Dell Vostro V131: A Budget Business Laptop
by Jarred Walton on October 28, 2011 1:55 AM EST- Posted in
- Laptops
- IT Computing
- Dell
- Intel
- Sandy Bridge
- Vostro
Dell Vostro V131: What’s in a Name?
We’ve reviewed just about every line of laptops that Dell makes over the years, but we haven’t had a chance to look at the Vostro line until today. Vostro is essentially Dell’s entry-level business laptop brand, with an emphasis on business-class options while maintaining a lower price point than the Latitude line. What that means is you give up some of the performance options of Dell’s consumer lines, but you get a default 1-year warranty with next business day service along with a matte LCD. The V131 we received for review is also quite thin, nearly at ultrabook levels, which raises an interesting question: how does an $800 business laptop compare with ultrabooks and other thin-and-light laptops?
Let’s start with a brief overview of what makes something an ultrabook, as we can then easily see where the V131 falls short. We’ve covered this before, but here’s the short version: an ultrabook needs an SSD (or at least SSD caching), it needs to be “secure” (e.g. include Intel’s Identity Protection Technology), it needs to be at mainstream prices (under $1000), and it needs to be thin—really thin—0.8” thick or less to be precise. The Dell Vostro V131 already hits most of these areas, but it doesn’t have an SSD and even with the stock 4-cell battery it’s 0.83” thick. So, it’s not an ultrabook, but does that even matter?
If you put an SSD in a 4-cell V131, I’d say it’s close enough for all practical purposes. The problem is that the 6-cell extended capacity battery bumps the thickness up to 1.25”; it’s one thing to compare 0.83” with <0.8” thick, but when the comparison becomes 1.2” vs. ultrabooks there’s a noticeable increase in size. Still, I find the V131 to be “thin enough” for my purposes, particularly when we factor in the improved battery life. As for SSDs, you can’t configure the V131 with an SSD from Dell, but they’re easy enough to add on your own—and you also get to choose which particular brand/model of SSD you want rather than going with whatever Dell selects. What will be more interesting to see over the coming months is how much of a difference the ultrabook features and specs make compared to “regular” laptops like the Vostro.
Here’s the full overview of our test system features and specifications. We were shipped a higher-end configuration, and we’ve bolded the component choices where applicable in the following table. Other Vostro V131 models come with lower cost (and lower performance) CPUs, HDDs, and memory configurations.
| Dell Vostro V131 Specifications | |
| Processor |
Intel Celeron ULV 847 (dual-core, 1.10GHz, 2MB L3, 17W) Intel Core i3-2310M (dual-core + HTT, 2.10GHz, 3MB L3, 35W) Intel Core i3-2330M (dual-core + HTT, 2.20GHz, 3MB L3, 35W) Intel Core i5-2410M (dual-core + HTT, 2.30-2.90GHz, 3MB L3, 35W) Intel Core i5-2430M (dual-core + HTT, 2.40-3.00GHz, 3MB L3, 35W) |
| Chipset | Intel HM67 |
| Memory |
2GB (1x2GB DDR3-1333, 1 free SO-DIMM) 4GB (2x2GB DDR3-1333) 6GB (1x4GB + 1x2GB DDR3-1333) |
| Graphics |
Intel HD Graphics (Celeron) Intel HD 3000 Graphics |
| Display |
13.3” WLED Matte 16:9 768p (1366x768) (LG 133WH2) |
| Hard Drive(s) |
320GB 7200RPM HDD 500GB 7200RPM HDD (Toshiba MK5061GSYN) |
| Optical Drive | N/A |
| Networking |
Gigabit Ethernet(Realtek RTL8168/8111) 802.11n WiFi + Bluetooth 3.0 (Intel Wireless-N 1030) WiDi Ready Optional 3G/4G Mobile Broadband |
| Audio |
Stereo Speakers Headphone jack |
| Battery |
4-cell, 44Wh 6-cell, 11.1V, ~5.7Ah, 65Wh |
| Front Side | N/A |
| Left Side |
Memory Card Reader Exhaust vent 1 x USB 2.0 HDMI |
| Right Side |
Headphone Jack 2 x USB 3.0 VGA Gigabit Ethernet |
| Back Side |
AC Power Connection Kensington Lock |
| Operating System | Windows 7 Professional 64-bit |
| Dimensions |
