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Review of Dell inspiron 15

Posted Jan 14, 2008 Blair Mathis

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Value and performance are two factors that appeal to almost every buyer looking for a new notebook, and that's what the 1525 Inspiron offers in abundance.

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Full review of Dell inspiron 15

Editors know a lot. Trust me, just ask the editor here at Laptopical! That's why when an editor says something is good, it's wise to consider buying that thing pronto (unless the editor has taken a bung). Such is the case with the Dell Inspiron 15. It was selected as an Editor's Pick by the geezers at Laptop Magazine. This paradoxical laptop is both a higher-priced budget notebook that gives you more bang for your buck than most laptops in its price range.

First bang? That silver racing stripe on the inspiron's shiny black lid. It's the cool Speedracer retro styling called the "Street." Or how's about the two other chassis style choices? The "Chill" pattern on your lid-a blue-and-white smear over a silver background? Or the "Blossom," a purplerific shell with a floral imprint for your slick chiquitas out there.

Once you pick your style, then open that lid. You'll be knocked off your seat by the 15.4-inch, glossy panel widescreen. Get back in your seat and turn it on. Now you're feeling the editor's mojo.

The 2-GHz Intel Core 2 Duo and the 3GB of memory combine with the high-speed-spinning hard drive to make this baby test the fastest out of any budget notebook that the editors looked at.

No matter what you use this speed for, this thing is jacked up so you can maximize your compatibility with any and all electronic devices. Want to share your music with your friend? There's two earphone jacks. Have two digital cameras, an iPod, a Crackberry, and a picture phone? Try the 8-in-1 card reader, FireWire, and USB jacks. Looking to hook up to your HD TV? Try the HDMI cable or the S-Video jack.

And do all this without an AC outlet. The battery lasted more than four hours in the editors' test!

Of course, being editors, they need to be critical about something. So what are the flaws in this budget masterpiece from Dell? The wireless Internet was spotty at longer ranges, and this is not quite the gaming laptop with its Intel GMA X3100 graphics card.

Still, get out that credit card now. Dell phone operators are standing by.

Dell inspiron 15 Technical Specifications

  • Processor 2GHz Intel Core Duo T4200, 800MHz FSB
  • Memory 3GB DDR2, 800MHz
  • Harddrive 250GB 5,400rpm SATA
  • OS Windows Vista Home Basic
  • Weight 5.9 pounds (2.7 kg)
  • Screen 15.4 inches
  • Screen resolution 1280x800
  • Graphic Card Intel GMA 4500 IGP
  • Battery Life 3-3.5 hours

Pros

  • Impressive battery life
  • Sleek, modern design
  • Solid performance
  • Nice keyboard and touchpad

Cons

  • Not for gamers

Best Offers on the Dell inspiron 15 from Pricegrabber.com

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Comments

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  • By: Arsen Jan 25, 2010 7:43 PM

    Why is this computer not for gamers? Id 2.5 Ghz and 6gb memory not enough? or does it brake?

  • By: oipdufoiewur Jan 20, 2010 1:04 PM

    http://en.community.dell.com/forums/p/19280661/19505726.aspx#19505726.................... for dell inspiron 1525........great fix..........worked for me...........tryed out on my own...............

  • By: AnimalRescueForums.com Dec 29, 2009 7:52 AM

    Guys, I own a Dell 1525 and yes the hinges suck, well sort of. The reason they suck is because they never tighten the screws all the way tight!!! So the hinges get loose, but all you have to do to fix it is retighten them. I waite for ever to do that and ended up cracking my case because I kept opening an closing with the loose hinges. Anyway, where can I get a shell at? Email me: thejordangame@sbcglobal.net. Check out my website: http://AnimalRescueForums.com

  • By: chris Dec 25, 2009 7:20 PM

    ive had no problems with the dell inspiron 15 have windows 7 and as for the hinge problem maybe take care of your laptop the hinges in mine are solid as far as i can tell its fast for the most part for what im gonna use it for battery is ok have the 2 year warranty on it so we shall see how it goes

  • By: johnswhite Dec 22, 2009 5:35 AM

    The Dell Inspiron 1545's 15.6-inch glossy wide-screen LED screen has a native resolution of 1,366x768 pixels, which is standard for laptops in this price range (while budget 15-inch systems typically have 1,280x800-pixel displays).

