Dell Inspiron 8200 Pentium 4-M 2.0GHz

Conclusion

Dell did not become the world's leading supplier of computers by producing sub par products or providing poor services. The company got where they are today by creating and selling powerful and attractive computers. The Dell Inspiron 8200 is only one example of the many quality solutions that Dell provides.

As a desktop replacement system, a loaded Dell Inspiron 8200 is among the best if not the best available. The power of system proved to be extremely impressive, rivaling the speed of desktops in many instances. Features such as the UltraSharp UXGA LCD display, fast processor options, and powerful video solutions, make the Inspiron 8200 the most able notebook system we have seen to date. We could easily see it acting as a full time desktop and a part time notebook.

We only have a two complaints about the Inspiron 8200. First, let's tackle the trivial complaint; a complaint that revolved around the styling of the Inspiron 8200. The design of the Inspiron series notebooks has changed very little in the past few years and we think it is high time for an upgrade. Although functional, the black plastic case is not very visually pleasing and reminds us of early IBM ThinkPad systems. The bulky lines and sharp angles on the system make it seem less like a state of the art computer and more like an aged one. Hopefully Dell has some new design plans for the Inspiron 8200's successor.

The second complaint we had about the Inspiron 8200 is less of a complaint and more of a warning for those out there considering the system. Although a notebook, the Inspiron 8200 is not very portable. Weighing in at over 8 pounds with both batteries installed, the Inspiron 8200 is not easy to take from point A to point B. Do not expect to be able to throw it in a bag and be on your way carefree. If the size of the Inspiron 8200 along your back doesn't get you, the weight it puts on your shoulders will. A thin-and-light system: no. An extremely powerful desktop replacement notebook: yes. It would be hard to be dissatisfied with the Inspiron 8200 if it served as a desktop system that traveled occasionally.

We would like to make one recommendation for those who may think that the Inspiron 8200 is for you: spend the extra money to deck the system out. In its base configuration the Inspiron 8200 is nice but offers few advantages over smaller and lighter systems from other manufacturers. Do yourself a favor and spend the extra money to go with at least the Mobility Radeon 9000 ($149 option), a 5400RPM hard drive (approximately a $100 option), 256MB of memory (a $75 option), and a a fairly fast processor (the 2.0GHz is a $150 option). If you really want to have the nicest system possible, spend the extra $180 to go with the UltraSharp display (especially if you will not be using an external monitor) and a $99 extra battery for exceptional battery life. The high-end options that the Inspiron 8200 offers is the quality of the system that makes it so impressive. We can assure you that the extra money spent now will be well worth it down the road.

With a fully equipped Inspiron 8200, who needs a desktop? Even the occasional or somewhat frequent gamer may apply.