4-Cell: 12.96" x 9.36" x 0.63-.83" (WxDxH) (329.3mm x 237.6mm x 16.1-21.0mm) 6-Cell: 12.96" x 9.36" x 0.72-1.25" (WxDxH) (329.3mm x 237.6mm x 18.3-31.8mm) |
| Weight | 4.03 lbs (6-cell) / 1.83kg |
| Extras |
1MP Webcam 86-Key backlit keyboard Flash reader (SD, MS, MMC) MS Office 2010 Starter 65W Power Adapter |
| Warranty |
1-year warranty with NBD on-site service standard Up to 3-year extended warranties available |
| Pricing |
Starting Price: $499 Reviewed Configuration: $859 (with 6GB RAM) ($659 with coupon code HCQL82SHPFRSC$) |
Now that we’ve listed the specs, let’s clarify a few things. First, the 4-cell battery is quoted as an option on the spec sheet, but it doesn’t actually show up on the current four configurations. The 6-cell battery lifts the back of the laptop up about half an inch, making it quite a bit thicker. We pulled out some measuring tape and found that the front was a bit higher off the table surface than the quoted .63”, but more importantly the back is 1.25” thick with the 6-cell battery. (Measuring without the battery, the back of the laptop is 0.81” thick.) So it’s definitely thicker than an ultrabook, and the bulkier 6-cell battery really pushes it out of ultrabook contention, but otherwise the specs look pretty good on the $800 model.
The CPU offerings cover quite a wide spectrum, and your choice of CPU also influences other elements. The base model $500 V131 comes with a Celeron ULV 847 and 2GB RAM, with no option to upgrade either component (though you can still do so on your own). The Celeron 847 is a 17W part, which sounds good from a battery life perspective, but with a clock speed of 1.1GHz and only two cores it’s not going to be much faster than the old Pentium SU4100. The next bump up costs $100 more but gives you a 2.2GHz clock on the i3-2330M, plus Hyper-Threading; you also get the ability to customize the RAM and hard drive configuration.
The top-end configuration comes with an i5-2430M, 4GB RAM, and a 500GB hard drive. Our review unit is slightly out-of-date and comes with an i5-2410M, but that shouldn’t matter much, and it also has a $60 upgrade to 6GB RAM. Normally priced at $859, Dell is currently running a coupon code on the top-end model that drops the price $200. Needless to say, $659 for the i5-2430M configuration is a very reasonable price, particularly when you consider the warranty.
As a business class laptop, the Vostro line comes with next business day (NBD) on-site service standard. I’ve supported Dell systems in the past, and their NBD service worked very well. Unless something has changed, you basically call up and give them a description of the problem, and the next day someone shows up with either replacement parts (or potentially a replacement laptop). I never had issues with their local service provider, and compared to the runaround you often get with consumer support it’s hard to overstate the importance of fast service for business users. If you’re at a company that’s large enough to have an IT department, it probably doesn’t matter much, but for smaller companies minimizing downtime is critical. Bumping up to a 3-year NBP warranty is also priced at just $80; that compares to a $119 charge to do the same on an Inspiron 14z, or $299 (WTF!?) to get a 3-year warranty on the XPS 15z. (Note: all of those prices I just quoted are liable to change, sometimes by a large amount, at any given time.)
While the specs may not be enough to set the world on fire, business generally aren’t interested in the bleeding edge. Instead, they want a well-built laptop that will stand the test of time, and while the Vostro V131 may not include the spill resistant keyboard or magnesium alloy frame of a Dell Latitude, the V131 does try to strike a nice balance between features, build quality, and cost. It also looks unassuming (unless you get the red version), which is what most companies prefer. So how successful is the V131 at maintaining that balance? Let’s dig a little deeper.
