When creating this laptop, this manufacturer relied on the components of the Core-i series, an aluminum case, and a thirteen-inch display. Let's take a look at how this device looks against the background of its competitors.
Vostro line devices are aimed at corporate users. If you are looking for a business device at a low cost, then I advise you to pay attention to this particular device.
Our test unit has a Core i5 450m processor, a GMA HD graphics chip, three gigabytes of DDR3 RAM, and a fast 7200 rpm hard drive with a capacity of 320 gigabytes. As is the case with other devices from this manufacturer, other laptop configuration options are possible.
Dell Vostro 3300 case
This device is similar to its big brother Vostro 3500, only the placement of the interfaces has been changed here, and of course the dimensions. The device comes in three different colors, depending on the region. For some countries only gray devices are supplied. And for the USA, some models are available in copper or red. The body of the device has an aluminum finish, but there are also plastic parts on it.
The lid of this unit has passed our pressure test and is very durable. At least under pressure, I did not notice any changes on the display. In addition, the base unit also proved to be pressure resistant. Only in the area of the optical disc drive I noticed a slight deformation of the case. The working area of the laptop is made of matte plastic, which is black.
The hinges that secure the screen to the base allow the lid to open approximately 130 degrees. In conditions of rolling, the display of the device vibrates a little, for example, if you are traveling in public transport or a train, it also vibrates immediately after opening. The hinges are not very tight, so you can even open the lid with one hand. Accordingly, when transporting the device, you need to be very careful, since the lid can open slightly and something can get under it, this can damage the matrix of the device.
The dimensions of this device do not differ from other thirteen-inch notebooks. The weight of the device together with the battery is about two kilograms. Which is quite conducive to easy transportation of the device.
Dell Vostro 3300 Connectivity
Due to the compact chassis, compared to fifteen-inch laptops, our hero does not have some connectivity options. Firstly, there is no digital video port in our device. The rest of its connectivity is no different from thirteen-inch laptops, it has three USB 2.0 ports for connecting peripherals such as a mouse, printer, and so on. One of these ports serves two functions of USB-eSATA, so this connection to external devices gives a higher data transfer rate.
Due to the used opening mechanism and the battery, it turned out that the rear end remains unused. At the front there is a five-in-one card reader, a wireless communications switch and two audio outputs.
If the user needs more functions, he can expand them thanks to ExpressCard / 34. In any case, this device does not have a docking port, which is so often found in devices for a business audience. But instead, there is a USB dock solution. This feature makes it easy to connect devices to this unit.
The interfaces in the device are harmoniously arranged for both right-handed and left-handed people. But in any case, the location of the eSATA / USB port will not be optimal for right-handers.
In terms of its communication capabilities, the device is no different from its brother Vostro 3500.
You can connect to a local network using RTL8168D / 8111D Family PCI-E GBE NIC (10/100 / 1000MBit).With the Dell 1520 Wireless-N Half Mini Card, you can always have access to WLANs. Moreover, it supports the 802.11n standard. Some versions of the Dell Vostro 3300 have Dell Wireless HSPA 2.0 as an option. In this case, the compartment for the battery will have a slot for SIM cards. However, this option is not yet available in our country. The device has a built-in two megapixel webcam, which is perfect for video conferencing over the Internet.
Our device is already on sale with a preinstalled Windows 7 Professional 32-Bit operating system. But for extra money, you can also choose a 64-bit version of this operating system for your device. But if necessary, you can also downgrade your operating system to Windows XP Professional, for which the manufacturer asks to pay 40 euros. The 32-bit operating system works with built-in RAM modules. But if you want to improve your RAM, then I advise you to use the 64-bit version.
In addition to the Kensington lock, the device also has a fingerprint reader. Therefore, to save time when entering a password, you can simply use this feature.
This unit also includes discs with software, drivers and operating system.
Input Devices Dell Vostro 3300
The input devices of the Dell Vostro 3300 are no different from the Vostro 3500.
Keyboard unit
The keyboard is standardly located on the working area, the keys have good mechanical properties, a clear pressure point and a long stroke, due to which erroneous pressing on such a keyboard after getting used to it is practically excluded. But be that as it may, it is convenient to work with it, the substrate bends a little here. The sound from the keys is acceptable. Fortunately, the buttons are handy and flat.
The keypad of this unit is protected from water. Two optional rows of LEDs have been added to our device, thanks to which the keyboard can be conveniently used even in the dark. Above the keyboard block there is a touch field for controlling the multimedia applications of the device. White LEDs indicate their operation. Thus, white LEDs are used on the left side to display the system status. But these LEDs are not very powerful and they are hardly noticeable in strong light.