    r4i

  • By: johnswhite Dec 22, 2009 5:35 AM

    The Dell Inspiron 1545's 15.6-inch glossy wide-screen LED screen has a native resolution of 1,366x768 pixels, which is standard for laptops in this price range (while budget 15-inch systems typically have 1,280x800-pixel displays).

    r4i

  • By: cmorley Dec 13, 2009 1:20 PM

    Horrible computer!!!!! Hinges being the main problem. Called dell and got the whole "out of warranty" BS. I've had it all of 18 mos. I was told that I could send it back to them and they will fix it for $159.00 which I stll think is ridiculous. They should stand behind their. I am very disappointed and will never buy another. I also get messages on my computer saying "no bootable devices to start computer on so I usually hard boot which probably not a good thing. Anyone else have this problem??? Also can we force them to recall this product? I put it on my dell account and don't think I'm going to pay it.........

  • By: Chi Dec 09, 2009 8:35 AM

    The hinges are cheap and HORRIBLE! It was continue to break if you open and close your laptop. I recommend not buying the Dell Inspiron 1525 because it is a waste of money. Also, the battery life decreases a lot over a year.

  • By: Chi Dec 09, 2009 8:35 AM

    The hinges are cheap and HORRIBLE! It was continue to break if you open and close your laptop. I recommend not buying the Dell Inspiron 1525 because it is a waste of money. Also, the battery life decreases a lot over a year.

  • By: Killer Dec 07, 2009 4:00 AM

    The inspiron 15 uses the same hinges as the 1525 from 2007/8... they have the SAME chassis. Don't be misled! These hinges WILL bust. You can't even screw them back in to the chassis! I bought miniature screw drivers and this is totally useless, the holes the screws for the hinges go in are SCREWED. Every other aspect of the computer is fine... these are good, cheap, computers, but they have NASTY hinges, cheap plastic that WILL warp... and a nasty load BS FAN! They really do have these problems...

    My hard drive died the week I got the computer... don't buy the inspiron.

    If you must buy delll,, by the Studio 15, it has completely different hinges.

    The good news the very end Dell Adamo... released this year, early 2009, has just been replaced with a new model, the XPS, and you can pick up a reconditioned adama for 800 bucks... that is my next move.

  • By: Killer Dec 07, 2009 3:09 AM

    The inspiron 15 uses the same hinges as the 1525 from 2007/8... they have the SAME chassis. Don't be misled! These hinges WILL bust. You can't even screw them back in to the chassis! I bought miniature screw drivers and this is totally useless, the holes the screws for the hinges go in are SCREWED. Every other aspect of the computer is fine... these are good, cheap, computers, but they have NASTY hinges, cheap plastic that WILL warp... and a nasty load BS FAN! They really do have these problems...

    My hard drive died the week I got the computer... don't buy the inspiron.

    If you must buy delll,, by the Studio 15, it has completely different hinges.

    The good news the very end Dell Adamo... released this year, early 2009, has just been replaced with a new model, the XPS, and you can pick up a reconditioned adama for 800 bucks... that is my next move.

  • By: gogo Nov 27, 2009 8:34 PM

    spoofurl.com is the best!

  • By: NB Nov 24, 2009 11:21 PM

    I have had my dell vostro 1500 for 2yrs and 1 month now. I had to replace the battery last yr (oct 08). sometimes my wireless connections cut out. when i restart it gets fixed. the wireless problems has been going on for the last 3 months. Otherwise since its been more than 2 yrs now... it didnt give me any other major problem. Extremely happy... i am gonna buy dell inspiron 15 now and i will give this to my younger brother. DELL - best value for money.

  • By: bbb Nov 23, 2009 9:29 PM

    Broken Hinges

  • By: Duane Nov 17, 2009 8:49 PM

    I've had my Dell 1525 for 15 months. If you have one, keep the lid open, don't open and close it. The hinges are junk. Mine are bad now and Dell won't do anything because I'm three months out of warranty. This is a problem with this model. Google hinge problem on dell 1525 and see the problems. To bad, it has tainted the image I had of them.

  • By: crystal Nov 11, 2009 11:58 AM

    i liked my dell at the begining now its crap hinges have broke frist time it took me 1 month to ge the part replaced then bring it home for a week and it was broke again my warrenty is ending soon i would much rather get a new one as this keeps happening first computer i ever bought and still making payments on it ,i need help i strongly belive there should be a recall as well the bottom plate unscrews itself another problem i have to bring it in to have the tighting them dell has really upset me i wsh more can be done to these crooks i'm think seeing a lawyer not to sure how far i should go anyone have any info please pass it along thanks

  • By: Evie Smith Sep 25, 2009 10:56 AM

    I ordered my dell yesyurday and can't wait to get it soon !!!

