As promised, today I’d like you to meet the Dell Studio 15 laptop, the latest offering from Dell. Jumping on the color bandwagon roughly half a decade years after Mac started the whole trend, Dell’s colorful lineup of Studio machines are nice to look at, but do they have the specs to stand up against the MacBook and all the great home media center options from otehr PC makers like Samsung?
Well, let’s take a look. Starting between $599 and $849, the bare-bones system won’t quite cut it. For starters, the low end Studio 15′s ship with 6-cell batteries, and these days the demand for power makes me want to start with a 9-cell battery right off the bat. Plus, the 2 GHz processor speed is worth the couple hundred dollars.
As soon as you start to customize, you’ll learn that to add color, you’re going to need to fork out $25 for a color and $75 for a design. And while color is nice, to make users pay for it seems a little silly. If there is only one color difference, like the black or white option, I can understand it. But if you are going to offer a number of colors and designs, why not let users picks from a number of free base colors with a few high end options for power spenders? I guess that is sort of the idea here, but it seems forced.
As far a basic specs go, the 2.16 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo is an option, as is an advanced 256MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3450 graphics card. So, with about $200 more buck, you get a lot more bang. Plus, with a built-in webcam and fingerprint reader, the Dell Studio 15 has a few extra gimmicks up its sleeve.
Based on specs alone, the Dell Studio 15 is one of the best home media laptops Dell offers, if not the best. Plus, with its fun designs and great specs, for once getting a Dell isn’t a bad deal.
I’d love to hear more about teh Studio 15. So, if you happen to build one of these for yourself, let the LaptopPimp know about it, will you?
Dell Studio 15 assorted starter specs:
- Operating System: 64-bit Windows Vista Ultimate
- Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo
- Processor Speed: 2 GHz
- RAM: 4 GB
- Weight: 6.11 lbs.
- Display Size: 15.4 inches
- Graphics: Intel Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
- Storage Capacity: 500 GB
- Networking Options: 802.11 a/g/n
- Primary Optical Drive: 6X Slot Load Blu-ray/CD/DVD
Learn more and play with customization at Dell’s website.
Speakers could be better Would like to have the back lite keyboard.However got these from a box store and didn't have that option.