Dell Inc. announced the release of its new mini-notebook called the Inspiron Mini 9. This represents the company’s first effort in this market’s segment. It is packed with a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom CPU, 1 Giga Byte of RAM and a solid-state drive. All these put together ensure an excelent basic computing experience, at a price just under $500, depending on the wanted features.

Users will be able to surf the Web, chat, blog, watch videos, listen to music, upload photos and many such Internet related activities.

The tiny gadget measures 1.07 by 9.13 by 6.77 inches, powers up an 8.9-inch screen and weights 2.28 pounds. It offers a 1024 by 600 resolution with a rather sharp display and a good color reproduction. The two colors chosen for the product are Obsidian Black and Alpine White. Other features include Wi-Fi capabilities, Bluetooth connectivity, VGA output, an optional 0.3 or 1.3 mega pixel Web camera, a 3 in 1 card reader and three USB 2.0 ports.

The four-cell battery provides great suport, running for about 3 hours and a half.

"We didn't build a small PC, we built an ultramobile device," said John Thode, vice president of small-screen consumer devices for Dell. "It does a lot of PC functions, but its intent was not to emulate a PC in every aspect," he added.

The company’s main competitor is Acer’s Aspire One, which shows its manufacturer’s experience in the market, but Dell managed to put out a good product on its first try.