Dell Inspiron 1545 15.6-Inch Jet Black Laptop – Up to 4 Hours 34 Minutes of Battery Life (Windows 7 Home Premium) Review
I have been using an ancient desktop computer for far too long, and to upgrade it would have been more trouble than it was worth. I had been looking into getting a laptop for quite a while, as I wanted something I could take to my band’s rehearsals to record demos and burn copies for my bandmates to work on songs. My father surprised me with the Inspiron 1545 for my birthday a month ago, and so far I have had little to no trouble with it whatsoever.
I have not really used this laptop for gaming much, but everything I have used it for works fast and flawlessly. I do a lot of photo editing, art, and music recording, and even when multitasking everything runs smoothly. I have also never had an error resulting in any loss of data (this should be a given, but coming from the machine I had been using, it is a blessing). I primarily use simple single-track audio recording, but I have also installed and on occasion have used professional multi-track recording software for writing and recording music at home (one track at a time), and it seems to run very well on this system. The built-in speakers aren’t the greatest quality, but I haven’t found many laptops that do have great speakers. It is also very easy to plug it into my HDTV in order to use an extended desktop, which is very convenient for programs like Photoshop.
This laptop is plenty powerful enough for the average user’s needs, and unless you’re looking to do a lot of PC gaming I don’t think you would need anything much more powerful. I did buy Spore and have played that a bit and it ran fine, but otherwise I cannot speak for its gaming capabilities. It would likely be sub-par for any graphics intensive games.
The only real complaint I have is that the touchpad occasionally seems to not want to respond properly. This is a rare occurrence, and taking my finger off of it for a few seconds usually seems to solve the problem, but it is very frustrating when it happens. Also, double-tapping the touchpad works as if you are holding the left-click (which I believe is standard), but it is far too sensitive and too easy to accidentally activate this feature. These are minor annoyances, but annoyances nonetheless and are primarily why I gave this product 4 stars instead of 5.
I have, fortunately, not had to deal with Dell’s customer service (and of course I hope that I will not have to) so I can’t speak for that aspect of the company. From what I have read they seem to have a growing reputation for poor customer service, but I will not subtract from my rating based on reputation. I will say that when I went to their site to download drivers I was recommended to try their download manager which did not work. Once you try to use this feature it will not give you the option to simply download the drivers directly until you delete your browser cookies. If they are able to over-complicate something as simple as downloading drivers (the most basic aspect of tech support) I shudder to think what I may have to deal with if real problems arise.
I feel that I should point out that it is difficult to judge any Windows-based PC by reading user reviews. I have read a good many reviews of laptops where the consumer is unhappy with the product due to crashes, slowdowns, slow startups or other problems after a couple weeks to a month or more of use, and more often that not those problems arise due to viruses/driver conflicts/general software problems and not a flaw in the hardware itself. Most people that aren’t very tech-savvy that have problems with a PC/laptop in the first couple months will immediately blame the hardware instead of their questionable browsing/downloading habits. Too many people don’t realize that having fifteen instant messengers, weatherbug, and other unneeded programs running at startup WILL cause it to take longer to start up. I recommend anyone reading user reviews on these types of things to keep that in mind.
To summarize, this laptop has been great for me thus far, and other than some minor quirks with the touchpad I have really had no problems to speak of. It starts up fast, I never have problems with slowdown even when multitasking with more demanding programs, and though I was hesitant about Windows 7 after the abomination that was Vista, I find myself absolutely loving it.
For the price, I would definitely recommend this laptop.
Dell Inspiron 1545 15.6-Inch Jet Black Laptop – Up to 4 Hours 34 Minutes of Battery Life (Windows 7 Home Premium) Feature
- 2.1GHz Intel Pentium Dual Core T4300 Processor
- 4GB Memory
- 250GB Hard Drive, DVD±R/RW Optical Drive
- 15.6″ Display, Integrated Intel 4500 MHD Media Accelerator Graphics
- Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit), *Up to 4 Hours 34 Minutes of Battery Life
Dell Inspiron 1545 15.6-Inch Jet Black Laptop – Up to 4 Hours 34 Minutes of Battery Life (Windows 7 Home Premium) Overview
Meet the Inspiron 15 — a 15.6-Inch laptop computer for your everyday needs. With an attractive, stylish design and mobile technology, this laptop features everything you want for everyday computing. The Inspiron 15 offers a modern black palmrest. Not to mention Intel Core 2 Duo processors, a Dell Dock and optional facial recognition software, all at a value within reach. *Based on Dell Lab testing. Battery life varies by configuration, operating conditions and other factors. Maximum battery capacity decreases with time and use.
