Dell Inspiron 530s Desktop Computer (Intel Pentium Dual Core E2200, 500GB HDD, 3GB)

More on this product: preview; user reviews; specifications; compare; shop

Print
E-mail
Share

Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 4 reviews
See all user reviews

Product summary

Dell's first desktops to carry the Inspiron name look good, inside and out. With a huge range of available components and two equally attractive cases, mainstream consumers ought to be able to find a config that meets their budget, tastes, and computing needs.

Specifications: Processor: Intel Pentium Dual Core E2200 (2.2 GHz); RAM installed: 2 GB DDR2 SDRAM; Hard drive: 500 GB Standard; See full specs

Price range: $539.00

See all products in the Dell Inspiron 530 series

CNET editors' take

Reviewed by: Matthew Elliott
Reviewed on: 06/26/2007
Updated on: 10/10/2007
Released on: 06/26/2007

Dell has dropped its venerable Dimension desktop brand. Now, both its mainstream consumer desktops and laptops will carry the Inspiron name. Along with the name change, Dell's new Inspiron 530 and 530s PCs usher in Intel's latest G33 chipset (aka Bearlake), which features a speedy 1,333MHz frontside bus. The other two models in the lineup, the Inspiron 531 and 531s, feature AMD processors on Nvidia's MCP 61 chipset. The 530s and 531s units feature a slim chassis akin to the Dimension C521's. Each of the four models boasts a wide array of configuration options; prices start at a rock-bottom $349 and can quickly top $1,500 when you start adding upgrades. For complete details, read our full review of the Dell Inspiron 531, which won an Editors' Choice.

The big range in price is due in large part to the wide array of CPU options. The Intel-based models offer both low-end Celeron and dual-core Core 2 Duo processors, while the AMD-based models offer both low-end Sempron and dual-core Athlon 64 X2 processors. Memory ranges from 512MB to 4GB. All four major flavors of Vista are offered as well, and though you have to hunt around on Dell's site to find it, the Inspiron 530 is available with either Windows XP Home or Pro.

Both the midtower and the slim chassis offer two hard drive bays (which you can populate with two 500GB drives for a 1TB of storage) and the option for a PCI Express graphics card (the half-height variety for the 530s and 531s units). Also available in all models but particularly useful in the slim models, which are likely candidates to be shoehorned into home theater racks, is an optional 802.11b/g (but sadly, not 802.11n) Wi-Fi card, which will save you from having to run an Ethernet cable through your living room. Another living-room friendly technology, Bluetooth, is an option, and a Blu-ray drive is offered on a higher-end model. One note about the optical drive: the Intel G33 motherboard features only serial ATA connections, meaning you're out of luck if you want to add in an old parallel ATA optical drive you may have lying around.

See more CNET content tagged:: Dell Inspiron,; optical drive,; dual-core,; chipset,; Intel

User reviews

Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 4 reviews
My rating: 0 stars Write review

Showing 3 of 4 user reviewsSee all 4 user reviews
5.0 stars

"Amazing Dell, How Sweet you look"

by MikeyWhile on October 31, 2008

read more
0.5 stars

"Why won't you power on?"

by saltjohnswharf on August 25, 2008

read more
4.0 stars

"sandinnalee"

by sandinnalee on May 30, 2008

read more
See all 4 user reviews Write review

Submit your review

Dell Inspiron 530s Desktop Computer (Intel Pentium Dual Core E2200, 500GB HDD, 3GB)

1. Rate this product:: (Mouse over the stars to rate this product and click to set your rating.)
2. One-line summary:(Summarize your review in one line. 10 characters minimum; required.): 0 of 55 characters
3. Pros:(Tell us what you like about this product. 10 characters minimum; required.): 0 of 250 characters
4. Cons:(Tell us what you don't like about this product. 10 characters minimum; required.): 0 of 250 characters
Bottom-line summary:(Explain to us in detail why you like or dislike the product, focusing your comments on the product's features and functionality, and your experience using the product. This field is optional.): 0 of 5000 characters; Submit