14 DAY TRIAL // They might not exactly be ultrabooks, but Dell's Inspiron 13z and 14z notebooks seem to have made a good enough impression that their maker decided they could use some refinements.
Dell's collection of Inspiron mobile personal computers is one that has been around for years and, naturally, growing all the time.
Of course, with new CPUs, memory products, video solutions and other things coming out periodically, it is only natural that such systems would be refined as well.
In this particular instance, it is the Inspiron 13z and the Inspiron 14z that have been given more up to date hardware options.
The former has an Intel Core processor of the Sandy bridge variety (second generation as it were) and a 13.3-inch display panel with a native resolution of 1,366 x 768 pixels (HD).
Up to 8 GB of RAM (random access memory) are present, plus 802.11 b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth, Ethernet and even USB 3.0 (SuperSpeed, 5 Gbps).
Furthermore, the spec sheet lists a hard disk drive (320 GB or 500 GB) an HD webcam, a 7-in-1 card reader and a 4-cell or 6-cell battery, plus the Windows 7 operating system and the Dell Stage user interface.
The Inspiron 14z has many things in common with its smaller sibling, down to the 8 GB of maximum RAM, though a few differences exist as well.
The most obvious one is the screen size (12 inches instead of 13.3 inches), but the 14z also has a higher capacity maximum (the HDD can be of 500 GB, 640 GB or 750 GB). One may also notice that the larger model has a DVD writer (the 13z lacks an ODD) and the option for a 9-cell battery.
Sales will commence shortly, if they aren't already underway, for $599.99 (14z) to $799.99. The other one is only available in some Asian countries, reportedly for $739.