Need opinions on these Inspiron laptops (14R and 14z)

[zhou luke]

So, I'm looking forward to buying a decent laptop for my school purposes and later, college purposes. (I'm planning on taking IT path, Information Technologies).
I've done quite a research, and I have narrowed my choices to these two laptops.

Dell Inspiron 14R N4110
Review: http/www.notebookcheck.net/Dell-Inspiron-14R-N4110-Laptop-Review.70944.0.html
Specs from Dell's website (http/www.dell.com/us/p/inspiron-14r-n4110/pd?~ck=mn&~ck=mn)

Spoiler

2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i3-2350M processor (2.30 GHz)
Windows 7 Home Premium, 64-Bit, English
4GB Dual Channel DDR3 1333MHz
Mobile Intel® 6 Series Express Chipset (HM67)
Intel® HD Graphics 3000
14.0" High Definition (720p) LED Display with Truelife™
500GB SATA hard drive (5400RPM)
Internal tray-load DVD+/-RW
6-cell 48WHr Li-Ion Battery
1.0MP Integrated 1280x720 native HD Webcam
Intel® Centrino® Wireless-N 1030 (1x2 bgn + Bluetooth)

Dell Inspiron 14z N411z
Review: http/www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Dell-Inspiron-14z-N411z-Notebook.65372.0.html
Specs from Dell's website (http/www.dell.com/us/p/inspiron-n411z/pd)

Spoiler

2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i3-2350M processor (2.30 GHz)
Windows 7 Home Premium, 64-Bit, English
4GB Single Channel DDR3 1333MHz
Intel® 6 series
Intel® HD Graphics 3000
14.0" High Definition (720p) LED Display with Truelife™
500GB SATA hard drive (5400RPM)
Internal tray-load DVD+/-RW
6-cell Li-Ion 65WHr (std)
1.0MP Integrated 1280x720 native HD Webcam
Intel® Centrino® Wireless-N 1030 (1x2 bgn + Bluetooth)

You might ask, "So you've gotten the reviews, decide on it yourself."

Well, as told from the Dell's website, I am able to get these laptops, both at the same price (US$499), and at the same specs!
I will be buying one of them with this specs:
Intel i3-2350m 2.3 GHz
4 GB RAM
500 GB HDD 5400 rpm
Other specs are similar.
The main differences between the two of them are the design, battery (I'm guessing the 14z has more battery life?), RAM and the number of the ports.
14R has 2 USB 2.0 ports, 2 USB 3.0 ports, and VGA port.
14z has 1 USB 2.0 port, 2 USB 3.0 ports, and miniDisplay port.

So, I would like you guys to give me your opinions on these two laptops. Please remember not to bother with the hardware stuffs on the review links above. I'm mainly asking for your opinions on the designs, ports, and the other stuffs like temperature, sounds etc.

Oh, and while I am it, I'll ask some questions.
1. Does the extra USB port on 14R worth it? Will I be using it?
2. What is a miniDisplay port?
3. Which keyboard do you guys prefer between the two of them?
4. Will the 14z have more battery life?
5. What are the difference between a single channel, and a dual channel RAM?

Any inputs will be much appreciated!

 

[zhou luke]

Bump.

 

[Brett928S2]

Hi

Bumping isnt allowed here...

To answer your question...they are both just cheap laptops, which are useless if you want to game but ok for the net, word etc etc...

All the best Brett