade does anything or not. i did notice that after i changed the ram to 2gb and set the page file to "system managed" windows upped the page file size from 300m (set file size from dell/m$) to over 2km.

 

In addition to the tweaks posted above by wasupdog take a look at the following:
http://www.tweakxp.com/performance_tweaks.aspx
http://mydellmini.com/forum/how-do-i-speed-up-my-computer-t115.html
http://mydellmini.com/guides.html

Personally, I have found that mydellmini.com is the best resource for learning how to modify your Dell Mini and/or make upgrades & changes from the factory installed settings.

 

I turned the page file off on mine as i don't want windows writing to one file over and over and over again, not good for the drive
Didn't notice any performance difference, haven't run into any issues yet with web browsing and such.
I might need to buy a 2gb sodimm to play morrowind, we shall see.


(I turned it off on my alienware too, cause i upgraded to 3gb of ram and wanted my 4gb hdd space back )

 

Hi, does anybody have a link to an XP tweak?
Great pic Cin!

 

Nice! Well, you still got a nice color and a great netbook!
My 1530 is red, like the 1330 Love it.

Yeah, i think *tweaking* is up to the individual!

I did some when I first received mine...and will prob's continue to when I feel like my I9 needs it! You still got a great deal thru the outlet!

Hey Jane!
See the link's I attached above courtesy of Mr. NYC..

And, thanks for the comp'

Cin

 

if you have an XP mini the m$.net updates that will be installed by windows update...i had m$.net 3.5 running and there is some stuff that slows the system down pretty bad. i uninstalled the .net updates back to version 2.x after seeing that my XP desktop was only running 2.x and now the mini runs fine like it did before the update.

my 1330 does have sp3.5 installed but the configuration is really fast so i didn't care to change it. the 1330 has vista.

i think i'm too lazy to change the ram back to 1gb to see if it runs any slower and i guess i'm going to leave the page file as "system managed" for now since the mini is running good.

 

Yes, I understand I have CCleaner and RevoUinstaller on mine..that helps removing any *extras* hanging out and such!

The way I look at the Netbook is if things are running and working well, leave it as is


Cin

 

This has been a very informative thread. However, I'm still torn between the Dell Mini 9 and the Asus Eee PC 901. Both have very similar features and good communities.

Has anyone here used both and can weigh in on differences from a user perspective?

 

I have not read the review entirely but the below link reviews the Asus Eee PC 901 vs Acer Aspire One vs Dell Mini 9. It might be helpful.

http://portablemonkey.com/article/asus-eee-pc-901-vs-acer-aspire-one-vs-dell-mini-9/

 

Thanks, but i have seen that review. Its the same link i posted in another thread here.

I'm leaning towards the Mini 9 and should have jumped on an outlet deal the last couple weeks, but didn't pull the trigger.

I'll probably end up getting the Mini 9 through the Dell EPP site. I wanted to get the cheapest config and adding only bluetooth as an option. Then I was going to upgrade to a Runcore SSD and 2GB of RAM. However, there are no Runcore SSDs in stock . So now I am trying to decide if I want to build a new one with a 16GB SSD from Dell.

I'm still hanging on to the Eee PC 901 because it has all the options included and is readily available.

 

Sorry about that - I did see the other thread. Obviously, I did not read it carefully because I did not notice you had posted the same link.

 

No biggie. It actually gave me a chuckle when I saw it.

Soon after I posted this I got an e-mail from Mydigitaldiscount that the Runcore SSDs are in stock now, or atleast the 16GB version. So i went ahead an built my mini 9 and submitted the order. My estimated ship date is 2/17. My previous Dell's never took as long as the estimated date stated, but I realize the Mini 9 is a whole other monster.

 

Glad my own ignorance could provide you with a laugh.

I am interested to hear your thoughts on the Runcore SSD as I'm thinking of purchasing the 32GB or 64GB (if the price comes down a little) for my Dell Mini. Most of the reviews of the runcore drives I read on mydellmini are favorable.

Good luck with your purchase.

 

I own and use both a Dell Mini 9 and an Eee Pc 900ha. I realize my Eee isn't exactly like the one you're asking about, but there are similarities. So, maybe my opinion will be of some value to you.