Dell Inspiron 1545 15.6-Inch Jet Black Laptop – Up to 4 Hours 34 Minutes of Battery Life (Windows 7 Home Premium) Specifications
Stay connected wherever you roam with the Dell Inspiron 1545 laptop in black, which features a bright, vivid 15.6-inch LCD screen and long-lasting 6-cell battery. Weighing just under 6 pounds, it’s a great choice for both work and play with the screen’s high-definition resolution and included DVD drive (which can also burn dual-layer DVD and CD media). You’ll enjoy dual-core productivity from its 2.1 GHz Intel Pentium T4300 processor for excellent multitasking.
Learn more about Windows 7 Home Premium below. |
The Dell Inspiron 1545 in black. |
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Pre-installed with the Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium operating system (64-bit version), you’ll be able to easily create a home network and share all of your favorite photos, videos, and music. Windows 7 is the easiest, fastest, and most engaging version of Windows yet. Better ways to find and manage files, like Jump Lists and improved taskbar previews, help you speed through everyday tasks. Windows 7 is designed for faster and more reliable performance, so your PC just works the way you want it to. (Learn more about Windows 7 Home Premium below.)
Other features include a 250 GB hard drive, 4 GB of installed RAM, 54g Wi-Fi networking, 7-in-1 memory card reader, ExpressCard 34 slot, Intel GMA 4500MHD graphics with video memory shared with the system, and pre-loaded Microsoft Works.
Key Features
- 15.6-inch Glossy Widescreen Display with 1366 x 768-pixel resolution (Learn more)
- Windows 7 Home Premium makes it easy to create a home network and share all of your favorite photos, videos, and music. And you can watch shows for free when and where you want with Internet TV on Windows Media Center. Get the best entertainment experience with Windows 7 Home Premium. (Learn more)
- Get more features with Windows Anytime Upgrade. It’s the best way to add features to Windows 7, takes as few as ten minutes, requires no software or downloads, and you’ll keep your existing programs, files, and settings. Windows will walk you through the simple upgrade process.
- 2.1 GHz Intel Pentium T4300 dual-core processor (Learn more)
- 250 GB hard drive
- 4 GB of installed RAM with 800 MHz speed (maximum capacity)
- Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD graphics with up to 1750 MB of dynamically shared memory allocated by the system (Learn more)
- 1.3 megapixel webcam with facial recognition software automatically secures your computer when you’re away. This software adapts to your changing looks so you can expect faster login times. Also, there’s no need to remember numerous passwords for password-protected Web sites.
- 8x multi-format DVD drive supports reading/writing of CD-R/RW, DVD±R, DVD±RW, DVD±R DL, and DVD-RAM
- 54g Wi-Fi networking (802.11b/g)
- Fast Ethernet (10/100)
- Built-in stereo speakers
- Pre-loaded software includes Microsoft Works 9.0 for word processing and spreadsheet work and McAfee SecurityCenter for anti-virus protection (with 30 days of updates)
- Dell Dock: Enjoy a cleaner desktop with this application organizer. Installed software applications on your PC are automatically sorted into user-friendly categories placing your most frequently used programs front and center.
- Dell DataSafe Online backup service offers data protection by enabling customers to back up data to a safe, remote storage site using a broadband connection. Dell DataSafe Online is easy, flexible and secure. After setup, it will automatically back up data and help protect against software, hardware and catastrophic failure.
- With Dell Remote Access you can easily access photos, music, movies and more on your home system using another Internet-connected computer.
- Dell Support Center: This centrally located, easy-to-use application provides personalized support resources. Conveniently located on your PC’s desktop with quick links to service, support and system resources. Helps keep your system up-to-date and running efficiently through automated fixes for common configuration issues.
