Dells extensive desktop family now includes the new Inspiron 518. Backed by the Dell name, quality, and power, this mini tower desktop provides high performance for any type of user. With a shiny black casing and beautiful chrome accents, this desktop can make any office or room look a bit more exotic. The Inspirons budget, along with functionality, is geared a bit more towards families and students than those techy individuals out there.

Like any Dell, you can custom build this desktop. Without any upgrades or additions, the standard mini tower starts at $329. Other manufacturers offer similar desktops for a little less money; however, the Inspiron is back by the Dell name along with superb support for the first year.

The power and high performance comes from the 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Quad Q660 and 320GB 5,400 rpm hard drive. You will also find, as part of the standard build, 2GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM, 256MB ATI Radeon HD 3450, and gigabit Ethernet, along with a dual-layer DVD burner. Dell will install Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (32-bit) as the operating system, on all Inspiron 518s.

Notice that there is no option for the installation of the 64-bit version of Windows Vista. Unfortunately, the Inspiron 518 is not flexible in this sense, as it only supports a 32-bit operating system. 64-bit operating systems require more memory, which this system does not have. If you are planning to upgrade to Windows 7, you will first have to upgrade the memory, and any other necessary hardware, to get the desktop up to speed to handle a 64-bit OS.

Dell did an amazing job making this model compact and elegant. Not only is the system itself user-friendly, but so is the physical casing of the unit. At the top of the unit you will find a small tray shaped indent. This is for convenient charging and storing of plug-n-play devices. There are two additional USB 2.0 ports, near the tray, so you can easily plug you MP3 player, cell phone, or even a camera, in while neatly placed out of your way.

Dell provides consumers with friendly interfaces and easy navigation. To increase the user experience, they have now added what is called the Dell Dock. Similar to Vistas sidebar, you can customize this dock to hold icons for your favorite applications and files. This gives you easy one-click access to those things you use most. You can customize where the dock appears, on your desktop, along with the option to completely shut it off.

Some of Dells standard features, or upgrades, are not available on the Inspiron 518. The graphics card, for example. Users can only choose between the low-end graphics card and the ATI Radeon HD 3450. (This is a big deal because this is not one of the most robust graphics card on the market.) Additionally, consumers cannot add a Blu-ray drive to the Inspiron 518; you will have to stick with your standard optical drives.

The Inspiron 518 is a budget friendly computer. Combine this with its high performance and the number of features it offers, and you’ve got yourself an amazing everyday computer. Whether you are looking for a computer for a student or an entire family, the Inspiron 518 is a good fit.