Also, I'm at the point where one of these has to go. I don't need two netbooks, and I'm eyeing a couple other gadgets. So, one of these guys will be hitting the auction block very soon. I'm just struggling with which one I want to keep.

For me, there are four things that the Mini 9 has on my Eee pc.

1. The LCD is gorgeous. Really, it's one of the best I've ever owned. This is the main reason I'm even considering keeping my low end I9 over my specced out Eee Pc. In comparison, the Eee Pc LCD really looks like crap. It's grainy and pretty washed out.

2. The silent operation. The Eee Pc is quiet, but the Dell is completely silent, and even though it lacks a fan, it actually stays cooler than my 900ha.

3. The keyboard. The Dell keyboard, though a bit unorthodox, is way better than the Eee Pc keyboard. The important keys are large and the keyboard just feels better all over. I can type nearly as quickly on my Mini 9 as on my full sized laptop. In comparison the Eee Pc keyboard is tiny and kind of cheap feeling.

4. The battery life on the Dell is very good. I get between four and four and a half hours of web browsing on the thing, no problem. On my Eee, I've been getting between 3.5 and 4. Of course, this will probably be different on a 901, because of the SSD.

Those things are important, but I'm really leaning towards keeping my Eee Pc over the Dell. Here's why:

1. The hard drive. I know you don't care about this, because you're looking for SSD models. But, the hard drive has made a world of difference to me, when it comes to using a netbook. The performance is better than any SSD netbooks I've owned. Of course, 160GB of storage doesn't hurt either.

2. The webcam. Again, this applies to my specific situation. But, when I purchased my Mini 9, I did it without the forward thinking to realize that I may need a webcam someday. So, my 900ha has one. My Mini 9 doesn't, and I need one.

3. Size. It's just a hair smaller.

Really, for me, the hard drive is the major plus of the Eee over the I9. If it wasn't for that, it would be a slam dunk for the Mini. As it stands, I think the hard drive trumps all of the things I like about the Inspiron. Mainly because I look at the 900ha and know, if I had to, I could replace my full sized laptop with it, because I'd have the necessary space and performance to do so.

If I was in your position, I'd take the Dell over the 901. Mainly because of the LCD. If I was going to a model that had an SSD, I'd want to get the best out of the components that I can't change myself. I haven't seen an Eee Pc that could even dream of having as good of an LCD as the Mini 9. As an added bonus, you'll also get a better keyboard.

**Update**
I didn't realize just how long this post was. Apparently, while I was writing this book, you went ahead and purchased a Mini 9.

Sorry for being so long winded.

 

Not your fault. I guess I wasn't as torn as I thought I was.

I've been looking at these two models for a couple weeks now. I really wish I could have seen either model in store, but I'm sure i'll be happy with the mini 9

Everyone's netbook needs are different. For me HD space was not a factor because i'll use it mostly for browsing and maybe some video streaming. Mostly for use between classes or appointments and such.

 

I agree, completely. If you asked me about three weeks ago, I would have been in the same boat as you. I didn't need storage, and only used my netbook for web browsing. Now, I'm going to be traveling more, and need it to be able to function as a primary notebook, when necessary.

I think you made the right choice.

 

Dell's order tracking and estimated ship dates are a joke.
If you want the real story you have to call 'em up and bug 2-3 people before someone will cough up a tracking number, IF it's been shipped.
When they say shipped, they mean that they printed the shipping label and stuck it on the box, at which point they'll actually give it to fedex sometime in the next few days.

I like their computers, i hate their support.

 

Well, my Mini 9 is on the auction block. There's just too much I'd have to do to it to get it to the level of my Eee Pc, and make it work for my current situation.

I'm going to keep my eyes on the Dell Outlet, though. I really want another I9, and if I can get one with a decent coupon that has a webcam, I'm going to snap it up.

I'm really going to miss this little guy, though. It was probably the best deal I've ever gotten on a gadget.

You're right. The order status tracking online is pathetic. If you want a more detailed description, you're better off calling the automated tracking line. They give you way more information than the website.

