Daily deal – Dell Inspiron Mini 9 Netbook for $199

It was less than a week ago when I posted about the Dell Inspiron Mini 9 hitting the magically low price of $249. A lot can change in just a week, because that very same machine dropped another $50, and is now available for just $199.

As part of the Dell Presidents day deals, your $199 will get you the Inspiron Mini 9 with a 1.6GHz processor, 512MB of memory and 4GB of storage. The machine runs Ubuntu Linux, which includes most of the basic applications you might need on the road.

Just to be clear – this is the lowest possible configuration Dell sells in this model, so don’t purchase it expecting to get yourself a multimedia powerhouse.

The $199 price means you can buy the machine in any color you want, as long as it is black. Different colors will cost an additional $30.

Dell Inspiron Mini 9 product page

Daily deal – Dell Inspiron Mini 9 for $249

Hear that noise? It’s Dell telling every other Netbook maker that “this means war.

The Inspiron Mini 9 launched several months ago for a little under $350, and just dropped to the silly low price of $249.

Of course, with a price this low there are bound to be a couple of trade-offs.

For starters, you don’t get Windows XP. You’ll have to get used to Ubuntu Linux, which is fine if you just need a basic machine for web and email work.

Also, the machine only comes with 512MB of memory and a weak 4GB of storage space – once again, fine for basic stuff, but close to useless if you want to load movies and music for your next trip.

Still, you get WiFi and a fairly decent 4 cell battery and at just 2.8lbs, it could be your next best travel companion.

You’ll find the Inspiron Mini 9 at the Dell web site, where you’ll also find the other models in the lineup, including machines with Windows XP and of course their 3G enabled version.

(Via: Engadget.com)

Daily deal – Dell Inspiron Mini 9 for $99 with 2 year AT&T data plan

Well, that was fast. Remember when I posted my predictions in tech for 2009? One of my entries was “subsidized notebooks with combined data plans”.

We are just 11 days into the new year, and Dell has already made me look good by making one of my predictions come true. As of today, you can order a Dell Inspiron Mini 9 for just $99 if you purchase it along with a 2 year AT&T mobile broadband subscription.

Your $99 will get you a very small computer, just over 2lbs, with built in wireless Internet access on the AT&T3G network (where available).

The Inspiron Mini 9 is a 1.6GHz Intel Atom powered Netbook with 512MB of memory and an 8GB SSD drive. The base version offered in this deal does not come with a webcam, and once you configure the machine with more memory, a larger SSD drive and Bluetooth, the final price comes to about $185. Still, a hot deal, as it includes an integrated AT&T 3G modem card tucked away inside the machine.

The easiest way to describe the deal is that you can order the Mini 9 from the Dell website, and as long as you activate the AT&T 3G modem, you are eligible for a $350 mail in rebate.

The AT&T 3G service costs $59.99 a month, and you have to activate it within 4 weeks of receiving the laptop. The mail in rebate period expires on February 12th.

If you’d prefer a similar deal, but with a slighly different computer, check out the Acer Aspire One at your local Radio Shack. The Aspire One has 1GB of memory and a 160GB hard drive. The base price of this machine is $449, but just like with this Dell deal, you can purchase it in store for $99 when you commit to a 2 year AT&T data plan.