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Vostro V13
- Thread starter AndyMulhearn
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I listed the V13 in the thread discussing competitors to the MBA. The V13 has been out for four or five months already. It's the cheap version of an Adamo. Instead of featuring the design elements of Adamo's exterior, it just features the shape and size of the Adamo.
It's really a nice little computer. For $449, it's just Ubuntu and Celeron CPU, but for $649 it even includes a C2D CPU with Windows 7 and some other nice additions. At $449/$549/$649, it's much better than a netbook with a nice 13" display and full notebook features like keyboard and larger display.
I often worry about my MBA being stolen when I am on vacations or traveling. With the V13, there would be no worries. It would also be great for a vacation involving the kids, beach or outback. I really like it at $449!
I just bought both of my kids new 13" MBPs a few months ago. Had the V13 had an optical drive, I would have purchased it for them instead. I really wanted them to get something that weighed less than 4.5 lb. I was surprised it had an web camera even! Since my kids are really young, I also considered a plastic MB, but they were both in the store with me and my daughter said the aluminum one was pretty with the pink bag she has for it, LOL. Yes, daddy was a sucker! I actually would have bought both of my kids an MBA if they didn't need DVD drives so badly. They both need to watch DVDs on their computer, and I wasn't going to be there to convert all of their new DVDs to digital while I was away. Kids really use their computers for entertainment purposes and new DVDs happen often. The most important feature for me was the web camera to do nightly video chats. I am glad I didn't wait for the iPad, as it fails there too.
For people who just want an inexpensive lightweight notebook, this would really do well. It actually competes with the iPad or netbooks if you think about it. At $549 it has a Core Solo Processor, Windows 7, 2 GB RAM (up to 4 GB capacity), 13" display, 250 GB HDD, full-sized keyboard, web cam, 2 USB ports, and it runs FLASH for complete Internet access! It's actually quite a deal and a nice little PC ultraportable.
It's really a nice little computer. For $449, it's just Ubuntu and Celeron CPU, but for $649 it even includes a C2D CPU with Windows 7 and some other nice additions. At $449/$549/$649, it's much better than a netbook with a nice 13" display and full notebook features like keyboard and larger display.
I often worry about my MBA being stolen when I am on vacations or traveling. With the V13, there would be no worries. It would also be great for a vacation involving the kids, beach or outback. I really like it at $449!
I just bought both of my kids new 13" MBPs a few months ago. Had the V13 had an optical drive, I would have purchased it for them instead. I really wanted them to get something that weighed less than 4.5 lb. I was surprised it had an web camera even! Since my kids are really young, I also considered a plastic MB, but they were both in the store with me and my daughter said the aluminum one was pretty with the pink bag she has for it, LOL. Yes, daddy was a sucker! I actually would have bought both of my kids an MBA if they didn't need DVD drives so badly. They both need to watch DVDs on their computer, and I wasn't going to be there to convert all of their new DVDs to digital while I was away. Kids really use their computers for entertainment purposes and new DVDs happen often. The most important feature for me was the web camera to do nightly video chats. I am glad I didn't wait for the iPad, as it fails there too.
For people who just want an inexpensive lightweight notebook, this would really do well. It actually competes with the iPad or netbooks if you think about it. At $549 it has a Core Solo Processor, Windows 7, 2 GB RAM (up to 4 GB capacity), 13" display, 250 GB HDD, full-sized keyboard, web cam, 2 USB ports, and it runs FLASH for complete Internet access! It's actually quite a deal and a nice little PC ultraportable.
Look at the heatsink design for the Vostro V13... far better then the air's heatsink, but I'm not sure how you can fit something like that in an Air though.
http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/vosV13/en/sm/TD_Heatsink.htm
http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/vosV13/en/sm/TD_Heatsink.htm
I agree with the rest of your post as well. I saw an unboxing of one of these on another website and posted here before I realised how long it had been out.
It's a nice looking little system though, particularly for a Dell, and the lack of an optical drive is no problem for me.
No biggie... we all share stuff as we see it, and sometimes we're slightly behind the curve. I specifically took an interest in this, because I really wanted it to work for my kids. Otherwise, I wouldn't have known so much about it. I also considered it just as a "cheapie" backup solution in case I ever didn't want to take my MBA somewhere. In addition, one day per month I need a PC.
I thought about using this but decided Boot Camp and Windows 7 was a better solution as why would I want to add three pounds plus accessories to my current portable solution. I just really wish the MBA had 4 GB of RAM. I would be fine with this MBA for another two years if it just had 4 GB of RAM. I do like to swap computers annually, and I am interested in getting something new. I really would like the MBA to get a new display and some other changes, because right now it feels like I have had the exact same Mac tech since October 2008. The MBA hasn't really changed at all since October 2008. I know that is being picky, but the 4 GB of RAM is necessity for things like running Windows in a virtual machine. So I have both serious need and desire based reasons to "upgrade" when the day comes.
edit---> Check out the new Latitude 13
It appears it's the high-end version of the V13. Starts at $559 and upwards to $899 with Windows 7 and more adds. At that point, it might just be much wiser to go Adamo for $999 including 256 GB SSD. It's still worth checking out the Latitude...
Interestingly, it has an anti-glare display for all of the "pros" that need such a feature. $50 to upgrade to C2D CPU. Upgrade to 4 GB is $225. A lot of expensive upgrades considering the price differences between Adamo, but still something to consider in the ultraportable market still at less than a grand.
http://www.dell.com/us/en/business/notebooks/latitude-13/pd.aspx?refid=latitude-13&s=bsd&cs=04