 

Yeah, alot of times...you wondering..hey what's going on Dell

I use the same Rep each time I order..so normally I get the info I need. When I ordered my I9, I had a bit of an issue with another Dell Rep..and then I contacted the Rep I ordered from..and things got straightened out. I even got a e-coupon to use to order something, as a bit of *compensation*

They should just have a number dedicated to getting the tracking number vs. having to log online and such!

Cin

 

Hey Cin thanks! What virus program do you have. Mcafee slows it down so much, I thought there might be a better one...
j

 

Hi Jane!!!...Mcafee eek , was the first thing I removd when I got my I9...

I only use Avira AV: (FTW)

Here is the link: Avira AV,
Windows Defender is also good.
I also have these app's: CCleaner and RevoUninstaller, oh can't forget SuperAntiSpyware!

Great thing! It's all Freeware! Works great..

Cin

 

I second Avira AV. I started using it on my laptop and like it the best out of the free AV programs. I have used AVG, Avast, and now Avira. Avast is good too, but its better if you are not using a 64-bit OS because some features are disabled in that version (i.e. boot time scan).

 

I use AVG.

It doesn't seem to interfere too much. It just, kinda, does what it's supposed to do.

 

Oh thanks Cin, I really appreciate it.. cuz anything slows it down I'm so all not over it!! xo

 

cin, do you have a runcore upgrade? What do you think about that? Speed wise? xo

 

Yup! It's a great program. I had Trend Micro on my 1530 *horrible*.

I haven't tried it, but I know a few peeps that do use it
I just like Avira!

I think you will like it!

Nope I don't..but Ive been hearing lots on it. What are you thinking?

Cin

 

TRACKING INFO:

go to fedex's website and under the "track" tab at the top, on the drop down menu use "track by reference". then just enter your order# in as the reference number, type in USA and your zip code and it will give you the standard tracking info.

 

Oooo! That is really good info, thank you!

 

Yup! It's surely nice to have this option to when trying to track your lappy!

I have used this, and it works great!

Thx!


Cin

 

I had an Eee 701 and now have a Mini 9. The biggest difference is that Dell supports their product, Asus does not. Dell lets you upgrade to a 2 or 3 year warranty and they're good for it; Asus' one year warranty is useless because they do not support it.

 

hi guys, sometimes i open programs like avira and the program runs off the screen and i cant see everything.

resolution is on the highest, any other ideas??

also is there a way to improve the scroll on the right side of the mouse pad... for internet browsing...
thanks

 

^^if you're still using the dell touchpad drivers that came with the system, uninstall them (the touchpad will still work) and use the generic synaptics drivers which work awesome. there are also additional features that come with the synaptics drivers that you can customize. the right side scrolling is definitely improved.

http://www.synaptics.com/support/drivers

 

I may be swapping operating systems (or just entire netbooks) with my gf's mom, we got her an ubuntu one off craigslist (otherwise we'd have gotten XP) with all the bells and whistles, but she's having a hard time getting used to Ubuntu, plus her Napster and such don't work.

I'm hoping she'll opt for simply swapping netbooks, as i want bluetooth Not that i have an actual use for BT, but it seems like fun.

 

Nice, another one!


Cin

 

perfect
thanks!!!

 

I have been completely immersed in Windows 7 the last few days and I love it. It's been stable and runs smooth. It looks great too. I installed a very slimmed down version using VLite and booted/installed it from my 8GB thumb drive.

Received my cheap, new external slim CD drive. A little noisy but USB powered and $19.80 w/free shipping. Deal Extreme finally shipped my sleeve yesterday I ordered on 1/20. Chinese Lunar New Year lasts a week so that slowed it down.

Should receive my 2GB RAM tomorrow or the next day. Guess that sums it up for now.

 

Got a link? I'm interested in getting one for my incoming Mini.

 

Here you go:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180318999246

Was packaged well and shipped/received via USPS very fast. Seller is in CA and I'm in St. Louis. Ordered 1/29 received 2/2 or 2/3.

It's a Teac. It is a little noisy when reading but for the price it's fine.

 

Thank you for the linky...it will help those interested!


Cin

 

is there another cheap model that has dvd support?

 

oh wow i was wondering why it was so cheap...can't read dvd's.