Black Friday Dell

When looking for some good seasonal deals on new laptops and tablets of Q2...Q4 2014, I checked some candidates already:

Acer Chromebook 13, a $379 model, an obviously overpriced (should be priced below $200) and underperforming model;

Google Nexus 9: similarly underpowered and overpriced model. Should be put at $199 on Black Friday and left at this price level all the way till Christmas. Talking Google, remaining 2-year old Pixel Chromebooks should be fire-sold at $300, for their Chromebook concept just to stay relevant;

A better bet would be with HP Stream 11 and 13 notebooks, just read my article with detailed look. For people who might, for whatever weird reason miss Chrome OS on these HP Streams, there's always Chromium OS out there(better be Linux IMHO), to at least double boot with Windows 8.1.

But as of today I look at this Dell Inspiron 15 3531 as an overall better deal for $189...$220:

Display
15.6 in HD WLED with TrueLife technology (1366 x 768)
Processor
Intel Celeron N2830 2.16 GHz with Burst technology up to 2.41 GHz
Memory
4GB DDR3L 1333 MHz (must be 1 slot, so hopefully it's upgradeable up to 8GB like this clips shows for I3531 model. UPDATE: I checked 3531 service manual, it's upgradeable)

Hard drive size
500GB 5400 RPM HDD (upgradeable to SSD)

Operating system
Windows 8.1 with Bing, 64-bit
PC type
Laptop
Optical drive
None
Media drive
4-in-1 card reader (SD/MMC/MS/MS Pro)
Audio
Waves MaxxAudio 4
Video
Intel HD Graphics with shared graphics memory
Ports
2 USB 2.0 • HDMI • Headphone output/Microphone input combo
Battery
4-cell lithium-ion (up to 6.25 hours)*
Camera
720p HD webcam
Wireless
802.11b/g/n (Miracast enabled)
Bluetooth
No (but it can be easily upgraded like this, to dual-band and Bluetooth):

Dimensions
15.00 x 10.20 x 1.00 in (381.00 x 259.08 x 25.40 mm)
Weight
4.71 lbs (2.13 kg)
Color
Black

This or very similar model is not exactly new and known since this July, so some people have succeeded to crack their screens already. Replacing the screen ($55...$60) can be done quite easily:


Now I wonder whether there is a matching 1920x1200 WLED screen replacement available...

At one point, this $179 (or cheaper at Xmas) model may suddenly look your own project of that Google Ara sort:

-- replace the mobo with one based on Core i3...i5 processors;
-- install an internal DVD drive (I'd prefer an additional SSD tray though);
-- add USB 3.1.

In other words, it may turn into a good durable machine.

Some user reviews:



Hardware upgrades aside, it can run Kodi/XBMC beautifully. Windows 10, plus dual boot Ubuntu are also a nice options. I'm also curious about availability of Hackintosh builds and drivers for this Celeron N2830 and other hardware in Dell Inspiron 15.

I bet open boxes and refurbished returns ("What? No Ethernet, no DVD drive?") could go for about $150 very soon, just follow the Slickdeals offers at Sears, BestBuy, OfficeMax/OfficeDepot/Microcenter/DellOutlet/MicrosoftStore.

Talking about Microsoft Store, there's an interesting development going on right now. Namely, a so called Signature Edition that claims a Dell Inspiron 15 3531 sold through Microsoft Store will be cleaned off of Dell bloatware (Microsoft bloatware stays untouched though, with Bing entrenched). In an hour or so, a new price will be revealed. My bet it's about $199 or even $189 with some $25 coupon. Or $50 coupon if
you swear you will use Bing till the end of the days of this machine and, say, stomp and spit on Google doormat.

UPDATE on MicrosoftStore: Nothing changed, $249 price for "signature" edition stays. Sure, as other shops will offer the model for $189...$220, it makes more sense to get your Dell Inspiron 15 3531 from them then clean Dell (and Microsoft) bloatware with some CCleaner.