This post was long long due and in fact Harish, a pal of mine from my Huawei days had also asked me about the same. Somehow we know what to expect from each other at times.. :D
Any new technical gadget from a laptop to a sleek mp3 player deserves a mention, who more than Venu would agree on that. ;) I'll restrict myself to the former here, a piece that I bought a couple of months back. In a nutshell, it was a hasty decision.
Vostro 1500, launched by Dell a few months back was a much anticipated product, such that even Walter Mossberg wrote about it. But then I had purchased it by then. Before starting, my ideal laptop definition (without considering the RAM, HDD and other customizable factors) would incorporate the following -
- Light, its a 'lap'top after all
- Quick to come up after a standby or power save mode
- needless to say, slick screen display
Vostro 1500 is everything but that. At 6.7 pounds I'll put it as a mini desktop with laptop like features. Perhaps I was asking too much, but a laptop should epitomize 'lightness' when it comes to weight. Needless to say that at 6.7 pounds its a back belter! How I wish IBM was a touch cheaper..
Frequent BSODs, failure to come up after standbys and hibernate failures - Welcome to Dell. Sometimes it is quite infuriating to see such brands perform so miserably such that you vow never to purchase their products again. Dell's just landed in that category for me. At a low volume, it'll also mix an agonizing burr when you plug in your earphones. Now that's an unwanted freebie.
There have been apparently some decent reviews on Vostro and sometimes I wonder if they were using some other machine while writing the review, or did Dell dispatch a wrong product to me! Sadly, none of them is true. May be I expect too much in $800 odd but then this product simply defies the concept of a laptop.
Vostro was supposed to be the second generation of the Inspiron series, but I guess the only thing that they have improved is the sturdiness of this laptop. Got a burglar at home, don't worry, just whack him with the Vostro, and he's all yours!
Perhaps I was too harsh on Vostro, but then it hurts when your $850 doesn't give you a good feel in the age when every 'other' firm is trying to bring some real sleek gadgets in this category. Once Dell, Never Again!
