General Question about wireless capability

Question

I am new here & don't have time to do a search, so please help me out!   We are thinking about buying an Inspiron notebook. I am looking through the descriptions of the different models. I see the term 'wireless optimized' used. What does this term mean? Is it possible to hook up to the Internet without a phone line? Can you do it just using shore power?   What we are wanting is a notebook that we can use for RV travel to email, pay bills online, maybe do a little basic gaming, DVD watching, and digital camera film viewing in the future. Since I am still computer illiterate, all the computer lingo still confuses us.   Can anyone tell us what is the best thing to buy for our above needs?   Thanks in advance for any help!!

alejovh1 · Answer

check the I6000D, it's equiped with all you need to watch dvd's, play some games and you can configure it so it's centrino wireless.
if you want to access the internet wireless, you'll need an internet provider and a router, maybe someone else here can post a link with more info. good luck

NemesisDB · Answer

you mention gaming and that can be tricky. what games are you looking at playing?

as for the wireless issue, most inspirons can be bought with an internal wireless card. for those that can't, they can run a pc-card wireless card (which costs around $20 and works just as good). such wireless cards are short range devices (usually 100m max). you still need an internet service provider, and in all honesty, you'll need a non-dialup broadband internet provider (like a cable modem or dsl service). typically if you had a cable or dsl connection you'd be able to make that connection wireless (with a wireless router) and then be able to get wireless internet throughout your house.

the type of wireless card that these inspirons come with will not let you get internet access in your RV (unless a campground you're in happens to offer wi-fi service). if you want something that will let you have internet access anywhere, check with a cell phone provider like verizon for possible options. those options won't be cheap.

rickmktg · Answer

@Garboq wrote:

I am new here & don't have time to do a search, so please help me out!

It is quite time consuming using Search, I just did one and was impatient the entire 3 seconds that it took...

We are thinking about buying an Inspiron notebook. I am looking through the descriptions of the different models. I see the term "wireless optimized" used. What does this term mean?

Is it possible to hook up to the Internet without a phone line? Can you do it just using shore power? What is "shore power"?

What we are wanting is a notebook that we can use for RV travel to email, pay bills online, maybe do a little basic gaming, DVD watching, and digital camera film viewing in the future. Since I am still computer illiterate, all the computer lingo still confuses us.

Can anyone tell us what is the best thing to buy for our above needs?

Thanks in advance for any help!!

fantomx · Answer

Maybe he plans on setting up some sort of water-wheel at the shore:smileyvery-happy:. I'm just playing, man. To get wireless internet, you need cable or DSL internet service.

tedtea · Answer

i've read maybe 20 to 30 posts tonite and I've seen rick repeatedly brow beat people. I'm just wondering if his overwhelming contribution to the forum includes 50% chastise, 45%sarcasm. and maybe 5% actual replies.   ok back to Garboq's questions: 1)wireless optimized probably means putting all the wireless capability in a package and longer battery.   2)yes it's possible to get onto the net without being hooked to land lines (phone lines). i'm using GPRS/Edge service, with an unlimited usage plan. how this works -> nokia 6230 cellphone, communicates to the inspiron via bluetooth. inspiron uses the 6230's modem capability to setup a dial-up networking, to 'dial up' to the net. EDGE -> when you're near to those special radio towers you can get 384kbps (I think).   the coverage -> I'm in Malaysia and my experience in the suburbs so far has been positive.   connection quality -> gprs is somewhat like a satellite service (huge pipe high latency), which means u get a big chunk of info, then there is lag (latency), then traffic resumes. if your aim is to surf web check emails -> yes that is possible.  I can even play online games with it (24x7 connection). average download speed around 5kbps (like a 56k modem but the latency is higher).   b4 u subscribe to a plan and spend more money on the hardware (ie cellphone), try to get the salesman to demo it to you.   wi-fi is only for urban areas; my guess if you're going to be in an RV, wireless optimized just means GPRS, not 802.11abg.   recommendation -> if you need more horsepower in playing your games, I think you should buy one of those desktop replacement models, like the 5160 (should be discontinued by now).  Since you're going to be in an RV, you would probably be able to plug in the unit and not worry about battery power.   Message Edited by tedtea on 06-18-2005 04:17 AM

speedstep · Answer

Wireless optimized means to me that it has built in wireless and that the wireless function is designed to work on battery power longer than a system with an add on wireless card. Many of the cards tend to be very hot and otherwise use lots of power.

speedstep · Answer

If you think the content of a post is brow beating or otherwise abusing anyone you can always report abuse to the moderators. If they agree with your assesment they will take the appropriate action.

parkerti · Answer

tedtea - LOL!

VBdotNet · Answer

@Garboq wrote:

I am new here & don't have time to do a search, so please help me out!

What we are wanting is a notebook that we can use for RV travel to email, pay bills online, maybe do a little basic gaming, DVD watching, and digital camera film viewing in the future. Since I am still computer illiterate, all the computer lingo still confuses us.

When you say RV travel, does that mean you have either a motor home or trailer with a satellite dish? If you do then contact your satellite provider ask about adding satellite internet access to your satellite package. Once you get the internet subscription then you can add a wireless router so you can take the notebook outside on the picnic table and stuff.

As far as which notebook to buy, you need to decide what you need it for:

email, pay bills online, maybe do a little basic gaming, DVD watching, and digital camera film viewing in the future.

- I don't think I'd go with less than an Inspiron 6000

For gaming the trade-off is that with a faster CPU and a higher-end graphics processor you will have less battery-life. Deciding how much time you need the notebook to be able to operate on its battery will determine the model and options that you will purchase.

Screen size: There are 3 screens: WXGA, WSXGA+, and WUXGA. The fonts on WUXGA are very small. If you're not comfortable with the screen type on your notebook then you won't want to use it. I recommend going to a CompUSA (or similar) store and ask them to show you a notebook of each screen type so you can see it for yourself. Note: stores like Best Buy and Circuit City generally only stock: WXGA.

obey_gravity · Answer

LOL   More importantly, if a  '3 second search'  yielded the answers to his q, shouldn't it be obvious what  'shore power' is?

tedtea1 · Answer

All your LOL'ing didn't help much...
guess what. some1 wasnt very happy with my 1999 ID and complained.
turned out that I was the one booted out.
For crying out loud, some1 who genuinely tries to be helpful gets the chomp. Justice indeed..

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General Question about wireless capability

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