Dell Inspiron 1520
Yes! I bought a laptop for myself, the Dell Inspiron 1520 (Black). Must say, it’s quite a beauty with the matte finish.
Though delivery time was a bit long (13 days), I got it finally with all the accessories as mentioned in the order, so no surprises. I bought the following configuration :
-
Intel(R) Core(TM)2Duo Processor T5250 1.5Ghz 2MB Cache, 667Mhz FSB
1 GB (2×512MB) DDR2 SDRAM
15.4 Widescreen WXGA+ Display
160 GB SATA HDD (5400 RPM)
Nvidia(R) Geforce(TM) 8400M GS - 128MB GDDR2
Integrated Sound Blaster Audigy Advanced HD Audio Software
Dell Wireless 355 Bluetooth Module
Intel Pro Wireless 3945 Dual Band 802.11a/g Wirless Mini Card
Camera
Dell (TM) Remote Control
Internal 8X DVD+/-RW combination drive with dual layer write capabilities
6-cell 53 WHr Lithium Ion Primary Battery
Windows Vista (with Aero) runs fine, although I don’t see much difference between Vista and XP. There are some unrequired features that you may want to turn off. See this link for some help.
All the hardware components, like Bluetooth, Camera, Touchpad, DVD Writer were configured properly. So, there were no glitches with the default installation. Speakers in the front performs well and battery performance is quite good as well.
But there are some other nuisances, I must say when you decide to change the partitioning, either reducing the size of C drive or installing another operating system.
-
I must say that partitioning scheme is crazy. I had 140-145 GB as one partition, C: for Windows Vista. Then there was one recovery partition taking around 10GB of space. And there is also a 2-3GB space allocated for Dell Media Direct.
Now, since I wanted to install Linux along with it, but I couldn’t due to this partitioning scheme. All these partitions were primary. So, I needed to delete a partition (basically C:) and repartition the whole system. Anyway, I had to do that. Installed Dell Media Direct also, but lost the recovery partition.
- Hard Disk is another disappointment. It makes a irritating crackling sound already (typical Seagate HDD!). Though otherwise, it works fine. I kept the laptop running for 10-12 hrs, doesnt get too heated. Works fine absolutely except the irritating HDD noise. I think I need to get it replaced to a non-Seagate drive.
The next step is to install Linux (Ubuntu most probably).
Hi Ankur,
Congrats on your new Laptop. I have a quick question here. Are you satisfied with the performance of the Laptop when it comes to Multitasking?. T5250 is not considered to be a very fast processor when it comes to playing games and editing Video files. Have you tried running Antivirus software at the same time playing video files and checking emails?. I am considering of buying same configruation Laptop. However there are not enough reviews for Inspiron 1520 (T5250) model. You can respond back at gurpreetsingh@aol.in
Thanks!!!
Gurpreet Singh
Comment by Gurpreet Singh — September 18, 2007 @ 1:47 pm
Hello Again,
I wanted to know wether there is any graininess in the screen, cuz lots of users are saying WXGA+ has poor LCD quality (6bit)panels.
Comment by Gurpreet Singh — September 18, 2007 @ 3:10 pm
Hey Ankur,
Congratulations on your new lappy
Nice to read your reviews. Howz the movie viewing experience ?…. By now you must have watched quite a few of them!
Comment by Dinesh Mehra — September 26, 2007 @ 1:28 pm
Gurpreet, I’ve been using the laptop for quite sometime now and I’m satisfied with the performance. I’ve been running some enterprise applications but I have not tested editing of video files and Anti virus specifically. Though, I’ve not used Windows Vista much (I’ve been using Ubuntu Linux, mainly), but I have used AVG Anti virus and laptop’s performance is quite good.
If you are too wary/skeptical, I believe you can go for 2GB RAM model. Then you should not face any problems at all.
I am satisfied with the current performance completely and would recommend it to you.
Comment by Ankur Jain — October 2, 2007 @ 8:30 am
Gurpreet, I don’t find any graininess on the screen. It has 1440×900 resolution and it’s absolutely amazing. Maybe I can send you a screen shot so that you can have a look at it. You can have a look here : Dell Inspiron 1520
Comment by Ankur Jain — October 2, 2007 @ 8:32 am
Hey Dinesh,
Yes, the movie watching experience is very good & the resolution of 1440×900 is damn cool! Watched quite many movies and it feels amazing.
Moreover, I’ve installed the 3-D Desktop on Ubuntu, which is too good. Have a look : Dell Inspiron 1520 Screen shot
Comment by Ankur Jain — October 2, 2007 @ 8:35 am
this may help to harddisk solve noise problem.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=168425
Comment by sermet — October 14, 2007 @ 3:34 pm
Ankur,
I have ordered laptop with same configuration and I am happy to see the review…… waiting to get it!!!
Comment by Nirmal — November 4, 2007 @ 2:18 pm
Hi,
I’m thinking about purchasing the 1520. Sounds like a great machine!
I only need it for Web browsing, emailing, IM’ing, maybe a little bit of VB, and watching DVDS.
Is the 1.5GHz fast enough to mutlitask rather well? I don’t want to pay the extra money for 2.0GHz if I don’t have to……..
Also, does the Inspiron come with a remote control? I’ve read a billion places say it IS indeed offered. But then I’ve heard it ISN’T offered…..is it standard? Or do you have to pay extra for it? Is there a specific part number to order for the remote? I want to make sure I get the correct one as I’ve also read that there is one for XP, one for Media Center Edition, ect……..?
Thanks and congrats on your laptop, can’t wait to get mine!
chad
Comment by Chad — November 12, 2007 @ 1:24 am
Chad:
Yes, the 1.5Ghz configuration should suffice all the requirements you’ve mentioned. As far as the remote control issue is concerned, I believe it’s region specific. For India, it’s available as a standard accessory with the notebook.
But in case of USA, we need to purchase the remote control separately. I’d recommend buying the remote control in either case. It’s quite nice to have one specially for multimedia functionalities.
Comment by Ankur Jain — November 19, 2007 @ 9:22 am
how to activiate bluetooth on my dell inspiron 1520 when ever try to activate it is showing error message cannot start bluetooth and bluetooth hardware not found
this problem started after when i formatted company installation and installation of fresh vista home basis any one please help me how to sort out this problem please
Comment by Dr.varaprasad — May 2, 2008 @ 11:41 am