Perhaps the most important (and certainly the most expensive) component of any prospective laptop is the display. You're going to be 'staring' at it for long periods of time if you're thinking of buying a desktop replacement- thus size DOES matter. Most of you will be used to (for want of a better term) 15-17 inches in terms of a desktop monitor and should feel entirely comfortable with the Inspiron's magnificent 15.1-inch active matrix TFT (thin film transistor) LCD display which is actually the same viewing size as many 17-inch monitors.

But this size does come at a price and the screen itself (by our estimates) is most likely responsible for approximately one third of the overall price of the machine. At 15.1 inches (steady now…) the Dell's LCD screen is currently the largest size available (other OEMs that use the same design as Dell also use a similar 15.1 inch screen). It definitely draws attention and is undoubtedly the most 'sexy' part of the unit. Colors were vibrant, sharp and the text/icons more visible than on any 13-inch equivalent. Viewing the screen from acute angels was refreshingly possible (a problem resident with many other TFT's).

If you're looking to impress a client with a PowerPoint presentation, the Inspiron's TFT display is the way to do it. And by using the FN (function) keys, you can simply adjust the brightness and/or contrast of the screen at your fingertips. The TFT's size not only penalizes your trouser pockets but supplying the necessary power for the LCD depletes the battery's resources considerably faster than smaller screens. The size of the screen no doubt contributes to the overall weight of the unit as well.

One shortcoming of active matrix TFTs is the defective pixel syndrome, which is all to frequent amongst mobile TFTs. With literally millions of transistors per screen, the manufacturing process can sometimes allow for a few dead pixels, which look red, green, blue or black). In many cases as a prospective buyer, you'll go into your local Fry's/Best Buy and be able to 'test' out a system of your choice and be able to notice any dead pixels. When buying a Dell online however, you don't get that luxury. Luckily for us we only had one defective pixel, which didn't interfere.