New Dell Inspiron R Laptops Pack Ivy Bridge Technology into a Smart Purchase

We’re updating our versatile, stylish Inspiron R series laptops to enjoy the benefits of Ivy Bridge technology, with fun new designs and Intel third generation Core i5 and i7 processor options with more powerful integrated HD 4000 Graphics.  If you like the personalization offered by SWITCH lids in a variety of colors and you want a laptop with the power and features that handle everyday tasks without breaking a sweat, our new third generation Inspiron R series has you covered. Today, these new laptops are available to customers in the United States, starting at $599. Check out the new Inspiron 15R here and the new Inspiron 17R here.

To me, the new-for-2012 styling really raises the bar in the looks department.  While vibrant SWITCH lid color options make it as easy to change lids as it is to change your shirt, the new styling is the big story.  It’s a tasteful, modern design that looks great in a home or on-the-go. The design incorporates customer feedback from focus groups around the globe into a new, refreshing look. When shown this new design alongside competitor designs and 2011 R series, customers described the 2012’s new styling as “modern,” “sleek,” “futuristic,” “fresh,” “fun” and “new.”  It’s a compelling update to Inspiron’s heritage of colors.  It embraces refined radius curves. It has visual cues that make it look super-sleek and a new hinge design that really complements the aesthetic.  The R series design team’s goal was a laptop that looks & feels upscale but can be offered at a mainstream price, and from what we can tell the team hit this one out of the park.  

Inspiron 15R laptop - with SWITCH lid covers

Inspiron 15R laptop with SWITCH lid color options

If you want to see more images of the new laptops, visit the new Inspiron R Laptops album on Dell’s Google+ page.

Inspiron R systems have always been designed to be a smart purchase – stylish, versatile, notebooks with roomy full-size keyboards, big HD displays, available discrete graphics and onboard DVD players. But a smart purchase means more than just great looks, impressive features and ample performance. Smart also means buying something that weathers the test of time well.  So we design Inspiron R laptops to pass the quality and durability testing that helps ensure your laptop looks great and works as designed for years to come. (In fact, take a look at the specifics I mentioned in the bullet point section near the end of my Inspiron 13z and 14z post—that same level of testing happens across the new Inspiron R systems as well.) These systems come in 14”, 15.6” and 17.3” screen sizes to suit a broad range of mobility needs, and they’re offered with an array of options.   

One of my favorite options is the available DVD/Blu-ray reader or DVD/Blu-ray writer. Onboard DVD/Blu-ray lets you watch you movies wherever you like.  And with Blu-ray, you simply plug a single HDMI cable into a 3D-capable TV/sound system for a truly immersive movie experience. If your home system has a Wireless Display adapter plugged into the TV’s HDMI port, you can choose to wirelessly project content from your laptop in Full High Definition (FHD / 1080p) with booming 5.1 digital surround sound.  It’s amazing how far technology has come in the past couple of years – it used to be that these technologies were exclusive to $1000+ laptops, yet now we’re able to offer it on the Inspiron Rs. The 2012 R series multimedia improvements don’t stop there though.  The engineers added Waves MaxxAudio 3 digital processing on these notebooks for truly great sound.  Plenty of USB 3.0 ports make transferring files fast and easy, plus one of those ports includes a PowerShare that can charge your device even when you close the lid – super convenient for keeping your portable music player or phone charged.  8-in-1 media card readers allow you to transfer files to/from your camera in a snap too. 

Here’s a video overview of Dell’s new Inspiron R family:

Inspiron R series have historically offered the most popular options when it comes to CPUs and graphics muscle, and 2012 proves to be no exception with 2nd and 3rd generation Intel Core i3, i5 and i7 CPU options and HD Graphics 3000 (i3) or HD Graphics 4000 (i5, i7).  These new architectures are a smart purchase since they’re designed for today’s software and they should handle the broad majority of computing needs for years to come whether it’s surfing the web, video chatting, doing light gaming or zipping through projects for school or work.  For even more challenging projects and moderate gaming, the R series offers switchable discrete graphics options with 1GB of dedicated video memory. 

Whichever options you like, it all adds up to a great-looking, versatile laptop that you’ll enjoy using for years to come. Depending on configuration, the Inspiron R series start at $549. While they’ve been available in many countries around the world, today they are available to customers in the United States. Check out the new Inspiron 15R here and the new Inspiron 17R here.

I welcome your questions or thoughts here. 

About the Author: Stanford Curry