Dell Latitude 2110 review

The new Dell Latitude 2110 is a netbook aimed at businesses and schools, with a tough, rubberised finish that's designed to withstand a lot of punishment. It's fitted with an Intel Atom N470 processor and its 10.1in widescreen LCD has a resistive touch interface. Our review sample also came with the optional Bluetooth module, and you can even add a 3G modem for mobile broadband.

It also came with the optional 6-cell battery, which protrudes from the bottom rear of the laptop. We were hoping this bulky battery would result in an amazing battery life, but a result of only seven hours in our light usage test was disappointing. This is still good for long flights or days out of the office, but the bulky battery means you may have trouble fitting the 2110 in your bag.

In our tests, its overall score of 16 is actually slightly lower than we'd expect for a netbook, and in the multi-tasking test it scored only nine points, so it's only suitable for running one application at a time. This is fine if you just want to check email, browse the web or write a document, but image or video editing will slow it down dramatically.

Graphics performance isn’t great either, and the 2110 can’t decode YouTube's 720p video content smoothly; the 1,024x600 screen isn’t able to display 720p pixel-for-pixel in any case. The touch-sensitive layer and the matt finish on the screen conspire to dull the image quality, while contrast is poor and the backlight dim.

As with most laptops, the speakers lack bass and don't produce a decent volume, but they're sufficient for voice chat and watching YouTube videos. It's also worth noting that the screen only tilts back by about 40 degrees, so it will be awkward to use in cramped areas such as an airline seat.

We found the keyboard very comfortable to type on. The layout is standard and each key has a slightly concave surface, so your fingers can sense more easily where they land on the key. The touchpad is tiny, but its two small buttons are set close to the edge of the case where your thumb rests naturally.

We haven't talked much about the touchscreen, and that's because there's not much to say about it. You can't really use Windows properly without a mouse, and because the screen doesn't fold flat, it can't be used as a tablet, so we don't see the need for it unless your company has developed applications designed for touch control.

Although it costs as little as £389 for a Windows 7 model (it's also available with Linux), our review sample came with a few extras such as Bluetooth and the 6-cell battery that added to the cost. It's built to last, but the 2110 doesn't have the battery life of other less expensive netbooks and its performance isn't as good as some larger CULV notebooks that last just as long away from the mains, such as Packard Bell's dot u.