Inspiron 9100

Question

I am looking at 9100 3.0, 512 ram 40 gig hd and 64 video ram. How are these units in terms of quality, keyboard feel, screen size, and are they too big to be considered portable, I had a 8600 which I was not that happy with.

ejn63 · Answer

They are large and bulky. They have about the same keyboard as the 8600 (in fact, they're made for Dell by the same company). The 9100 is a discontinued model now, though the XPS remains available.

Samaaron · Answer

Thanks for the feedback. Do you know why they discontinued the 9100?

ejn63 · Answer

Only Dell knows for sure, but overlap with the new 9200 is a good bet.

Samaaron · Answer

Any thoughts about the 9100?

Samaaron · Answer

ejn63 wrote:
They are large and bulky. They have about the same keyboard as the 8600 (in fact, they're made for Dell by the same company).

The 9100 is a discontinued model now, though the XPS remains available.

Can you use this on your lap or is it too big. I like to work on the sofa etc.

Message Edited by Samaaron on 12-28-2004 11:09 PM

Ghanima · Answer

9100...   i luv mine! powerful, reliable [so far], full featured, fast [specs below]. awesome screen. good quality sound.   it is big though. which doesn't bother me [i knew what i wanted prior to buying, and did research into the size and such as you are], but to other business users and such - i would not get any of the inspirons. the power is limited also... about 1.5 hours MAX on a full charge. it will sit nicely on your lap on the couch. i take mine to work and to other outtings, but sometimes it is a bit of a pain. The AC adapter is also large too, if you read a bit more on these forums you will notice the AC adapter being referred to as a 'brick'... well quite literally thats about the size and weight of the adapter, coupled with the notebooks size and weight [about 10 lbs.] you will need a fairly hefty case to carry this thing around. overall if you don't plan on using it much on the road [i use mine moderately to frequently on the road], then by all means this is a wicked notebook. I also have a Latitude D600 which i use more so for extensive activity. but i prefer the 9100 for the power capabilities.   Hope this helps!

Samaaron · Answer

Sounds like the 9100 is quite large, and not well suited for moving around. I am still curious about what people think about the keyboard, the quality of the 9100 compared to HP, Apple and IBM?

Bay Wolf · Answer

I have never used the I9100 so I don't know anything about it as far as the 'feel' of it.   Samaaron, it's hard to get a real 'qualified' answer to your question.  Just as with cars, some like Chevys, some hate them.  Some like Ford, some hate them.  It like that with notebook computers (or any computer for that matter).

Samaaron · Answer

@Bay Wolf wrote:

I have never used the I9100 so I don't know anything about it as far as the "feel" of it.

Samaaron, it's hard to get a real "qualified" answer to your question. Just as with cars, some like Chevys, some hate them. Some like Ford, some hate them. It like that with notebook computers (or any computer for that matter).

I do not disagree but since there is no way to see or try out this computer, I turn to the Dell commmunity for assistance.

Bay Wolf · Answer

That is true and I don't want to persuade you to not use this avenue.  As a matter of fact, I think that it is the best Forum for user to user help.  I was just making a point and nothing more.   There is a way to try out the notebook if there is a Dell Kiosk in your area.  There is not one in my immediate area.  The closet one is about a 2 hour drive from here.  But if there is one in your area, they will have sample notebooks that you can look at and play with to get a perspective of how each model looks and feels.  I highly recommend this for the different LCD screen sizes and resolutions.   No harm intended with my earlier post.

tejanotexan · Answer

I currently own a 9100 and have since late august of this year. Yes its bulky, yes its heavy but I love it. In fact I am about to truly put it to work. I do alot of audio editing and play audio samples to my students both at the elementary level and at the collegiate level where I teach a music appreciation class. It has held up to daily setup and teardown every day this fall semester. I use it daily for multimedia presentations and it works like a charm when you hook up a projector to the dvi connector. My current pro level software allows me to use the visual wave representations on screeen like a flow chart. So obviously I use it for more than just an expnesive CD/DVD player.

Now the rest of the story. I bought it with a gig of ram to do heavy work. I now want to run Pro Tools LE for windows on it. This is one of the industry's leading multitrack software which only runs with its proprietary hardware. Before I spend over $2500 on this investment I am checking for compatibility.

I need to find the chipset number of my processor (pentium 4?)....I have emailed Dell, attempted to find the specs on the Dell website and even posted somewhere else on this site. Maybe you can help me. I am sure it is not difficult to find out...but I am stumped. Are you a Pro Tools user.. will my 9100 to the job.

Thanks for all your feedback

Tejano Texan

Message Edited by tejanotexan on 12-29-2004 10:19 PM

Message Edited by tejanotexan on 12-29-2004 10:21 PM

Bay Wolf · Answer

I do not have an Inspiron 9100 but I looked in the owner's manual and got this:

Processor type Intel® Pentium® 4 with Hyper-Threading Technology

System chipset is the Intel 865PE

I have no idea if this is compatible with Pro Tools LE.

tejanotexan · Answer

Yes ...thanks that seems correct. I just downloaded the Intel chipset ID software. It took all of10 seconds to download and within a minute it identified my chipset. Follow this link to download the utility from Intel

Intel® Chipset Identification Utility http://support.intel.com/support/chipsets/sb/CS-009245.htm?iid=chipsets+infmain

Tejano Texan

qswizard · Answer

I have an Inspiron 9100 - I purchased it as a desk top replacement - I either bought a low quality laptop and desk top or the better spec Inspiron 9100.

I have found it very useful - powerful, quick and does all I need from it. However, it is a little on hte heavy side to carry around - I travel on the train alo and therefore am always using it on my travels.

The battery life is good, which is another plus for it - the large screen helps - however, on the highest screen setting, files, etc, are too small to read, therefore I have to downgrade picture quality for normal use (1240 x 800)

However, I have recently had my first problem - difficulty in booting up - today I have not yet been able to boot up - I am still trying to resolve this problem

I hope this helps with your choice.

Ronald B · Answer

Hi Can you tell me how to connect PC to LCD Home TV, my S-Video is not working and I can not have the PC screen out VGA with same picture why ? Thanks RON

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