At a 4.7-pound minimum weight, the M1330 is one of the lightest 13.3-inch laptops I’ve seen. The design is satisfying overall. This complete overhaul of the 12-inch XPS M1210 has a bigger screen yet weighs less, and it’s no taller than its predecessor because of new dropped hinges. One of the nicest features is its edge-to-edge keyboard; though the keys don’t depress far, their large size makes typing comfortable. One heads-up: The M1330 lacks a modem port. While such an omission is not surprising on a notebook of this size, it’s still something to be aware of.

Our test unit came with the optional, stunningly thin $200 LED-backlit screen. Even with the brightness cranked up, however, the 0.87-inch-thick screen was not as bright as the LED-backlit screens of other notebooks I’ve tested (such as the Toshiba Portege R400-S4931, Asus U1F, and Fujitsu LifeBook P7230), which enjoy a higher brightness specification (measured in nits).

The M1330, which has an HDMI port and a remote control, delivers a good multimedia experience for such a small notebook. The speakers are loud (though not stellar), and a bevy of buttons add convenience. You can use the Dell Media Direct button to bypass Windows and launch a movie or CD, and then use the backlit touch-sensitive controls to adjust the volume or change tracks. These controls are similar to the touch-sensitive control panel of HP Pavilion notebooks, but they have the added advantage of visual feedback in the form of a blue LED that briefly pulses around each selected area. A TV tuner and remote come in a $125 extra-cost kit. The slot-fed DVD drive, while more convenient than a tray, is as noisy as other slot-feds when accepting discs. Unfortunately, Dell gives no option for a Blu-ray Disc or HD DVD drive to take advantage of the high-definition, wide-screen display.

Performance, though, was superior. Equipped with a 2.2-GHz Core Duo T7500 chip and 2GB of RAM, our review machine produced a WorldBench 6 Beta 2 score of 82, putting it in third place among all-purpose notebooks and on a par with other similarly configured systems. We saw very good results upgrading from the standard four-cell battery to a nine-cell unit. Though it accounts for half a pound of the laptop’s weight (and $60 of our configuration’s $2179 price), the better battery lasted 7 minutes shy of 5 hours–90 minutes longer than the category average.

The M1330 is available in black for $50 less than the Crimson Red version we tested. But if you want a thin and light notebook that makes a visual impression as strong as its performance, the flashy color will do the trick.

Dell XPS M1210 has a excellent entertainment-oriented ultraportable uses Intel’s latest Core 2 Duo processor.

Packed with the latest mobile technology and Intel’s latest processor, the Core 2 Duo, the XPS M1210 is Dell’s latest ultraportable entertainment notebook–and a good choice for anyone who needs to work on the go.

Our test unit, equipped with a 2-GHz Core 2 Duo T7200 processor and 1GB of DDR2-667 SDRAM, produced a WorldBench 5 score of 102, a result that’s 5 percent better than the mark of 97 earned by the average XP Media Center Edition notebook with the same-speed equivalent of the previous-generation Core Duo CPU. And our test machine’s solid battery life should give you ample time to spend an afternoon telecommuting at the local coffee shop or watching an in-flight DVD: The M1210 lasted 4 hours, 23 minutes on a nine-cell battery.

Dell calls the top-of-the-line configuration that we tested the “Mobile Media Guru.” In addition to a 120GB 5400-rpm hard drive and a double-layer DVD burner, it offer bonus A/V features: an integrated 1.3-megapixel swivel Webcam with dedicated shutter button and directional microphone, one pair of noise-isolation earbuds, Skype VOIP videoconferencing software, and a built-in mobile-broadband antenna. (To make use of the antenna, you’ll have to dole out another $179 for an integrated broadband card and, of course, pay a hefty monthly subscription to Cingular or Verizon for service.) Our $1909 price (as of 9/8/06) also included Bluetooth short-range wireless communications and a dedicated nVidia GeForce Go 7400 video card with 256MB of memory.

The M1210′s design helps it stand out from other small notebooks. The 5-pound unit has a bright, 12.1-inch wide-aspect screen and a full-size keyboard, plus a touchpad with a scroll zone and big, cushy mouse buttons. The external battery gauge, which lets you see how much power you have left without having to turn on the notebook, is one of many thoughtful conveniences.

Movies and media are just one touch away via the keyboard’s MediaDirect button, which launches a menu for playing DVDs, MP3s, and photo slide shows without first starting Windows. To control volume and tracks, you have your choice of using the mouse or seven media buttons located on the front of the notebook. The speakers are nothing to write home about, but dual headphone jacks let two people at once enjoy good stereo sound in private. A $101 USB TV tuner and $29 remote control are optional.

