Dell Inspiron Mini 9 Reviewed: Refining the Netbook Market
by Anand Lal Shimpi on September 4, 2008 12:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Laptops
Typing Speed: Tested
I decided to do an informal test of typing speed on these netbooks to see exactly how much you give up by going to the smaller, awkwardly laid out keyboard. I went to typingtest.com and tested myself on all five typing tests, averaged the results and compiled them here:
| Average Net Speed over 5 Tests | Average Accuracy over 5 Tests | Peak Speed / Accuracy | |
| Apple Al Keyboard (Reference) | 106.8 wpm | 97.8% | 118 wpm / 99% |
| ASUS Eee PC 901 (Run 1) | 92 wpm | 95% | 100 wpm / 96% |
| Dell Inspiron Mini (Run 1) | 81.4 wpm | 95.2% | 96 wpm / 100% |
| ASUS Eee PC 901 (Run 2) | 87.8 wpm | 95.4% | 103 wpm / 98% |
| Dell Inspiron Mini (Run 2) | 91.2 wpm | 97.8% | 104 wpm / 100% |
My reference was the standard Apple aluminum keyboard I type most of my articles on. I netted just under 107 wpm with an average accuracy of 97.8%. I only did one pass on the Apple keyboard but two on the Mini and Eee PC; I figured I was most used to the Apple keyboard and I could use a few more tries with the two netbooks.
On the first run through all five tests my speed on the Mini wasn't anywhere near as good as on the Eee PC, but accuracy was slightly higher. My peak accuracy was higher on the Dell, while my peak speed was higher on the Eee PC.
The second run switched things for me. My scores improved dramatically on the Mini, and dropped slightly on the Eee. Accuracy on both improved however, it seems like I was trying to be more patient on the Eee PC and as a result dropped my speed a bit.
At the end of the day it looks like either of these netbooks let's me type at around 80 - 85% the speed of me on my desktop, which isn't bad but it's slow enough for me to be frustrated if I'm trying to do real work on them. I wrote parts of this article on the Mini and I've written things on the Eee PC as well; while I can do it, I prefer not to. None of this data should be surprising, I'm just trying to convey the idea that you shouldn't try to use the Mini for something it's not intended for: typing out novels or really long reviews of netbooks.
What We Need: Predictive Text Entry on Netbooks
Perspective is important, so I took advantage of the fact that I've got a friend (let's call him Ben) who spends parts of his days playing around in my lab while I work.
I sat Ben in front of the Inspiron Mini and the Eee PC. His hands are a bit bigger than mine and I wanted to see how well he could do on the same typing tests I was running. On a standard keyboard he was averaging between 70 and 80 words per minute, shifting to the Eee PC and he was down in the single digits, eventually giving up. He said the keyboard was simply too small for him to use. I asked him to try the Dell and while he could only muster around 20 words per minute on the Mini's keyboard, he felt it was at least workable. The Eee PC in his mind was too cramped, and while the funny apostrophe key location on the Dell was annoying, he could use it. What followed however was the best suggestion I'd heard about one of these devices: it needs predictive text input.
When Apple set off to develop the iPhone it also came up with a fairly ingenious way of predicting user text input. The virtual keyboard on the iPhone is small, but the software can look at the keys you're hitting and at least guess at what letters you may have meant to hit based on a combination of word-length and the letters surrounding the one you actually hit. Using this data, the iPhone can figure out what you may have wanted to type and correct it accordingly. Apple assumes you're going to make typing errors and attempts to figure out what you meant to type - when you don't have the flexibility of a full hardware keyboard, use the software to make up for it.
I think Ben may be onto something here, the true potential in these netbooks lies in the user interface. If you try and use the Mini as a standard notebook or desktop you'll be sorely disappointed, but combined with an easy to use application launcher interface it all of the sudden becomes quite acceptable. It's what I've been arguing for years: in order to work in a new form factor/usage model, you need a new UI. Microsoft figured this out with Media Center and yet we've seen most companies (MS included) forget this lesson in nearly everything mobile, Apple being the exception.
Whether it comes from the open source community or from someone like Dell, what these < 9" netbooks need aside from a good keyboard is good predictive text software. The standard QWERTY keyboard layout hasn't really changed, we know where the keys are supposed to be, if we mess up because they aren't there on a cramped netbook keyboard, we need software to make the appropriate adjustments on the fly; it's a much better alternative than just having to put up with cramped keyboards.
