Dell 1526, 1525 User Manual 2

Dell™ Inspiron™ 1525/1526

Owner’s Manual

Model PP29L

www.dell.com | support.dell.com

Notes, Notices, and Cautions

NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better use of

your computer.

NOTICE: A NOTICE indicates either potential damage to hardware or loss of data

and tells you how to avoid the problem.

CAUTION: A CAUTION indicates a potential for property damage, personal injury,

or death.

___________________

Reproduction in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of Dell Inc. is strictly forbidden. Trademarks used in this text: Dell, the DELL logo, Inspiron, Wi-Fi Catcher, and Dell MediaDirect

are trademarks of Dell Inc.; Intel and Core are registered trademarks of Intel Corporation.; AMD, AMD Turion, Athlon, Sempron, ATI Radeon and combinations thereof are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.; Microsoft, Windows, and Windows V ista are either trademarks or re gistered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries; Bluetooth is a registered trademark owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and is used by Dell under license. Blu-ray Disc is a trademark of the Blu-ray Disc Association.

Other trademarks and trade names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming the marks and names or their products. Dell Inc. disclaims any proprietary interest in trademarks and trade names other than its own.

Model PP29L

October 2007 P/N NN491 Rev. A01

Contents

Finding Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

1 About Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Front View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Left Side View

Right Side View

Back View

Bottom View

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

2 Setting Up Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Connecting to the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Setting Up Your Internet Connection

Transferring Information to a New Computer

Windows Easy Transfer

Setting Up a Printer

Printer Cable

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Connecting a USB Printer

Power Protection Devices

Surge Protectors

Line Conditioners

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

. . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Uninterruptible Power Supplies

. . . . . . . . 32

. . . . . 33

. . . . . . . . . . 36

Contents 3

3 Using the Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Adjusting Brightness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Switching the Video Image From Your Computer Display To a Projector

. . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Setting Display Resolution and Refresh Rate

. . . . . . 38

4 Using the Keyboard and Touchpad . . . . . 39

Numeric Keypad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Key Combinations

System Functions

Display Functions

Battery

Power Management

Microsoft

Dell™ QuickSet Key Combinations

Adjusting Keyboard Settings

Touch Pad

Customizing the Touch Pad

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Windows® Logo Key Functions . . . . 41

. . . . . . . . . 41

. . . . . . . . . . . . 41

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

. . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

5 Using a Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Battery Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

4 Contents

Checking the Battery Charge

Dell QuickSet Battery Meter

Microsoft

Windows® Battery Meter . . . . . . . 47

Low-Battery Warning

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

. . . . . . . . . . . . 46

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Conserving Battery Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Configuring Power Management Settings

Using the Sleep Power State

. . . . . . . . . . . 48

. . . . . 48

Charging the Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Replacing the Battery

Storing a Battery

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

6 Using Multimedia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Playing Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Playing Media Using Dell Travel Remote (Optional)

Copying CD, DVD, and Blu-ray Disc™ (BD) Media

How to Copy a CD, DVD or BD

Using Blank CD, DVD, and BD Media

Helpful Tips

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Adjusting the Volume

Adjusting the Picture

Using Dell MediaDirect™

Connecting Your Computer to a TV or Audio Device

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

S-Video and Standard Audio

S-Video and S/PDIF Digital Audio

Composite Video and Standard Audio

Composite Video and S/PDIF Digital Audio

Component Video and Standard Audio

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

. . . . . . . . . . . 55

. . . . . . . 55

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

. . . . . . . . . . . . 61

. . . . . . . . . 62

. . . . . . . 64

. . . . 66

. . . . . . 68

Contents 5

Component Video and S/PDIF Digital Audio . . . . 71

HDMI (Optional)

Enabling the Display Settings for a TV

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

. . . . . . . 74

7 Using the Optional Camera . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Accessing the Camera’s Help File . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Manually Adjusting the Camera Settings

Creating a Picture or a Video

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

. . . . . . . . 76

8 Using Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

ExpressCards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

ExpressCard Blanks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Installing an ExpressCard

Removing an ExpressCard or Blank

Memory Card Reader

Memory Card Blanks

Installing a Memory Card

Removing a Memory Card or Blank

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

. . . . . . . . . . . 79

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

. . . . . . . . . . . 81

9 Setting Up and Using Networks . . . . . . . 83

6 Contents

Connecting a Network or Broadband Modem Cable

Setting Up a Network

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Wireless Local Area Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