The notebook’s full complement of connections includes four USB ports, a FireWire port, and a three-in-one memory card slot tucked beneath the optical drive–an unusual but adequately convenient spot. One of the notebook’s coolest features, the Wi-Fi Catcher switch with LED, lets you search for a wireless signal–Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or WWAN–before turning on the unit, saving time and battery life.

Storage and memory are both user upgradable, with the hard drive and one of the DIMM slots located in separate bottom compartments. The second memory slot is harder to reach than most that are located beneath the keyboard; its location requires disconnecting the cable and a few other extra steps, but the process is doable. The only other small design faux pas is the ExpressCard slot’s old-fashioned eject stick. Like most, it is maddeningly difficult to store.

As one of Dell’s “luxury” consumer notebooks, the M1210 comes with a rare full printed user manual, which is thick with attractive illustrations. Microsoft Works 8 rounds out the offering.

With its bevy of entertainment features and bonuses, the lightweight Dell XPS M1210 will keep you both entertained and productive when on the road.

is fantastic even with vista! I really didn’t know what to expect with this portable from Dell using Windows Vista Home version. But, it seems alright, a few interesting help screens. Fairly easy to manage. A few programs still are not Vista compatable such as the JiWire Hotspot Helper. Overall so far, I like its weight, size and so far its performance. Connected a monitor to test its dual display capability, and it seems this could be handy, in my case during Fantasy Football season. For a lightweight portable and my needs, it’s a great investment.

Dell’s entry-level multimedia laptop, the XPS M1210 has some excellent show-biz genes, such as media buttons and a TV tuner option. But it’s also a strong, well-designed, and highly mobile performer. The Windows Vista refresh only enhances the earlier XP version’s strong points.

The 4.9-pound M1210 is not the lightest laptop in its class, but it’s still quite travel friendly. Pricing is flexible, starting at $1299, and the design is excellent. The M1210 has four USB ports, among other connections, ports, and card slots. Its 12.1-inch WXGA screen is extraordinarily bright and inviting, and the well-laid-out keyboard requires no ramp-up time. And with the unit turned off, one press of the keyboard’s MediaDirect button launches a movie, music file, video clip, or photos slide show located anywhere on the notebook. Though the M1210 is a small notebook with small-sounding speakers, it comes with two headphone ports on the front so two people can plug in and listen at the same time.

Last year Dell added an ‘Instant office’ option to the MediaDirect menu; after selecting it, you can flip through your PowerPoint slides, contacts, and calendar entries, without waiting for Windows to load.

The Mobile Media Guru configuration, included on our $2150 (as of April 11, 2007) review unit) further broadens your entertainment and communications horizons. An external USB TV tuner and a remote control enable you to watch and record live TV on the M1210′s small screen. Dell also includes an excellent Webcam and an integrated broadband antenna at this price level. (An integrated Cingular or Verizon cellular broadband card and Bluetooth cost extra, however.) The notebook’s ‘WiFi Catcher’ switch makes it easy to scan for any type of wireless signal–Wi-Fi, broadband, or Bluetooth.

Configured with Windows Vista Home Premium, a 2-GHz Core 2 Duo T7200 processor, and 2GB of RAM, our review unit earned a WorldBench 6 Beta 2 score of 76, the highest mark among the eight ultraportables reviewed in our June issue’s laptop roundup. Our XPS M1210′s 256MB nVidia GeForce Go 7400 graphics controller supported basic 3D gaming; the notebook could run both Doom 3 and Far Cry with antialiasing switched off.

Our test unit also came with a dual-layer DVD writer and a 7200-rpm, 120GB hard drive; you can increase the storage to a maximum of 160GB.

When work takes you away from electrical outlets, the M1210′s 5.3-hour battery life (our unit came with the $50 nine-cell battery upgrade in place) saves the day.

A thick, illustrated printed user manual accompanies the laptop.

With its plethora of media-oriented features, the M1210 is probably the best sub-5-pound entertainment notebook on the market. But it also has just every laptop feature that a consumer or small-business shopper could want, plus power, ease of use, and a road-friendly weight. If you’re looking for top comfort and full features in an ultraportable, you’ll find them in the M1210.

