Dell Inspiron 7500

The Dell Inspiron 7500 sees itself more as a main PC than a mobile vehicle for editing Word and Excel documents. As such, power and ergonomics are higher in its list of priorities than portability and, compared to some desktop replacements in this Labs, it's made to look overweight at 4kg.

As our usability results show, however, weight isn't everything. The Inspiron's clear, well-lit 15in screen means it's easy to see in all conditions, and its wide-viewing angle is also commendable. Add to this a well-designed, responsive keyboard and overall build quality, and it's little surprise the 7500 tops the usability chart.

A 466MHz Celeron processor, 128Mb of RAM and ATi Rage Mobility-P graphics ensure a snappy performance, although it was no match for the Pentium III-powered machines. In terms of expandability, the most obvious candidate is the 6.4Gb hard drive, as there are no spare SODIMM sockets. Dell offers disks up to 25Gb in size, and these can be plugged into either of the front bays. Thanks to its large 14.8V 5,400mAH battery, it managed an impressive two hours and 37 minutes in our demanding rundown test, which placed it fourth.

In general use, though, few people would wish to replace the DVD/floppy combo, with the Toshiba DVD-ROM reading DVDs at six-speed and CDs at 32-speed. There's no dedicated MPEG decoder, but the processor's performance and the ATi graphics card ensure decent DVD movie playback. Also, thanks to the S-Video out, the Inspiron can be hooked up to a TV.

The 8Mb of video memory means you can use a larger monitor, with resolutions up to 1,600 x 1,200 at 16-bit colour. There's also an internal V.90 modem included for communications, and as you'd expect there are two Type II PC Card slots if you need to add network connectivity.

To round off the package, Dell supplies Microsoft Works Suite 99 and a one-year Europe-wide collect-and-return warranty, upgradable to three years next-day on-site for £199. Considering the starting price of £1,699, this is certainly an attractive option and Dell has done well to pack so much high-quality equipment into the machine despite the constraints on its budget.

Due to its weight, the Inspiron 7500 won't be to everyone's taste. However, If you're looking for a well-made workhorse computer at a good price, look no further. This is a deserving award winner.