Your opinion on Dell Inspiron 1440

Hi everyone. I just purchased a Dell Inspiron 1440 on August 18th - I haven't received it yet as it's still "in production".

Anyway, I purchased it because it was sort of an emergency - I needed a new laptop for school ASAP before my current one totally craps out on me.

Mainly, I wanted something that was as portable as possible but still had an optical drive, a decent processor, a mid-size to small hard drive as I don't download lots of music or anything, a 64 bit OS, and RAM which can expand up to as much memory as possible.

What I want to know is - how crappy are Dell computers? Especially the Inspiron series. I've never owned a Dell - I've owned a Toshiba (which is crapping out on me after 16 months of use), an HP (which had multiple problems), and a Sony Vaio (which I loved, but I can't really afford them right now). I have less money to save/spend at the moment and I'm nervous about spending money on a laptop that will crap out on me after a short period - probably after the warranty.

Is the chassis sturdy? If dropped from a short distance would it crack or break? Are there a lot of issues with the mobo or anything else? I've tried searching on Google but there's hardly any info on this model.

Also, on a side note (yes, sorry, this is somewhat unrelated) - has anyone had any experience with SquareTrade warranties? Their warranties are so much cheaper - even with the Accidental Handling option - and it sounds like they really follow through with their promises. I was thinking about getting one of these warranties (they're for 3 years after the manufacturer's warranty ends) for the laptop, just in case. They claim that if they can't fix your item for you, they will refund you the original purchase price.

Thanks everyone - sorry for the long post! (BTW - I did read the review of the Inspiron 1440 that's posted here - I just wanted to see if anyone else had any opinions!)

Here's a copy of the order confirmation tech specs:

224-5913 1 Inspiron 14 Notebook (Inspiron 1440)
317-1691 1 Intel Core 2 Duo T6500, 2.1GHz800, 2M
317-1437 1 4GB, DDR2, 800MHZ, 2 DIMM
320-0810 1 720P Bright, Glossy, widescreen 14.0 inch WLED display
320-0812 1 Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
341-0301 1 250G 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
313-7929 1 OSIDIAN BLACK IMR
421-0239 1 Microsoft Windows Vista SP1 Home Premium Edition, English
330-4218 1 DELL RESOURCE DVD,BACK-UP,1440
420-9100 1 Dell Dock Consumer
463-2282 1 Dell Owners Manual installed on your system,click on icon after system set-up to access
420-6436 1 Vista, PC-Restore, Dim/Insp
421-0323 1 Windows Live Search,Multiple User Interface
310-8628 1 You have chosen a Windows Vista Premium System
421-0187 1 Dell Support Center Software 64 Bit 2.0
420-7938 1 Dell Connect 2.1
421-1193 1 Download Store Links
410-1883 1 ADOBE READER 9.0 MULTI- LANGUAGE
313-7915 1 8X DVD+/-RW Dual Layer Drive
421-0542 1 Cyberlink Power DVD 8.2 Playback
420-8183 1 Roxio Creator DE 10
313-4783 1 Integrated High Definition Audio 2.2
430-3271 1 Dell Wireless 1515 802.11n Half Mini Card
313-7933 1 Integrated 1.3M Pixel Webcam
421-0463 1 Creative Camera SW
420-8223 1 Dell Video Chat
410-2184 1 McAfee Sapphire MUI, 30 Day
312-0137 1 48 WHR 6-CELL,LION,PRIM BATT
420-6589 1 Microsoft Office 2007 Home and Student Edition
994-8407 1 Dell Hardware Warranty PlusOnsite Service, Initial Year
994-4990 1 Third Party At HomeService, 24x7 TechnicalSupport, Initial Year
950-3337 1 1 Year Limited Warranty
950-9797 1 No Warranty, Year 2 and 3
412-0360 1 Soft Contracts - Banctec
960-2780 1 Warranty Support,Initial Year
988-7707 1 2GB DATASAFE ONLINE 1.1 FOR SDO/DIM/INS/XPS
420-9518 1 DATASAFE ONLINE 1.1 2GB
988-0099 1 To activate your online backupaccount, go to Start, Programs, DataSafe Online
330-0171 1 S and P Drop-in-Box Marcom forDHS Notebooks
330-5125 1 Intel Core 2 Duo Label

 

Unless you pay a premium, there wont be many notebooks that don't crack a little when dropped. If you are looking for rugged, then the Panasonic Toughbooks are what you are looking for.

If you are looking for budget, then the Inspiron is fine.

Dell computers vary in quality, as do any other brand. The Inspiron line up is their budget range, and as such the build quality in terms of being suitable for rough handling is what you would expect for a budget price. The components and notebook should last a lot longer than 18 months if you take care of them; by which I mean put it in a well padded bag when carrying and don't throw it around.

There wont be much information on that model yet, it's pretty new out, and therefore any problems have really yet to surface. I've not heard of any major problems with it as of yet though.

I myself have owned both premium and budget notebooks, and I was actually quite suprised by the quality of the Inspiron that I have (the 1545). That's not to say I am going to drop it to see if it breaks though...

 

Thanks! My Toshiba - though it is about to fail - is decently rugged enough. I believe it was one of their budget line notebooks - it's a satellite A205-S5823. It's hasn't been handled too roughly - just bumped around a bit and I think my daughter might have stepped on it while I was away for 2 seconds. However, those things aren't what's causing the failure and the chassis really doesn't show much sign of wear and tear.

I'm just hoping that the Dell won't crap out on me - I probably wouldn't be so freaked out if I'd had a decent customer service experience.

I do use a really high quality bag to carry it around in though - it's a Dakine Backpack and the laptop is by itself in a heavily padded sleeve in the back of the pack.

I noticed on the Dell 1440 review that the reviewer (sorry, can't remember the name!) mentioned that the plastic that encased the screen wasn't held together by any adhesive or anything. I wonder if it would easily pop open (which happened on my HP - which was supposed to be considered a "premium" laptop).

Anyway, thanks. Any other takers?