Dell will release 2013 versions of the Inspiron R line of laptops in 14, 15, and 17-inch options that look noticeably thinner than their 2012 counterparts. The 14- and 15-inch versions are 1-inch thick at their thinnest points. The laptops come with a healthy number of ports and connectivity options (Ethernet for wired internet, two super-fast USB 3.0 ports, one USB 2.0 port, a media card reader, Bluetooth 4.0, and a 3.5 mm headphone jack) as well as an optical drive. They also have 720p webcams and are pre-installed with Windows 8.
Like previous iterations, you can customize your laptop to your heart’s content – you can upgrade the basic 320GB hard drive to higher storage capacities of up to 1TB or upgrade the processor from the basic 3rd generation Intel Core i3 to Intel Core i5 or i7 for more processing horsepower . You can also choose from a number of different graphics card options (Intel’s onboard graphics cards, NVIDIA GeForce, or AMD Radeon) and even have a touchscreen display installed instead of an ordinary screen, although all these upgrades will cost you more money on top of the laptops’ basic prices.
Dell has yet to reveal the new laptops’ pricing and release date, but to note: the 2012 Inspiron 15R starts at $550, while the Inspiron 17R starts at $600.