The Dell Inspiron Mini 12 was never exactly a speed demon. But it was one of the first 11-12 inch mini-laptops with an Atom processor. It was also one of the first products that really stretched the idea of netbooks. On the one hand, it was larger than a netbook. On the other it was priced and specced pretty much like one.

If you’re wondering why I keep referring to the Mini 12 in the past tense, it’s because Dell appears to have removed the laptop from its web store. The move isn’t a big surprise. In fact, Dell removed the Mini 12 from its Australian web site in June, the same month the company phased out the 9-inch Inspiron Mini 9.

It’s likely that Dell will introduce a low cost 11.6 inch laptop to replace the Mini 12 soon, perhaps after Windows 7 is released in October.

Update: Dell has confirmed that the Mini 12 has been discontinued, although it’s still available from the Dell Outlet store.

Dell may be preparing to phase out the Inspiron Mini 12. The Mini 12 was arguably the first mini-notebook to blur the line between a netbook and full sized notebook. Like a typical netbook, it sports a low power Intel Atom CPU and a low price tag. But it has a 12 inch, 1280 x 800 pixel display making it larger than most netbooks.

Last week Dell announced that it’s 9 inch Inspiron Mini 9 had reached its end of life. Now APC Magazine reports that the Mini 12 is quickly following suite. The Inspiron Mini 12 has been pulled down from the company’s Australian web site. While it’s still available from the US store right now, the computer is also missing from the UK, Hong Kong, and Singapore stores, which seems to be in keeping with a product roadmap that was leaked to the press earlier this year.

That same roadmap indicates that we should see an 11.6 inch laptop with a CULV processor from Dell soon.

The Dell Inspiron Mini 12 had a low power Intel Atom Z5xx series CPU, GMA 500 graphics, and wasn’t exactly known as a speed demon. But it was one of the first 11-12 inch laptops with an Atom processor, and you could make the case that it led other computer makers to follow suit expanding the definition of a netbook. What do you think? Will you miss the Mini 12? Did you ever own one? Let us know about it in the comments.

The Samsung NC20 laptop may look a lot like the company’s popular Samsung NC10 netbook. But it’s a lot bigger. I suppose that should be expected when you’re comparing a computer with a 12 inch screen to one with a 10 inch display. But just case you needed any proof, the folks at Netbook News.de have done a little photoshoot comparing the two laptops. They even threw in a Dell Inspiron Mini 12 (with a 12 inch screen) for good measure.

For what it’s worth, the Samsung NC20 looks a little smaller than the Dell laptop. And both machines are probably a lot smaller and lighter than whatever 15.4 inch beast you’ve been lugging around for the last few years. But they’re certainly no netbooks

The thing is, while the Dell laptop offers performance that’s on par with what you’d expect from a low power netbook, the Samsung offers more than just a larger display and keyboard. It also has a VIA Nano CPU which offers a bit more processing power than the Intel Atom CPU used in most netbooks. So while the machine costs more, weighs more, and takes up more space in your bag than a 10 inch model, you also get a bit more bang for your buck.

What do you think? Would you buy a 12 inch laptop for the screen size alone? Or does performance make a difference, even in ultraportables?

The new Intel Atom N280 isn’t the only new netbook processor in town. While Intel is just starting to ship it’s latest low power chip, competitor VIA is reportedly shipping a whole bunch of Nano processors for Samsung’s new NC20 notebook.

The Samsung NC20 is a 12.1 inch notebook that will be a bit more powerful, but which will also draw more energy than the company’s popular NC10 netbook. And according to DigiTimes, VIA could ship as many as 200,000 Nano U225 processors for the NC20 during Q1, 2009. That might not be a mind-blowing number for Intel, but for a smaller company like VIA, it’s a pretty good number. VIA is also working with a number of Chinese companies to put the Nano processor in netbooks and larger laptops that may or may not ever find their way to the west.

The NC20 isn’t availble in the US yet, but it is available for preorder in the UK from dabs.

As an interesting side note, DigiTimes says that Dell “has decided to suspend shipments” of its 12 inch model, the Inspiron Mini 12. This is the first I’d heard of Dell discontinuing that model. You can still order an Inspiron Mini 12 from Dell’s web site, but if DigiTimes is right, they might not be around much longer.

via SammyNetbook

Dell has slashed $50 from the price of its Dell Inspiron Mini 9n Laptop Computer, bringing the base price down to $299. This model comes with a 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 CPU, an 8.9 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel display, a 4GB solid state drive, 512MB of RAM and Dell’s custom version of Ubuntu 8.04.1 Linux.

Only the black model is available at this price. You have to pay extra if you want a red, white, or pink netbook. Extra RAM or storage space are also available for a fee, as is Bluetooth or an optional webcam.

Dell has also reduced the base price of the Inspiron Mini 12. You can pick up a 12 inch Inspiron with Ubuntu Linux for $399. The cheapest model with Windows Vista or XP will set you back at least $449.

I’ve updated the list of 13 netbooks for $399 or less to reflect the price drop, as well as a $10 drop in the base price for the HP Mini 1000.

thanks Dan!

