Dell Vostro 3300 - Mind This Business

Inside The Vostro Vanguard

Inside The Vostro Vanguard

As far as the Vostro series go, its interior design does vary among models ranging from the 1014 to the 3700 suite, but one constant aspect remains; an all-black interior. The 3300 is no different, with a bezel and a generous palm-rest similarly clad in black. In fact, the anti-glare screen feels larger than its 13.3-inch sizing, which holds an LED-backlit display and native screen real estate of 1366 by 768 pixels. It's a comfortable resolution to work on when trawling the web or mugging over spreadsheets. As a side note, the slim lid does not open up 180 degrees like the HP premium EliteBook does. Horizontal viewing angle was satisfactory, and brightness levels were definitely more than sufficient under our office lights.

The keyboard and touchpad are another work of art altogether. Dell did not implement an island design like Sony or Apple, but the spill-resistant keys are liberally pitched and exhibited little flex. Oh, and they come with backlights too if you prefer to type in the dark. We love the Synaptics touchpad for a few reasons. It is huge, compared to most 13-inch laptops, and it's also responsive with a few gesture options like "pinch zoom" or "two-finger scrolling" available. Touch-sensitive multimedia controls are lined above the keyboard, with soft white LEDs to help them glow. Audio quality was clean and loud, which is rather uncommon for a business notebook. By the way, don't worry if you can't seem to find the 4-ohm speaker, for it is nicely tucked away with just a tiny 'slot vent' to show on the front lip. Like most standard business notebooks, the Vostro also comes with a free-fall sensor and Dell's "Strike Zone" shock absorbers to protect your most precious hard disk. Operationally, this laptop is almost as quiet as a mouse. Here are more 'undercover' photos for your perusal.