  • By: Evie Smith Sep 25, 2009 10:56 AM

    I ordered my dell yesyurday and can't wait to get it soon !!!

  • By: Evie Smith Sep 25, 2009 10:56 AM

    I ordered my dell yesyurday and can't wait to get it soon !!!

  • By: richard Sep 19, 2009 5:15 AM

    Just wondering the problem with the hinges have happened to my 1525 and i have already sent it for repair when it was in the warrenty. It has happened again and now they are refusing to repair because it is out of warrenty. Could anybody help with this? degree

  • By: czaklejn Sep 19, 2009 5:13 AM

    i'm interested in purchasing the inspiron 15 2moro and i really need to kno if i'm gona be making ah good decision...i'm worried about all these comments about the fan and the hinges and stuff...can someone advise me if i will be makin a good decision in purchasing this laptop...please! degrees | bachelors degree | associate degree

  • By: Essien Sep 02, 2009 1:57 PM

    I'm currently using the Dell Inspiron 15. Frankly speaking, it's a decent laptop, but not for a gamer like you said. Fortunately enough, I'm not a hardcore gamer. technology bookmarking

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  • By: Nida Aug 24, 2009 7:20 AM

    My Dell Inspiron 1525s' LCD hinges started coming apart about 3 months after I got it, and 6 months in one of them has broken and now I can't shut the laptop. Don't know how much it will cost to get fixed!

  • By: Musab Mohammed Aug 18, 2009 12:41 PM

    i'm interested in purchasing the inspiron 15 2moro and i really need to kno if i'm gona be making ah good decision...i'm worried about all these comments about the fan and the hinges and stuff...can someone advise me if i will be makin a good decision in purchasing this laptop...please!

  • By: skm Aug 09, 2009 6:12 PM

    im just wondering wats diff between the 15 and 1525???im having mixed feelings bout the 15!! please help!!!

  • By: Godgody Jul 26, 2009 5:12 PM

    this laptop overheats and switches itself off. This is very annoying and is a recognised problem. Search for dell inspiron overheating on wikipedia for more info http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dell_Inspiron#Overheating

  • By: kyle09 Jul 08, 2009 11:56 AM

    just wondering the problem with the hinges have happened to my 1525 and i have already sent it for repair when it was in the warrenty. It has happened again and now they are refusing to repair because it is out of warrenty. Could anybody help with this?

  • By: abcd Jul 04, 2009 5:58 PM

    The new dell inspiron 15 can be configured with ati mobility radeon 4330 gpu. Does anybody know if its a 256mb ddr2 or ddr3 or a gddr3 memory?

  • By: plinkus Jun 23, 2009 9:19 PM

    I'm looking into buying a 15 and I wondered how many RAM slots are available.

  • By: LivingBarbie Jun 23, 2009 2:27 PM

    i just put a order in for a inspiron 15 i have to say i am a little worried from what everyone has been saying about the loud fan and its not a good gaming computer! :-(

  • By: b Jun 23, 2009 2:12 AM

    I am not having to replace the right hinge on mine. It costs about 400 dollars.. GJ Dell. Good job seriously.

  • By: sopakg Jun 18, 2009 2:52 PM

    I have a dell inspiron 1525 NOT 15. I'm hoping that the 15 is better, and hoping that people talking about the hinges breaking is not for the 15. I've had this for about a year and I've experienced the hinges coming off. the lid can't close now. Vista is not a good opperating system to have. It is 80GB harddrive and when I got it 20GB was gone and we didn't add any programs. I don't know why, but that was what happened. The fan is loud and i cannot do hard word on the computer for more than a few hours before it shuts off due to overheating. i suggest a cooling pad for the 1525. everything else about this laptop is great, just we need a new one. the 15 seems to be better because it is cheaper than what we bought the 1525 for (around 550$) and it has 4x the hard drive capacity.

  • By: erikka Jun 18, 2009 8:57 AM

    The hinges on mine broke after a year they started getting loose and eventually broke on one side. Plus the mouse pad is located close to teh space bad and when typing I often accidently touch it and I guess the cursor jumps causing me to type in areas I didnt mean to. Very annoying took me about 3 months to be aware of not touching the pad.

