Unfortunately, the camera is only available in netbook mode, as it becomes hidden under the bezel when the screen is flipped.įinally, on the hardware front, is the battery, which is sealed and only rated at 3.5 hours, which I found optimistic. Like most portable computers these days, the Duo includes a front-facing camera coming in at 1.3 mega-pixels. In netbook mode it also seems a bit unstable, easily rocking toward the hinge, so don't leave it sitting near the edge of a desk. Surprisingly the Duo also lacks a standard media port, which limits it to USB adapters to load files from SD cards or other portable media (see hardware extras below for more on media ports).Īt a little over 3 pounds, the Inspiron Duo is not going to easily rest on a chest in bed or be held in one hand comfortably for very long, again challenging it as a serious entertainment device or as a business data input device. The speakers are a bit tiny as would be expected, but unlike some of the less expensive netbooks, the Duo does include two speakers for stereo sound, which is enhanced by SRS surround sound software.Īnd of course, being a Netbook at heart, the Duo doesn't include optical media, so a network is required for installing software, either from the Internet, or from a shared drive on another device. And to allow the Duo to respond to movement, it also contains an accelerator, which is in on the motherboard, not in the screen, so orientation shifts only work when locked into tablet mode. Video, however, was pretty snappy due to the inclusion of a Broadcom Crystal HD accelerator. The Duo's dual-core Atom N550 processor and 2GB of RAM powers a fairly good web experience, but as the engine for a tablet, the screen refresh on rotation, for instance, felt sluggish, as did the loading of software, especially Dell own Stage (see comments about Stage later). This makes for a more cut chassis, but the look is much less cool in use, with pieces of rubber hanging off of it. Unlike most hardware that eschews port covers these days, the Duo covers all of its ports, except power, with hinged flaps. On the downside, the Duo's extra inches make it too large for standard netbook cases, which means buying a new case if the Duo is an upgrade, or shopping carefully if it is your first. Over all it feels less cramped than other netbooks. The multi-touch touchpad is responsive and large, but I never found myself using its multi-touch features because it was just easier to touch the screen than to figure out the disconnected overtures necessary to get the touchpad to communicate the intended action. On the good side, the keyboard sports more roominess, including well-place arrow keys. And like all glossy touch screens, including Apple's, finger smudge is an issue, so either invest in a matt screen cover or keep a clean microfiber cloth nearby.Īpparently because of the swivel hinges, the Duo is wider than other 10.1 inch notebooks, which is good and bad. It may not be right to compare the Duo to an Apple iPad, but Dell did enter the tablet market, and the $50-per-unit less expensive iPad produces crisp images from any angle, which makes the Duo an even more personal device than the iPad because it doesn't offer communal viewing angles. Viewing the screen from the sides produces noticeable darkening of the image, and view top down washed out the image completely. Unfortunately, the screen inside the innovative swivel hinges comes alive only when perfectly angled. Its rotating flip 1366x768-resolution LCD display is a cool addition to many of the clumsier approaches of the past. For anyone who has used a SmartPhone of any design, including Microsoft's, Windows 7 is an embarrassing touch environment on a 10.1 inch display.Īt first glance, the Duo screams industrial design. Windows 7 may be touch capable, but that is only because it sits under a multi-touch display. As a tablet, the cool tilt-and-swirl display makes for an intriguing hardware demo, but adds little value, especially after experiencing the real Achilles heel of the Duo: Windows 7. For road warriors charged with delivering endless PowerPoint presentations, the omission of video-out makes the device nearly useless. As a netbook, it is a bit bulky and over-engineered, and it also lacks some basic mobile needs like video-out and a media reader. ![]() Dell Inspiron Duo An eye-catching design concept, but who is it for? by Daniel RasmusĪfter spending some time with the Dell Inspiration Duo, what some call a netvertible, I have to start by asking: for which audience did Dell targeted this device? The Duo is an oversized netbook that converts to a tablet, but it is good at neither.
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