Sensor field
The touch field of this unit supports gesture control. Scrolling of vertical and horizontal stripes is supported. The touch field has excellent sliding characteristics and the cursor control is quite good here as well. If you do not need to use the touch field, you can disable it by pressing Fn + F6.
Dell Vostro 3300 screen
This device has a 13.3-inch matrix with LED backlighting. The screen of this device has an anti-reflective coating, which is typical for business notebooks. The maximum display resolution is 1366x768 pixels, and the aspect ratio is 16: 9. This is a good idea to take into account the dimensions of the device.
The values I measured are slightly worse than those of the Vostro 3500, but they will be sufficient for indoor use. The maximum brightness was 198 cd / m² in the middle left segment. But on average, at least the lighting was 183.3 cd / m² with a minimum of just over 167.2 cd / m². Therefore, the test device had a pretty good lighting level - 84%. I, for example, did not notice any darkening on the display.
The Dell Vostro 3300 display has good contrast with a high black level of 1.15 cd / m² and a white brightness around the mid-range of 196.5 cd / m². The color of the display is ideal for indoor use.
But the device can also be used outdoors just like the Vostro 3500. But in this case you have to work in the shade, otherwise it will be difficult for you to see something on the display due to glare.Be that as it may, these reflections are not very annoying, they are much less than reflections from screens with glossy surfaces.
In the horizontal plane, the device has good viewing angles. But the vertical viewing angles are much worse. Even with a slight vertical deviation, the colors on the display will fade. At very sharp corners, the color gamut also changes.
Dell Vostro 3300 laptop performance
Just like the predecessor Vostro 3500, our hero is built on the HM57 (Ibex Peak) chipset from Intel. Accordingly, Dell offers its customers a choice between Core i3 and Core i5 processors. But the most budget solution is equipped with an i3 350M processor.
Our test unit uses a Core i5 450m processor. It is a dual-core processor core that can be overclocked with Turbo Boost technology. Thanks to its multi-threading support, the cores of this processor can execute tasks simultaneously in four threads. The Intel Graphics Media Accelerator HD graphics chip is integrated into the Core i Arrandale processors. This is the only graphic solution in our device. The performance of this chip was mainly configured for office applications and small multimedia tasks such as watching movies or videos.
More expensive solutions of this device have a separate graphics adapter GeForce 310M. In any case, if you are not going to play games, then the integrated graphics chip will be enough for you. Although the performance of the discrete graphics adapter is much better.
The company offers variants of the device, which has 2-6 gigabytes of RAM, while the used chipset supports up to eight gigabytes of RAM.
In our case, we have 3 gigabytes of RAM. If this is too little for you, then you can expand it. If you decide to do this, then I recommend that you immediately change the operating system to 64-bit.
Our device uses a ST9320423AS hard disk with a capacity of 320 gigabytes, which operates at a speed of 7200 rpm.
Dell Vostro 3300 laptop temperature and noise
The device was not very loud under load, the maximum noise level was 35.2 dB (A). However, with a gradual increase in the load on the system, the noise level also increased. Continuing my stress test for a long time, the noise figure was 46.2 dB (A). This is quite a high figure, but due to the fact that this noise has a rather low frequency, it can be easily tolerated.
The temperature situation was less pleasant. Under light load, the maximum temperature of the device was 43 degrees.
At maximum load, the picture was completely different. After a long test at maximum load, the maximum temperature of the device was 56 degrees.
In some cases, the CPU heated up to 95 degrees.
Dell Vostro 3300 speakers
For office laptops, the quality of the speakers is not in the first place as for multimedia devices. Our hero has only one speaker, which is located on the base unit in the front on the left side. Naturally, this speaker does not support stereo. As you probably already guessed there is no bass in this speaker either, but there are mids and highs, which are quite well balanced. But in any case, this will be enough for an office laptop. The sound is pretty clean, no distortion was noticed even at the maximum volume level.
Dell Vostro 3300 Battery
This unit is supplied with a lithium-ion battery with a capacity of 40 Wh.
The results of the review of the laptop Dell Vostro 3300
The device is attractive not only in its appearance, but also in the body, which uses many elements of aluminum, due to which the device is made of high quality and durable.
The laptop is gaining poles thanks to its communication capabilities and good performance in simple programs.In addition, it is not a problem to use it outdoors, thanks to the matt display and high brightness level. The hard disk of this unit is anti-shock and water resistant.
For a thirteen-inch laptop, the interface layout is pretty good. But despite this, I would like to see a separate docking port and digital video interface here.
Well, in general, the manufacturer still managed to make a business laptop with exhaustive resources and low cost. In addition, the device has various types of configurations that will suit even the most demanding users. For example, there is a version with a separate graphics adapter from Nvidia, this model is perfect for games.
You can buy Dell Vostro 3300 laptop in our online store at the lowest price.