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Penti - Saturday, October 29, 2011 - link
Your supposed to make a backup/rescue disc with the supplied software, it usually have some kind of rescue partition too, using other media is always forbidden on OEM-computers and are essentially the same as running unlicensed. If you really need it Dell might supply a disc for your modell if you ask, but just might.agent2099 - Saturday, October 29, 2011 - link
If I remove the original hard drive I assume the rescue partition will still be in the laptop, perhaps some kind of storage soldered onto the motherboard.If that's the case will it allow me to install from the rescue partition directly to the SSD without hassle.
I'm surprised this isn't a more talked about topic as it seems replacing hard drives is common in laptops. I guess everyone just has a spare DVD of Windows 7 lying around the house.
Penti - Sunday, October 30, 2011 - link
Your supposed to make your backup, moving your preinstalled Windows to a SSD is fully possible. Not optimal but you just have to buy a business-laptop with media included (optional) if that's not good enough if you don't want to ask for a disc, it's as much a Microsoft issue as a OEM-issue. Using other media isn't allowed. As said. It's a pain but cloning your preinstalled Windows or install a warez-copy isn't insurmountable. Businesses also needs a volume license to handle their OS's.Or as they do offer it you can just ask them for a rescue disc in accordance to their rules regarding that.
"Dell Customers can now request a set of backup discs containing the factory-installed operating system as well as the device drivers and utilities specific to your system.
*Requests are limited to one (1) set of backup discs per system purchased.
*The backup discs requested must match the operating system that was factory installed on the original order."
What's more depressing are that there usually aren't any clean or retail-like installation discs provided. By supplying recovery rather then installation. OEM-specific drivers are another matter. That don't hurt what your whining about though, if you request a disc or if you burn out a few dvd-/+r you can just use them to restore the system to a SSD or you can just clone your drive (with your backup tool of choice) to a external drive and restore from that ones you have put in the SSD. Users who know enough to change out drives will probably know enough to both make backups and rescue discs before they install it. Ordinary home users can probably just use the restore partition/function if they screw up and has no disc. Or just order one. Hardly life or death just a nuisance.
Zap - Friday, November 4, 2011 - link
I have a Vostro V131 sitting here (just got, haven't even powered it on yet) and it does come with discs.1) Trend Micro (useless)
2) Dell branded Windows 7 Professional SP1 64-bit (this is the disc you are looking for)
3) Dell branded APPLICATION "For Reinstalling DigitalPersona Personal Fingerprint Software (fingerprint reader)
4) Dell branded Resource Media "Contents: Device drivers: Utilities"
5) Dell branded Resource Media "Webcam Central"
Of course it doesn't come with a way to use the discs, but that's what my external USB optical drive is for. Once the SSD shows up, I'll probably be using discs 2 and 4.
ixelion - Friday, October 28, 2011 - link
toshiba hard drives are horrible, failure rate is insane. Disapointed to see another vendor using them probably cheap$Penti - Saturday, October 29, 2011 - link
While I don't totally rule out a Vostro in low-end business, small businesses and for example one-computer-per-child schemes at secondary education level, junior high or equivalent it sure doesn't seem worth it compared to cheaper Lenovo models like Lenovo L520 kinda ThinkPad that you can actually get with a "high-res" screen, 1600x900 for about 850 dollars (864 USD right now on the web, add another 150 USD to have it properly spec out regarding BT, network and RAM though) both 1600x900 screen and docking support (which means you can hook up a screen of more then 1920x1200 if you happen to have that). A Dell Latitiude E5420 might be more interesting with a upgraded screen though. That is about $859 right now on the web for Core i5-2410M, 4GB DDR3, 320GB and 1 year basic warranty. Even if you have pretty basic demands though 1600x900 screens there appears to be a few options to choose for business/prosumer instead of the Dell, Acer, Lenovo, Toshiba and HP models that don't. If you really like a compact 132 there is also the 1100 dollar Asus UX31* now too. Seams like a small stretch.JarredWalton - Sunday, October 30, 2011 - link
Fixed, thanks!Jehnavi24 - Tuesday, April 3, 2012 - link
Dell Vostro V131 is basically a good, cheap business laptop, but boasts some of the great features that make it stand somewhere in the market.http://www.techiecop.com/
wang2013 - Tuesday, March 26, 2013 - link
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