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rowcroft - Thursday, September 4, 2008 - link
I have an Acer Aspire 1 - $349 for the 120GB HDD, XP (need it for WWAN card), 1GB RAM, but no bluetooth.Still, I think it's a much more compelling offer than either this or the Asus and suggest you get one to evaluate.
strikeback03 - Thursday, September 4, 2008 - link
I think that picture at the bottom of the first page shows why I hate glossy screens.What I am waiting for is someone to come out with a device that falls somewhere between an Epson P5000 and an Archos 5" internet tablet. Run a real OS, have a decent sized hard drive for music and photo downloads, multiple card readers, touchscreen, and the ability to go on the internet occasionally if it is around. Closest netbook is the Wind or possibly the Lenovo it would seem, but I wouldn't plan on typing enough to need a real keyboard.
prophet001 - Thursday, September 4, 2008 - link
seriously, 118 wpm? how in the world did you get that fast? i've been typing everyday for 6 years and I can't type that fast. Any tips?preslove - Thursday, September 4, 2008 - link
I'm torn now between betting the Dell Mini 9 or the EEE pc 1000H. There really isn't any reason to buy EEE 901, since it is more expensive than the 1000H, which is $549.99, and is only .8 pounds lighter. The 1000H has a much roomier keyboard that is supposedly closer to a "real" notebook's keyboard than a netbook.Two major advantages of the 1000H over the Dell, though, are that it comes with an 80 gig hd and a 6 cell battery. Also it comes with 1 gig of Ram standard.
Adding all the options to the Dell, Win XP, ram upgrade, camera upgrade, and bluetooh and it adds up to $494. That's $65 less than the 1000H, which has a better keyboard and a good sized hard drive, but is about a pound heavier.
I wish these two were in stores so I could compare the weight and keyboards, as that would probably help be choose.
One question: Can the Mini accept a 2 gig stick of Ram?
tayhimself - Thursday, September 4, 2008 - link
Yes 2 GB RAM interest here too. The Acer Aspire looks good to me as well.JarredWalton - Thursday, September 4, 2008 - link
10" netbooks actually start to become viable as a full-time laptop... almost. I'm not Ben, but I'm right with him in terms of typing on these things. I draw the line of comfort at 13.3" notebooks. Predictive typing would help some, but with the width of my shoulders I still end up feeling cramped on anything smaller. (Why can't I get a natural keyboard on a laptop? LOL)However, the above said, 10" is still small and I think too many people are looking at these as a full notebook/desktop replacement rather than a mobile device that supplements regular computer use. 2GB RAM and 80GB HDDs... and then next we'll need faster CPUs and discrete GPUs, and an optical drive, and.... It's a slippery slope, and I think you should either get a real notebook (13.3" or larger - or 12.1" if you don't mind the smaller keyboards) or understand that the netbook is not supposed to be a full notebook and use it as intended. For $350, the Dell Mini looks extremely promising.
n0nsense - Thursday, September 4, 2008 - link
I think the perfect one should be:1. Little bit more powerful processor (Atom dual core or AMD X2)
2. More advanced chipset (less heat more graphics performance and output options) which will allow playback of 1080p on TV.
3. Normal 2.5" HDD/SDD options for upgrade.
4. I would like touchscreen (multi touch is even better)
The rest i think is very close to be perfect.
The reason is for all this more performance is:
Try to listen to some last.fm radio on the web + some fullscreen flash web page or game.
And yes, i know, all this "more" will kill more expensive notebooks.
psychobriggsy - Friday, September 5, 2008 - link
1) Yes, a dual-core Atom would be nice, but it is already multi-threaded (whoa, what's up with this text box, it's gone all funky!)1b) AMD (soon will) have a 22W 1.5GHz X2. I don't know how much power it uses when PowerNow! is enabled, but AMD need to get a standard Athlon 64 out first that has PowerNow! ranges starting from 400MHz at very low voltage first. They do have a 15W Athlon 64 coming out soon as well.
2) This is the most important aspect, and where all the Atom netbooks are failing right now. It's almost criminal.
3) Really unimportant, these are mobile companions. Bet Palm feels stupid in cancelling the Foleo, when it turns out that form factor is what people want.
4) That Dell Linux interface would be perfect for touchscreen.
JarredWalton - Friday, September 5, 2008 - link
You do know that Atom N270 is like 1.5W TDP, right? http://download.intel.com/design/processor/datasht...">Reference A 22W 1.5GHz X2 would use over 10X as much power as the N270. The problem right now is the chipset; we need Poulsbo.psychobriggsy - Friday, September 5, 2008 - link
And the multi-threaded Atom is 2.5W, and the 64-bit Atom is 4W, and the dual-core Atom will be 8W.Also Paulsbo will suck, it's designed for MIDs, maybe the netbooks will be okay with it, but barely. It's a 130nm chip so however cool running the process they are using, it's limiting the clock speed of the GPU, and the number of features it can have.
AMD have an 8W Athlon 64 already, and in reviews the platform consumes less power and outperforms Atom - in a desktop scenario.