Dell has finally gotten serious about portable entertainment with its new XPS line of notebooks. Dell’s XPS M140, a light and compact 5.8-pound notebook with a 14.1-inch display, is very impressive. The icing on the cake: The battery life rocks and the price is good, a very reasonable $1529 for our tested configuration.
Although Dell has dabbled in Windows XP Media Center Edition notebooks before, they seemed more of a patchwork effort than a serious stab at the genre. With the new XPS series, the TV tuner is still a $130 USB add-on, but that’s the only misstep. Compared with past Dell attempts at entertainment notebooks–and compared with many competitors–the XPS M140 smokes.
For one thing, the M140 sounds good, a welcome change for Dell. The front-mounted stereo speakers are clear and strong, eliminating the need for headphones. In addition, entertainment is more flexible, offering you two ways to watch movies, listen to CDs, and play photo slide shows. You can enjoy these diversions via the Media Center OS whenever you want to take a break from work, or you can start them up immediately with the press of a button through the Dell MediaDirect instant-on application, which lets you skip turning on the notebook and waiting for Media Center to launch. This is a big time-saver when all you want to do is show off your latest vacation pictures. The media control buttons, located on the front, work in either mode, which is especially nice. (The instant-play buttons on many other models lose their functionality when the notebook is turned on.) All that’s missing is instant-on TV.
A great work notebook, too, the M140 offers Dell’s best keyboard. It features a nice touchpad, comfortable mouse buttons, and a well-plotted layout, especially for Ctrl fans who will appreciate this key’s prime bottom-left location and extra large size. (Sorry, Fn-key aficionados, but that key is half-size and takes the second-place spot.) Although I prefer the Del key in the top-right corner, the M140′s PgUp and PgDn keys are a good substitute there.
The WXGA screen is bright, easy to read, and plenty roomy for mainstream applications. The port layout is pleasing, as well, with the fixed multiformat DVD burner and two of the four USB ports on the right and the power connection on the back. The M140 is the first notebook I’ve seen to eliminate the old PC Card slot in favor of its replacement, the new, incompatible ExpressCard slot, so beware if you have lots of old cards. For other types of media, the M140 is moderately well equipped, with a three-in-one slot that will take SD Card, Memory Stick, and xD-Picture Card.
Our test unit, equipped with a 1.86-GHz Pentium M 750 chip and 1GB of memory, earned a good WorldBench 5 score of 82. However, the M140 is a tad sluggish in strict comparison with other notebooks: For instance, a Toshiba Qosmio G15-AV501 we evaluated with a 1.8-GHz Pentium M 745 chip and half the RAM also earned a score of 82.
Where the M140 really shines is in battery life. The standard six-cell battery, which we did not test, is rated for about 4.5 hours. With an extended-life battery ($99 extra, but included in our price), the M140 lasted 6.8 hours, one of the best performances we’ve ever recorded for a notebook. This means you can have your entertainment cake and take it with you, too. Yum.
Upshot: With a great design, long battery life, and plenty of easy-to-use entertainment applications, Dell’s XPS M140 is an excellent Windows Media Center Edition portable.

Dell’s XPS M1710 is the notebook for the power desktop user who’s ready to go (sort of) mobile. Packed with high-performance hardware, it’s one of the fastest notebooks we’ve tested. But neither its price nor its weight is for the weak of heart.

Our shipping unit–priced at $3860–came with a 2.16-GHz Core Duo T2600 processor, 1GB of RAM, nVidia’s top-of-the-line 7900 GTX graphics chip (with 512MB of memory), a 100GB hard drive, and a DVD burner.

That’s a solid component list, and the M1710 put all that hardware to good use on our WorldBench 5 tests–its score of 106 tied with that of our previous top-performing power notebook, Alienware’s Aurora m7700.

The unit also did well in our Doom 3 and Half Life 2 gaming tests at 1280-by-1024 resolution with antialiasing and anisotropic filtering turned on, posting an impressive 88 and 113 frames per second in those respective games. I also fired up Bethesda’s Oblivion to run the system through its paces. This game, known for pushing even high-end desktop systems hard at its highest settings, ran very well on the M1710.

The unit’s battery life was less impressive, clocking in at just 2 hours and 33 minutes on one charge and earning only a Fair score compared with the battery life of other power notebooks we’ve recently tested. It underscores the fact that this 8.9-pound unit (10.6 pounds with its AC adapter) really is a desktop replacement.

One nice thing about a large chassis is the big screen that results, and this Dell’s crisp 17-inch display is the feature most likely to sell many users on the notebook. A wide-aspect panel with a whopping 1920-by-1200 resolution, it omits antiglare coating for a particularly sharp (if smudge-prone) picture. Sound, coming from two front-firing speakers and an integrated subwoofer, was good.

I found the keyboard pretty comfortable to use, although Dell should consider adding a separate numeric keypad (there’s plenty of real estate for one). The touchpad was responsive, and even lights up so you can see it at a dark LAN party.

The M1710 also won’t leave you wanting for ports. Six USB ports are scattered around the unit as well connections for gigabit ethernet, FireWire, headphones, and a mic. The plentiful video outputs include integrated S-video, VGA, and DVI, plus component video and S/PDIF digital-out using the included adapter. There’s also a five-in-one media card reader and an ExpressCard slot.

Dell hasn’t left much out of the M1710, and its high weight and price reflect that. However, if you’re a desktop user who’s put off buying a notebook for fear of giving up power, this notebook could be the one for you.

Upshot: Pricey giant-sized notebook offers processing and graphics power to spare plus a nice screen, but it’s not particularly mobile.