Dell Slides Into the Netbook Market with the Inspiron Mini 9

After months of rumors and speculation, Dell is finally coming clean with its netbook. The 8.9-inch Dell Inspiron Mini 9 is officially on the market as of today and can be ordered now from Dell.com. Before purchasing you will want to check out our full review and hands-on video. We will also be showing off the new Dell netbook in a live webcast at 3 p.m. ET today.

The 9.1 x 6.7 x 1.25-inch and 2.2-pound mini-notebook will be configurable on Dell’s site and is available in both black and white. Initially the netbook will come with Microsoft Windows XP. However, a version with Dell’s tailored version of Ubuntu preloaded will be available later this month.

The starting price on Dell’s Linux configuration starts at $349 and comes with a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom processor, 4GB SSD, 512MB of RAM and no webcam (a .3 MP webcam is available for $15 and a 1.3 MP cam for $25). The Windows XP configuration starts at $399 and includes an Atom processor, 8GB SSD, 512MB of RAM and a .3 MP webcam.

Dell is only offering a 4-cell battery on the systems at the launch of the product. In addition, only solid state drives are available in 4GB, 8GB, and 16 GB. For those that feel constrained by the limited solid state space, Dell has teamed up with Box.net to offer 2GB of free web based storage.

The system has a decently sized keyboard and solid sized trackpad with two dedicated mouse buttons underneath it. See our review for our impressions of both. Dell has worked in all the important ports. The netbook includes 802.11b/g , a LAN connection and VGA-out. It has three USB ports, mic and headphone jacks, and a 4-in-1 card reader. Bluetooth and the aforementioned choice of a .3 or 1.3 MP webcam are options available on the Dell site.

Dell has also teamed up with a slew of accessory companies to create “Designed for Dell” products. We don’t know much about the accessories that have been tailored for the Inspiron Mini, but there is a a cool carrying case from Timbuktu. See the pictures in the gallery below; they seem pretty sleek.

Dell Inspiron Mini – Starting Specs w/ Linux ($349)
Intel Atom Processor N270 (1.6GHz)
512GB – 1 DIMM (DDR2)
4GB SSD
Ubuntu 8.04 with custom Dell interface
8.9-Inch (1024×600) Display WSVGA LCD
Wireless 802.11g Mini Card
4-in-1 Media Card Reader
4 cell battery
No Webcam
Support Center; 1 year limited warranty

Dell Inspiron Mini – Starting at Specs w/ XP ($399):
Intel Atom Processor N270 (1.6GHz)
512GB – 1 DIMM (DDR2)
8GB SSD
Windows XP Home SP3
8.9 Inch Display WSVGA TL LCD
Wireless 802.11g Mini Card
4-in-1 Media Card Reader
4 cell battery
Includes .3 MP Webcam
Support Center; 1 year limited warranty