Dell document details Inspiron Mini 11 Netbook

by Stevie Smith - Apr 6 2009, 16:15

Already straddling the divide between Netbook and notebook thanks to its Inspiron Mini 12, computer manufacturer Dell looks set to further entrench itself within that particular grey area of the hardware market with the upcoming unveiling of the Inspiron Mini 11, according to Netbook News.

While the 12-inch screen size attributed to the aptly titled Mini 12 makes it slightly too big to qualify as a genuine ultra-portable Netbook, many of its features and functions have a distinctly lower-tier Netbook flavour – so where will the new Mini 11 fit in?

Still just a tad too big to convincingly cut the mustard as a Web-centric Netbook (the standard pretty much tops out at 10-inches in our opinion), a leaked internal roadmap belonging to Dell would suggest that the Mini 11 will be equipped with an 11.6-inch screen boasting HD resolution.

Promising notebook-like performance and a well-sized keyboard to match, the Mini 11 will perhaps separate itself from standard Netbook offerings thanks to its 2GBs of RAM, optional 250GBs of hard drive space (HDD), and the inclusion of Microsoft’s Windows Vista.

And, at a starting price of $499 USD, that extra inch or so on the display can almost be forgiven as the computer gently attempts to make some elbow room in a hardware space occupied by the likes of Acer’s Aspire One, the eponymous ASUS Eee PC and Dell’s own Mini 9.

The Mini 11’s processing and network options are not mentioned in the document, although a minimal 1.6GHz Intel Atom platform and 3G will be likely if Dell wishes to sculpt its latest offering into a convincing Netbook package.

Interestingly, the roadmap snippet also suggests upcoming additions for the existing Mini 10 line, which will see the introduction of a six-cell battery, choices between Linux, Vista or XP operating systems, and an integrated TV tuner.

While currently unconfirmed by Dell, industry expectations put the Mini 11’s official arrival at some time in the third quarter of 2009.

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