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By Dan Ackerman, CNET.com
Feb 18, 2008

With a complete top-to-bottom revamp of Dell's entire laptop line in mid-2007, why the need for a new mainstream model so soon? While the current 14-inch Inspiron 1420 hits the size/features/performance sweet spot, and the high-end XPS M1330 and the XPS M1530 are slick, thin 13- and 15-inch models, respectively, the middle-of-the-road Inspiron 1520 was always a little too big and clunky for its own good. When compared with the 14-inch version, Dell's basic 15-inch Inspiron--long the bread and butter of the company's consumer laptop line--got lost in the shuffle, offering a small increase in screen size but at the expense of a larger, more unwieldy chassis.

Editors' note : This review is based on tests done by our sister site CNET.com. As such, please note that there may be slight differences in the testing procedure and ratings system. For more information on the actual tests conducted on the product, please inquire directly at the site where the article was originally published. References made to some of other products in this review may not be available or applicable in Asia. Please check directly with your local distributor for details.

Design

Dell's taken these points to heart, and the company has reworked the 1520 in the form of the Inspiron 1525. It's a smaller, lighter version of the previous 15-inch Inspiron 1520. However, after getting used to the brushed metal of the XPS M1530 (which itself starts at S$2,399 (US$1,686.11)), the new Inspiron 1525 has a somewhat cheap plastic feel, and we're not sure how much abuse it would stand up to on the road. But for a laptop that starts at only S$1,199 (US$842.70), it offers a lot of bang for your buck, including an HDMI output and touch-sensitive media controls, which are solid extras for a budget laptop. Our review unit bumps the specs up and includes a T7250 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU and 2GB of RAM for about a still reasonable S$1,523 (US$1,070.42)--but within Dell's crowded laptop lineup, you may still prefer the smaller 14-inch 1420 model, or the slightly more expensive (but much nicer-looking) XPS M1530.

With the upgraded Inspiron 1525 (hey, nobody ever accused these guys of being too creative in the naming department), Dell has managed to shave a little bulk off of the system--it's about 30 percent thinner and roughly 200g lighter than the 1520 model it replaces--and the smaller chassis leaves less dead space on the keyboard tray.

The keyboard is the same full-size model found on Dell's other Inspiron and XPS laptops. While the keyboard is not our favorite because of its tapered keys that may not offer enough surface area for chubby fingers, its feels solid and responsive. Above the keyboard sits a row of media control buttons. These are of the touch-sensitive variety we're partial to, and the Inspiron 1525 is the cheapest laptop we've seen those on yet. An additional quick-launch button is also above the keyboard for starting Dell's proprietary multimedia management software, but chances are you'll stick with more established programs such as Windows Media Center or iTunes. Our review unit also had the optional 2-megapixel Webcam built into the display.

Features

The 15.4-inch widescreen LCD display offers a 1,280 x 800 native resolution, which is standard for a screen this size. Our display was glossy as is common on consumer laptops (they make for a better video viewing experience), but an anti-glare option is available at no extra charge. We typically see matte screens on business systems and generally prefer them rather than trying to fight the glare from our desk lamp or sunlit window.

The Inspiron 1525 offers all of the ports and connections you'll probably need, but in typical Dell fashion, some items are extra cost addons. For example, the 802.11n Wi-Fi radio is an extra S$97.37. While our S$1,523 (US$1,070.42) review unit was a perfectly capable dual-core system, what exactly do you get for the S$1,199 (US$842.70) base price? The lowest-end components consist of a Pentium Dual-Core CPU, Vista Basic, a 120GB hard drive (same size as the MacBook Air) and only 1GB of RAM. Upgrading to 2GB of RAM is only S$93.09 (US$65.43), and adding an Intel Core 2 Duo T5450 is S$62.06 (US$43.62)--we would call that the bare minimum for a usable laptop.

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