- 6-cell battery
- Dimensions: 14.7 x 9.6 x 1.5 inches (WxDxH)
- Weight: 5.8 pounds
- Warranty: One-year with 24×7 technical support
Networking, Connectivity & Expansion
This notebook has an integrated 54g wireless LAN that’s fully compatible with 802.11b/g wireless networks as well as Fast (10/100) Ethernet networking. It also includes a next-generation ExpressCard card slot (replacing the PCMCIA slot), which lets you take advantage of thinner, faster, and lighter expansion cards for even more advanced wireless, networking, storage, and security features. It comes with the following external connectors:
- 3 USB 2.0 ports for connecting a wide range of peripherals–from digital cameras to MP3 players
- Analog video output: 1 VGA
- 1 ExpressCard/34 slot
- 7-in-1 memory card reader compatible with Secure Digital, Secure Digital High Capacity, Memory Stick, Memory Stick PRO, and more
- 1 headphone jack, 1 microphone jack
- RJ-45 port for Ethernet
What’s in the Box
This package contains the Dell Inspiron 1545 notebook PC, rechargeable lithium-ion battery, AC adapter, and operating instructions
Learn More
15.6-Inch High-Definition Display
This notebook has a 15.6-inch TFT display with a resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels (native 720p for high-definition viewing). It also provides TrueLife high-gloss/anti-reflective technology, which features a sharp contrast finish that’s well suited to immersive 3D games and watching videos. Its widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio is designed to present websites without lots of left-right scrolling, as well as with a smoother line of sight. Video is powered by the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD, which uses shared video memory (up to 1750 MB allocated from the system memory). This graphics card is built with Intel Clear Video technology, which delivers clearer, more detailed images by eliminating many of the jagged edges and video artifacts seen when viewing interlaced content and features powerful color control to ensure videos are not too dark, overly bright, or washed out.
Windows 7 Home Premium makes it easy to create a home network and share all of your favorite photos, videos, and music. You can even watch, pause, rewind, and record TV. Get the best entertainment experience with Windows 7 Home Premium.
| Simplify everyday tasks | Work the way you want | Make new things possible |
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Jump Lists
New in Windows 7, Jump Lists take you right to the documents, pictures, songs, or websites you turn to each day. To open a Jump List, just right-click a program icon on the Windows 7 taskbar. (You’ll also find them on the Start menu.) What you see in a Jump List depends entirely on the program. The Jump List for Internet Explorer 8 shows frequently-viewed websites. Windows Media Player 12 lists commonly-played tunes. Your Jump List missing a favorite? You can “pin” whatever files you like there. Jump Lists don’t just show shortcuts to files. Sometimes they also provide quick access to commands for things like composing new e‑mail messages or playing music.
Improved Windows Taskbar
In Windows 7 you can “pin” favorite programs anywhere on the taskbar for easy access. Not crazy about the icon lineup? Now you can rearrange them any way you like by clicking and dragging. Finally, there are new ways to preview windows. Point to a taskbar icon to see a thumbnail preview of open files or programs. Then, move your mouse over a thumbnail to preview the window full-screen. You can even close windows from the thumbnail previews–a big time saver.
Snap
Ever need to cut through a cluttered desktop and quickly focus on a single window? Just click a pane and give your mouse a shake. Every open window except that one instantly disappears. Jiggle again–and your windows are back.
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Dual-Core Pentium Power
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Ready to move up to a dual-core? This Intel Pentium processor-based PC is a good place to start. The Intel Pentium processor is the fast dual-core that lets you surf the web and run multiple applications simultaneously. So you can browse, IM, download music or transfer photos all at once. And use office applications, too.
With the 2.1 GHz Intel Pentium T4300 dual-core processor, you’ll be able to perform multiple tasks such as digital rendering and gaming all while running virus scan or other background tasks seamlessly. And its Intel 64 architecture is also ready for tomorrow’s 64-bit applications, and offers enhanced performance through improved virtual memory. It has a 1 MB L2 cache and an 800 MHz front-side bus (FSB). (An L2, or secondary, cache temporarily stores data; and a larger L2 cache can help speed up your system’s performance. The FSB carries data between the CPU and RAM, and a faster front-side bus will deliver better overall performance.)
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*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Jan 19, 2010 06:24:48
