Dell Vostro V130 review

Dell hasn’t always been known for its focus on style, but with the advent of the gorgeous Adamo, it had a laptop for the kind of people who’d buy a MacBook Air or a Sony VAIO Z Series. It didn’t quite pull it off, but the design soon evolved into the sleek Latitude 13 and now this: the Vostro V130.

It’s flat, gently curved at the sides, and measures just 20.5mm thick (including feet) – and that’s the same from front to back, since there’s no incline or variation at all. The lid opens on a hinge set an inch or so from the rear edge, giving it a neat, angular look when sat on a desk. And best of all, it weighs just 1.66kg. That isn’t quite as light as the 1.33kg of the 13in MacBook Air, but it isn’t far off, and shows just how honed Dell’s design has become.

There are no ports or sockets around the sides, bar a single memory card slot for SD, MMC and Memory Stick formats – and that comes with a plastic stopper to keep the silver lines clean. Instead, on the flat rear edge you’ll find D-SUB and HDMI outputs, Gigabit Ethernet, two USB ports and a USB/eSATA combo port. It’s a slim selection that may require a USB port replicator.

The keyboard exhibits no such compromise. The keys are large with no shrunken tiddlers, and there’s space for the page navigation keys down the right-hand side. Key travel is shallow – not surprising given the tight squeeze of the base – but it’s comfortable enough to type on, and the multitouch touchpad and buttons are responsive. There’s no ThinkPad-style trackpoint, or security extras such as fingerprint readers and TPM chips, however.

The 13.3in screen has the usual 1,366 x 768 resolution, and its white-LED backlight is even and keeps things nice and bright. Thankfully it isn’t glossy, so although the colours aren’t as vibrant as on the Sony VAIO Z Series, you won’t have to worry about reflections from the office lights. The lid feels strong, as does the base, and the hinge has enough stiffness to stay put when you’re moving it about.