Dell has begun offering the Inspiron Mini 12 mini-laptop with Windows XP as an option. When Dell launched the not-quite-a-netbook a few months back, it was only available with Windows Vista. Now you can pick up an Ubuntu model with a starting price of $499 or a version running either Windows XP Home Edition or Windows Vista Home Basic for a starting price of $549.

According to Laptop Magazine, the computer is much zippier when running Windows XP than Vista. While some netbooks with Intel Atom N270 processors perform perfectly well with Windows Vista, the Dell Inspiron Mini 12 uses a slower Intel Atom Z530 CPU which seems to struggle with Vista.

via Laptop Magazine

When Laptop Magazine reviewed the Dell Inspiron Mini 12 a few weeks ago, the magazine concluded that the hardware was decent, but that the system performance was substandard thanks in large part to Windows Vista operating system that Dell slapped on the cheap subnotebook (I’m going to refrain from calling a 12 inch notebook a netbook).

It’s worth noting that the Dell Inspiron Mini 12 also uses a different version of the Intel Atom processor than the Dell Inspiron Mini 9, but it turns out that many of the problems can be associated with the OS, not the CPU. How do we know? Because when the folks at Laptop Magazine wiped Windows Vista and replaced it with Windows XP, the notebook ran better.

Laptop Magazine reports that the computer boots faster and that programs seem more responsive. Multitasking performance was also better.

Installing Windows XP is a little tricky since Dell doesn’t actually sell the Dell Inspiron Mini 12 with Windows XP yet, and therefore hasn’t posted any drivers to its website. Still, if you load Windows XP using a USB disc drive or by trying to load the installer onto a USB flash disk, you can get most of the drivers working by using the Dell Inspiron Mini 9 drivers.

The Dell Inspiron Mini 9 and Dell Inspiron Mini 12 aren’t the most unattractive netbooks around. But the fact that the mini-laptops were only available in black and white did make them feel a bit drab when compared to more colorful options from companies like Lenovo and Acer. Now it looks like Dell is ready to take the lead in the color wars. A few days ago the company added red and pink options for Japanese customers. Now those colors and 5 more dramatic designs are available in the US as well.

You’ll have to pay an extra $25 to get your Dell Inspiron Mini in “cherry red” or “pretty pink.” And designer stickers from artist Tristan Eaton will set you back $50. That’s a lot of money when you’re talking about a laptop with a starting price of $349. But Dell’s got to make money somehow, right?

via Electronista (which has photos of the five new designs)

The Dell Inspiron Mini 12 laptop is now available for order in the US, with prices ranging from around $549 to $649.

The base model comes with a 1.33GHz Intel Atom Z520 CPU, 1GB of RAM, a 40GB HDD, and a 3 cell, 24Whr battery. For $599, you get a faster 1.6GHz Intel Atom Z530 CPU, a 60GB HDD, and a 6 cell, 48Whr battery. The $649 version has an 80GB hard drive and a 2 year warranty (the cheaper models come with a 1 year warranty).

All three models have 12.1 inch displays, which makes the Mini 12 small for a laptop, but a bit large for a netbook. They also all run Windows Vista Home Basic, although they’re certainly capable of running Windows XP, or pretty much any flavor of Linux  that you’d care to install.

via Electronista

This is why I’ve never been a fan of the word netbook. Call them Liliputers; call them cheap subnotebooks; call them what you will. But the computers I’ve been most interested in for the last year or two have weighed about 3 pounds or less, had 10 inch or smaller screens, and cost around $500 or less.

The problem is that this category has caught on in such a big way that laptop makers can’t help but release computers that don’t really fall within the niche and call them netbooks anyway. After all, what’s a “netbook” but a marketing term made up by Intel to describe a computer that can be used to go online?

Anyway, I’m certainly intrigued by the form factor of the Dell Inspiron Mini 12 or the new Asus N20A. But no matter whether they have an Intel Atom CPU or a dual core chip from Intel or AMD, I have a hard time putting them in the same camp as an 8.9 inch ultraportable like the Acer Aspire One.

Yes, I know this isn’t the first time I’ve ranted on this topic. But today the first reviews started to pop up for the Inspiron Mini 12, and Asus officially unveiled the N20A and I just couldn’t help myself. It probably won’t be the last time I go off about this either. I’m not saying there’s no market for a cheap, light weight 12 inch notebook. I’m just saying please stop calling it a netbook, or start calling netbooks something else.

To Asus’ credit, the company isn’t calling its N10 or N20A laptops netbooks. But that hasn’t stopped a lot of bloggers and journalists from doing so.

Oh, and as for that Dell Inspiron Mini 12 review? Laptop Magazine says it has a better screen and keyboard than the Mini 9 (no surprises there), but says the performance is subpar. While most netbooks aren’t exactly speed demons, Dell decided to go with Windows Vista and an Intel Atom Z530 Silverthorne processor for this notebook, instead of the Intel Atom N270 Diamondville CPU and Windows XP OS you would get with a Dell Inspiron Mini 9. And the Z530 is noticeably slower.