  • By: Craig Jun 17, 2009 3:59 AM

    Just wondering if this would be a good purchase to use for school and other means like downloading, internet, etc? Thanks.

  • By: Mike Jun 11, 2009 12:34 AM

    Performance is good on the 1525, but get ready to replace the hinges after about a year of service. LCD cover has completely cracked at the hinge area on one corner. The cover, hinges, and bezel are going to need replacing. Not sure how much this repair is going to set me back.

  • By: Laurence Jun 05, 2009 5:57 AM

    Just ordered mine from Dell today, looking forward to getting it soon :)

  • By: mij egdod May 30, 2009 1:23 PM

    Who is the tuber that said you can't run Mac OS on anything but a Mac. How is it under that stone you live? A bit slimy maybe. Google hackintosh or hack book and you will see that the 1525 unit does quite nicely.

  • By: Eunice May 20, 2009 4:15 AM

    I am proud to have one of your product.

  • By: 2 May 03, 2009 8:27 PM

    No you can't run Mac OS on anything but a mac.

  • By: 2 May 03, 2009 8:27 PM

    No you can't run Mac OS on anything but a mac.

  • By: King Harry Apr 11, 2009 11:36 AM

    I have been a Dell user for 10 years. I own a XPS 210, a 1525 and I just ordered a Inspiron 15 to replace a Inspiron 1000 that is 5 years old and running strong (can't add more RAM). As far as I am concerned, it is hard to beat a Dell for all around reliability.

  • By: Joseph Mar 27, 2009 1:16 PM

    i jsut bought mine yesterday, and the reviews look good so well see how this adds up! btw im gonna put a ATI x800 graphics card in it. will it void the warranty and would it then be good for gaming?

  • By: Kaushal Sharma Mar 05, 2009 11:20 AM

    I have the same STREET model and i am quiet satisfy with the performance. I am proud to be a DELLian. I would like to know is Dell inspiron 1525 is compatible with MAC. is it ok to install it with Mac. instead of windows?

  • By: Bjorn Jan 12, 2009 3:09 AM

    You've made an excellent choice. My wife got a 1525 almost precisely two months ago and it's a really good notebook. If I had to buy one for myself right now, I'd go for the exact same model. I got a dell Inspiron 1525 Battery from http://www.batterygoshop.co.uk/dell/inspiron-1525-battery.htm . It can last more than 3 hours.

  • By: Bjorn Jan 12, 2009 3:09 AM

    You've made an excellent choice. My wife got a 1525 almost precisely two months ago and it's a really good notebook. If I had to buy one for myself right now, I'd go for the exact same model. I got a dell Inspiron 1525 Battery from http://www.batterygoshop.co.uk/dell/inspiron-1525-battery.htm . It can last more than 3 hours.

  • By: usman Oct 25, 2008 3:07 PM

    the machine is good but i am facing a problem regarding hard disk space consumption, whenever i installed any application it consumes round abt minimum 1GB space.... also some times when i shutdown my system and start in the morning thn 5 - 6 GB space is gone and this happens to me 3-4 times.... even i had instled windows twice (VISTA) looks like ghost in my system.... can any one help me... w8in

  • By: Darren Oct 18, 2008 10:45 PM

    on the day i recieved mine i opened the box and the screen of the laptop was smashed :-/ had to wait for them to pick it up and deliver a new one which was a hassel. The laptop is very good :) havn't had any problems atall with it, but after around 3 - 4 months the hinges have started to become loser

  • By: jjj Oct 16, 2008 11:32 AM

    123

  • By: jjj Oct 16, 2008 11:32 AM

    123

  • By: jjj Oct 16, 2008 11:32 AM

    123

  • By: jjj Oct 16, 2008 11:32 AM

    123

  • By: jjj Oct 16, 2008 11:32 AM

    123

  • By: jjj Oct 16, 2008 11:32 AM

    123

  • By: John Sep 27, 2008 7:29 PM

    this is the best laptop ever, and will jaynes it isnt nearly loud enough to return it just because of the loud fan. you made a poor decision imo.

  • By: Will Jaynes Aug 07, 2008 2:42 PM

    I had to return my 1525. I liked everything about it, except the fan was very noisy, and it ran incessantly. I found this problem reported often on the Dell forums, and around the net in general.

  • By: himanshu bharadiya Jul 05, 2008 6:44 AM

    i required dealer for dell insprino

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