[RichTJ99]

Hi,

So I am sure your wondering why someone would buy both. I initally ordered the 1012 (with 1366, broadcom HD) for $240 from the outlet. Two days later I had a client tell me to order a Dell 17R & spend under 800. I managed to find a nicely equiped one with a mini 1018 for 790.

Today both units (1012, 1018) came & I was comparing them, trying to figure out which one to keep. The 1018 is free, the 1012 is not.

The 1018 has a smaller resolution but a more colorful screen, the 1012 has a better res but the screen colors look washed out (to me).

Adding a 2 gig stick to either is no big deal, windows starter sucks on both & the bloatware doesnt help.

I was kind of surprised that full screen youtube isnt possible on either without stuttering. I thought the broadcom HD chip would help but either I am missing something obvious or somethings wrong with the unit.

The refurb 1012 also came loaded with the previous owners data, a scratch mark or two on the inside shell, an extra sticker someone put on & then took off (leaving a residue). The worst, is the hard drive seems to be making a noise every 15 or so minutes (I havent timed it).

Dell said I can return it without a restocking fee & they appologized for the 'mess'.

So, forgetting the money factor for a moment, which one is better to keep?

I have a SSD I was planning on putting into one of hte two units. The machine is really going to replace my mini 9 which I bring for tech support calls (minor stuff, downloads, login checking, etc). I wouldnt mind tethering it to my android phone for data but thats not the priority.

Any advice on what to keep or what to check?

Thanks,
Rich

[reflex]

A 1018 is mostly a base 1012. The only plus of the 1018 is that it takes DDR3, which probably makes it cheaper to upgrade to 2GB. If money isn't a concern, the 1012 would always be my choice.

The hard drive noise is probably the heads parking. You can confirm it's the heads parking by checking the drive's SMART data. The "Load_Cycle_Count" should increase by one every time you hear the noise. If wished, you can adjust settings to prevent head parking.

I hope you enjoy whichever one you decide to keep.

[tikblang]

If I were you I will request for a new shell -(the color cover are usually free - not the base) (will come with a new scratch free bezel). Then sell the one you no like.

That's me.

[RichTJ99]

I am still on the fence on which one to keep. I find the 1012 screen to be more washed out color wise. The 1018 seems sharper, in terms of color.

I admit the 1012 screen size is nicer, but I dont know if its worth keeping.

For $240 out of pocket, its a nice little machine. But the 1018 at free is good too.

I had thought that the broadcom HD chip would make full screen youtube or hulu a reality, but thats not the case at all.

Still trying to figure it out but I have a shipping label from Dell in my email box & another week or two to figure out what to do.

Decisions, decisions...

[plchan]

1) Do you care about the scratches, HD noise, or some other stuff which you do not like from 1012?
2) What do you plan to use the 1012 for?
3) If 1018 is a brand new, I will always take a brand new unit, and sell it and buy another one. If you would spend $240 for an used 1012, I would return the refurb, sell the 1018 for about $200 (or more??), then buy a brand new 1012 with 2G ram

however, it is just I would do.

[tikblang]

My 1012 has a nice crisp screen and can play streaming netflix/Hulu OK on the stock hard drive. (OS is on 30 gig partition)

Now if you can put OWC or Vertex 2 and Dell will give you a scratch free back cover with bezel for free on your 1012, Are you still going to keep your 1018?

If I am in your shoes, I'll sell the 1018 for US$250, use the money to buy "Kingston SSDNow V+ Series SNVP325-S2/64GB or Mushkin MKNSSDCL60GB-DX or OCZ-SSD2-2VTXE60G" and 2 gig of RAM.

Keep in mind you already have a 1366x768, Crystal Decoder, Artheros Wifi and maybe Bluetooth plus the extra USB and mike input.

I gave up my all black 1018 for US$350 and got a scratch-and-dent (REFURB!!) FOR 270 (with TAX and shipping 305)

[RichTJ99]

Maybe I will do a windows install on another SSD I have sitting around, just to be sure its not some sort of Dell bloatware.

I feel that the 1366x768 screen in the Mini1012 isnt as nice looking, its crisp, it just seems that the colors look duller than the 1024x600 screen on the 1018.

I am starting to feel that with 2gb in both the 18 & 12, the systems are pretty much identical except the 12 has the better screen with broadcom HD chip.

The larger screen is nice for the extra real estate, but it just doesnt look as colorful. There is a real difference, maybe I can take a photo of the screens with a camera.

I like that the 12 has a larger community (though it is pretty quiet), the 18 has almost no one around.

Both seem to be a bit faster than my mini 9, though it could be that crappy mini 9 weird SSD thats slower than SATA.

---------- Post added at 03:53 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:52 AM ----------

OH, & My only concern about the 1012 is that someone returned it for some reason, & I get the impression that Dell basically got it, then repackaged it. That is based on having the previous users data on the machine. I have since nuked it but the hard drive noise is strange to me as well. Again, I plan on swapping hard drives, but part of me wonders whats wrong with this thing that it was returned.