The Dell Inspiron One 2330 we tested, the middle-of-the-range model, had solid every-day performance credentials in the form of an Intel Core i5-3330S CPU clocked at 2.7GHz (3.2GHz after Turbo Boost 2.0), 6GB of 1600MHz DDR3 RAM (a 2GB and a 4GB stick working together; the system is expandable to a maximum of 16GB), Intel’s CPU-integrated HD 4000 graphics, and a 1TB 7200RPM 3.5-inch hard drive.
These components may not be the fastest available, nor the highest spec for the Inspiron One 2330, but in our testing we found that they were more than fast enough for any Web browsing, word processing, basic non-3D and older 3D gaming, as well as Full HD movie watching and limited photo processing.
We recorded a time of 35 seconds in our four-core Blender 3D rendering test, which tests outright CPU processing power — a promising result compared to the Medion P2010 D and Acer Aspire U Series with which the Inspiron One 2330 competes. An iTunes conversion result of 46 seconds, to convert 53min of music files from WAVE to MP3, is similarly adequate.
Where the Inspiron One 2330 stumbles slightly, in theory at least, is in its integrated Intel HD 4000 graphics and traditional spinning-disk 1TB hard drive. The Intel graphics chipset can handle Full HD video decoding, and most games from 2011 and before, but struggles when pitted against modern performance powerhouses like Far Cry 3 and Dishonored. This is evidenced in a merely-OK score of 5012 in 3DMark 06. The 1TB HDD is spacious and quick enough for a traditional disk, but falls down in instantaneous performance and boot speed when compared against a similar PC with a solid-state drive.
The touchscreen component of the One 2330 functioned exactly as we expected, allowing seamless access to Microsoft’s extensive library of touch-based commands, apps and features within Windows 8. If you want a desktop PC and want to run Windows 8, the always-there-even-if-you-don’t-need-it touchscreen is a useful extra.
All in all, the Inspiron One 2330 has more than enough power to handle every-day computing tasks, as well as a small range of more processor-intensive tasks like photo editing. Unless you’re aiming to play modern video games, it’s an adequate performer.
Dell Inspiron One 2330: Conclusion
The Dell Inspiron One 2330 is an uncomplicated, unpretentious all-in-one PC — it’s got a solid design, adequately powerful components, and features (like touch) that might come in handy in the future. It’s hard to see it as great value when the Medion P2010 D is $700, but it is cheaper than the 21.5-inch iMac many buyers will compare it against.
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