Dell Inspirons leaked, promise slick design
updated 12:10 pm EDT, Thu May 8, 2008
Dell Inspiron 1x35 Leak
Dell's next design change for its Inspiron lineup will involve a radical overhaul meant to lure customers from fashion-conscious brands, according to a leak published today by Engadget. The 14-inch Inspiron 1435, 15.4-inch 1535, and 17-inch 1735 will all take their visual cues from the tapered, more upscale XPS line and will be the first to have a unique, edge-to-edge LCD that eliminates the thick side bezels that often surround notebooks. The computers will also be the mainstream notebooks from Dell to use slot-load optical drives.
Most specifications are still under wraps but will give some systems up to a 2.16GHz Core 2 Duo and will find room for a multi-format card reader. Customization is also a focus with several different colors available for the outer lid.
Launch information is more specific. The mainstream and likely least expensive Inspiron 1535 will reportedly go on sale first, starting from May 26th. Its desktop replacement-level 1735 sibling will ship next on June 9th and may be the first to include faster processors designed for Intel's new Centrino 2 platform, which launches less than a week before. The 1435 has been pushed back until October for unknown reasons.
backlit keyboard
05/08, 12:27pm reply
That keyboard looks very MacBook like and from the picture appears to be backlit. Would that be a first outside of Mac laptops?
malax
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Aug 2006
re: backlit keyboard
05/08, 12:33pm reply
Wouldn't be a first outside of Mac laptops. Dell used backlit keyboards on the XPS M1730, and the Alienware m15x and m17x also have backlit keyboards.
Elektrix
Dedicated MacNNer
Joined: Sep 2001
Apple's patent?
05/08, 12:34pm reply
If I'm not mistaken, Apple has patented the back-lighting method/process. Dell would have to struggle very hard in order to invent something as effective and attractive as MBP/MBA without infringing on the patent.
vasic
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: May 2005
Ugh
05/08, 12:44pm reply
Maybe my taste is unlike that of most, but these things look pretty ugly to me. How are they different form the masses of other PC laptops?
dogzilla
Mac Enthusiast
Joined: Sep 1999
re: apple's patent?
05/08, 12:46pm reply
Whatever it is, I don't think they've had too much of a problem with it; the keyboard backlighting on the Alienware m15x and XPS M1730 both look fine to me (although you can actually change the backlighting color too).
Elektrix
Dedicated MacNNer
Joined: Sep 2001
monkey design
05/08, 01:02pm reply
They still don't have a designer who can center a track pad properly.
dliup
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Jan 2006
Trackpad! LOL!
05/08, 01:08pm reply
The trackpad is centered to the QWERTY keys, but the user is not. No one sits to the side of the laptop!
dmsimmer
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Feb 2005
Re: trackpad and backlit
05/08, 01:23pm reply
The trackpad is centered to the qwerty keys because people who normally type have their hands centered on the qwerty part of the keyboard. If they centered the trackpad to the case, their right-wrist would always be sitting on it.
h***, if the centered the trackpad, you'd be blasting them for making it that way.
As for the backlight, apple might have a patent on their method of turning it on/off, but that doesn't mean its a patent on backlighting.
And Dell doesn't have to spend much time inventing anything. A freakin' button to turn it on/off would be good enough. The problem I have some times with Apple's is I may want it on, but if the OS decides there's enough light, it won't let you turn it on.
testudo
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Aug 2001
Nothing Inspiring
05/08, 01:51pm reply
Typical Dell Fugly design. looks like a 1980s sedan with all the sharp edges.
Inspiron anagram: Inprison Somehow, it's fitting.
JeffHarris
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Oct 1999
Blah Blah blah Blah
05/08, 01:54pm reply
Will it run OS X? If not, it is still a piece of $hit packaged in yet another way.
If I said it once, I said it a million times... you can package up a piece of $hit in a nice box with nice wrapping and a bow.... but it is still a piece of $hit.
jhawk95
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Oct 2006