Dell Inspiron mini 1012 Netbook

I've not been a fan of that many netbooks out there, but this little guy really blew me away. I got to compare this netbook up against netbooks from ASUS, Acer, Samsung, Sony, Toshiba and Gateway (a pretty exhaustive line-up). There was a sharp contrast between Dell's Mini 10 series and netbooks made by the other companies. To me, the buying decision really came down to comfort and ingenuity of its design. I find others choosing this model mostly for the same reasons.

===== It's Comfortable =====
This thing is a dream to use. Most netbooks are unusable to me. What stings me most with netbooks is the keyboard. I'm used to the low-profile, "chiclet-style" scissor-switch keyboards that are (or at least used to be) most common in laptops, and in fact I love them. I'm referring to the type of keys that are flat and flush with the palm rest, and have a little flange or lip on the edges (where the space is between the keys). To see exactly what I mean, check out the close ups here on the right (http://www.amazon.com/gp/prod​uct/B00361G10S?tag=a52-20&​ie=UTF8#productDescription). These types of keyboards make typing a breeze, as they won't inflict wrist strain due to tall keys or keys that require more force to press.

===== It's Innovative =====
The touch pad is small, yet clever, allowing you to press down on the bottom-left/bottom-right corners of the pad to left-click/right-click (respectively), rather than wasting space by implementing separate buttons. The touch pad is also very touchable, as its texture and finish is matte, rather than glossy, making it much more conducive to swiping your fingers across than most of the other netbooks I laid fingers on. Most netbooks' touch pads were glossy, making your skin shear and resist the dragging gestures. I find such a feeling to be nearly as annoying as fingernails on a chalkboard! The other netbooks were also noticeably covered in oily smudges and finger grease, both inside the track pad and also on the wrist rest. Instant turn off for me on anything but the Dell! The Mini 10 on the other hand was smudge free, thanks to their use of an oil-resistant softly-textured palm-rest.

===== It's Brilliant =====
The display is crisp and bright, and it isn't too shabby outside either, though I recommend using full brightness when being used outdoors. My only complaint about the screen is its native resolution is a bit low for my tastes, which I hope isn't just a personal preference. I'd rather see more on the screen than to see things big and close up. However, this is par for netbooks anyway. You should look into this Sony (http://www.amazon.com/gp/prod​uct/B001PII4HW?tag=a52-20&​ie=UTF8) if you absolutely must have a higher definition display while maintaining the small form factor of a netbook.

===== It's Media Friendly =====
The built in HD media excellerator and the 9:16 ratio widescreen 10.1" display is great for watching hi-def movies on the go, with one very important exception: you must have an external DVD (or Blu-Ray) drive. I recommend this Samsung (http://www.amazon.com/gp/prod​uct/B002C1BBU8?tag=a52-20&​ie=UTF8) which sports a sexy look, on par with the Dell 's own appeal, without sacrificing functionality. Video playback is generally smooth and very few hiccups in playback have been experienced.

===== It's Stylish =====
You wont mind being seen with one of these, especially given the choice of colors, you can't go wrong in customizing. Dell really puts their feet for

Performance in our other tests was as we'd expect from a netbook. The 1.66GHz Atom N450 processor managed an overall score of 15. This laptop's fine for basic office and internet jobs, but you'll want something faster for more processor-intensive tasks. Graphics are powered by the processor's integrated Intel graphics chip, which isn't capable of playing games.

We found it a little strange that this netbook only has an 802.11b/g wireless adaptor, rather than faster 802.11n. It means that file sharing on your home network could be slow. It's good to see Bluetooth built-in, as it makes it possible to tether your phone to the Mini 1012 for 3G internet while you're out and about.

Even though video might not be perfect, it's still nice to have the 1,366x768 screen resolution, as it makes using multiple windows and applications easier compared to the standard netbook 1,024x600 pixel screen. It's bright too with good contrast and reasonably accurate colours. Viewing angles are pretty good, too.

The Mini 1012 feels rigid and robust. It also looks very stylish. The standard model comes with a black lid, but for an extra $40.00 on the price listed above you can get it in a range of colours.

We found that the keyboard was very comfortable type on thanks to the responsive keys that have just the right amount of feedback and travel. The touchpad is disappointing. Although accurate, it's very small with the buttons built into its lower left and right hand corners. This makes certain actions such as dragging and dropping icons far more difficult than they should be.

Although the Mini 1012's HD playback wasn't what it was cracked up to be, the high-resolution screen and decent battery life still make it a fantastic choice, provided you can live with the annoying touchpad. Alternatively, the Toshiba NB305 or NB300 netbooks have better battery life and are easier to us, although they have standard 1,024x600 screens.

It's a wonderful small toy with all functionality I need for fun: web-camera, microphone, USB ports, WiFi card, Ethernet card and so on. I bought it for web surfing, e-mailing, reading, music listening and Skype, and it works great. The batteries work for ~7.5 hours.
Only one caveat: the driver for WiFi card on my computer was not installed. I could see the WiFi card in System Panel -> Device Manager, but it couldn't work. The good news the manual gave the address support.dell.com from which I easily could download and install the driver. The funny thing is when I wrote to the seller and notified him about this problem (just to let him know) he replied that the comp doesn't have WiFi card and can be used for Sprint wireless only. The quote: "Per the listing, the only wireless internet connection can be obtained via Sprint only, there is no WiFi card, please refer to the listing again, and get back to me". That's not true, the listing says "54g Wi-Fi networking (802.11b/g)" in the features, and that's why I bought this thing.
Now that I revealed you this small issue I can say I would recommend this comp to anybody who wants to use it as a non-professional comp for the activity I've described.

I just received my Dell Inspiron mini 1012 Netbook and it is even better than I expected. It was very easy to set up, loads quickly for it's size, has a great keyboard, connects to the internet easily and is everything I wanted in a mini laptop. Good job, Dell!

I was looking for something small and portable for internet and email and so far this computer has worked out perfectly. The battery last for a long time the monitor is crisp and the keyboard is functional. I would like to have a number pad but I figure I can just plug one in if I really need one. It fits well with my Dell Desktop. I can access everything through my wireless which is nice. Very versatile machine.