Dell Inspiron 14z: Good without going overboard

MANILA, Philippines - First a riddle: What is black when you buy it and red when you use it?

The answer is charcoal, although you could say the same thing about the Dell Inspiron 14z, which is available in an obsidian black chassis that can be switched to cherry red for a little more money.

The Dell Inspiron 14z, with its red face on, is one sleek notebook that looks really nice inside and out. At 13.4 by 9.5 by 1.1 inches, it gives the user a 14-inch widescreen HD WVGA display, a DVD+-R dual-layer optical drive, and a four- to nine-cell battery.

Having an optical drive brings the 14z’s weight to 4.4 pounds, which is a little heavier than most 14-inch notebook computer models that usually weigh four pounds or less.

But users who hate using a detachable optical drive probably won’t mind this extra weight in exchange for the convenience of having a ready CD drive when they need it.

The Dell Inspiron 14z used for this review runs on a 1.30 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo SU7300 processor with a 3GB of memory, 4 GB of DDR3 RAM (supports up to 6 GB), a 320 GB 7200 RPM hard drive, an Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X4500HD with 512MB of video RAM, and Windows Vista Home Premium 64-Bit OS. Dell resellers with stores in major commercial malls retail this machine for P51,499.

A stylish notebook computer, the 14z features a silver wristpad that extends on the sides to elegantly frame the black, spacious keypad.

Instead of the usual yellow, green or blue light used to signify that the notebook is on, Dell used a tiny white light that goes well with the silver wristpad and the well-designed black keyboard, which would have been even better if it were backlit, so you could type in low light.

There’s hardly anything to complain about the 14z’s LED backlight display, though. At 1366 x 768 pixels, the 14z’s display resolution is bright and crisp, making it attractive for watching videos in widescreen format.

However, it would be best to use a notebook raiser to free up the sound coming from the 14z’s stereo speakers situated underneath the wristpad. Some users might be bothered by this little audio detail as well as the fact that the glossy chassis — be it black or red — captures fingerprints that are visible at certain angles.

Other than these two minor downsides, the Dell Inspiron 14z is a very good machine without going overboard. Although it’s neither a multimedia nor a gaming workhorse like the Dell Studio notebook, the Inspiron 14z won’t disappoint when used for productivity apps, Web browsing and running applications that are not so speed- or power-hungry.

What it lacks in superior performance it makes up for in outstanding battery life and a bevy of built-in accessories. Dell rates battery life at five hours for the four-cell battery, to 8.5 hours with the six-cell battery, and close to 12 hours using a fully charged nine-cell battery.

The Dell Inspiron 14z comes with a 1.3-megapixel integrated Web camera, dual microphones, HDMI and VGA outputs, 802.11 a/b/g/draft-N wireless LAN and Gigabit Ethernet LAN connections, optional Bluetooth 2.0, three USB 2.0 ports, and a seven-in-one media card reader.

The Dell Inspiron 14z is ideal for college students and professionals who want a reliable computer with median features in a modish package. In short, it’s one notebook computer that takes the riddle from everyday computing by providing straightforward performance in black and white... or red.