What You Need to Establish a WLAN Connection

Checking Your Wireless Network Card

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

. . . . . . 84

Setting Up a New WLAN Using a Wireless Router and a Broadband Modem

Connecting to a WLAN

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

. . . . 85

Mobile Broadband (or Wireless Wide Area Network)

. . . . . . . . . . . 88

What You Need to Establish a Mobile Broadband Network Connection

Checking Your Dell Mobile Broadband Card

Connecting to a Mobile Broadband Network

. . . . . 88

. . . . 89

. . . 90

Enabling/Disabling the Dell Mobile Broadband Card

. . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Dell Wi-Fi Catcher™ Network Locator

. . . . . . . . . 91

10 Securing Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Security Cable Lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Passwords

If Your Computer Is Lost or Stolen

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

. . . . . . . . . . . 94

11 Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Dell Technical Update Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Dell Diagnostics

Dell Support Utility

Dell Support 3

DellConnect

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

Contents 7

Network Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

PC TuneUp

PC CheckUp

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

Drive Problems

Optical drive problems

Hard drive problems

E-Mail, Modem, and Internet Problems

Error Messages

ExpressCard Problems

IEEE 1394 Device Problems

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

. . . . . . . . . 104

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Keyboard Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

External Keyboard problems

Unexpected characters

Lockups and Software Problems

The computer does not start

The computer stops responding

. . . . . . . . . . . . 112

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

. . . . . . . . . . . . 113

. . . . . . . . . . 113

A program stops responding or crashes repeatedly

A program is designed for an earlier Microsoft

Windows® operating system . . . . . 114

A solid blue screen appears

Dell MediaDirect problems

Finding Information

NOTE: Some features may be optional and may not ship with your computer. Some

features may not be available in certain countries.

NOTE: Additional information may ship with your computer.

What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

• A diagnostic program for my computer

• Drivers for my computer

• Device documentation

• Notebook System Software (NSS)

Drivers and Utilities Media

Documentation and drivers are already installed on your computer. You can use the Drivers and Utilities media to reinstall drivers (see "Reinstalling Drivers and Utilities" on page 125) or run the Dell Diagnostics (see "Dell Diagnostics" on page 95).

Readme files may be included on your Drivers and Utilities media to provide last-minute updates about technical changes to your computer or advanced technical-reference material for technicians or experienced users.

NOTE: Drivers and documentation updates

can be found at support.dell.com.

Finding Information 13

What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

• Warranty information

• Terms and Conditions (U.S. only)

• Safety instructions

• Regulatory information

• Ergonomics information

• End User License Agreement

Dell™ Product Information Guide

• How to set up my computer

• Service Tag and Express Service Code

• Microsoft Windows License Label

Setup Diagram

Service Tag and Microsoft® Windows® License

These labels are located on your computer.

• Use the Service Tag to identify your computer when you use

support.dell.com

• Enter the Express Service Code to direct your call when contacting support.

or contact support.

NOTE: As an increased security measure,

the newly designed Microsoft Windows license label incorporates a missing portion or "hole" to discourage removal of the label.

14 Finding Information

What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

• Solutions — Troubleshooting hints and tips, articles from technicians, online courses, and frequently asked questions

Dell Support Website — support.dell.com

NOTE: Select your region or business

segment to view the appropriate support site.

• Community — Online discussion with other Dell customers

• Upgrades — Upgrade information for components, such as the memory, hard drive, and operating system

• Customer Care — Contact information, service call and order status, and warranty and repair information

• Service and support — Service call status, support history, service contract, and online discussions with support

• Dell Technical Update Service — Proactive e-mail notification of software and hardware updates for your computer

• Reference — Computer documentation, details on my computer configuration, product specifications, and white papers

• Downloads — Certified drivers, patches, and software updates

• Notebook System Software (NSS) — If you reinstall the operating system on your computer, you should also reinstall the NSS utility. NSS automatically detects your computer and operating system, and installs the updates appropriate for your configuration, providing critical updates for your operating system and support for Dell

3.5-inch USB floppy drives, Intel

processors, optical drives, and USB devices. NSS is necessary for correct operation of your Dell computer.

To download Notebook System Software:

Go to

support.dell.com

country/region, and then click

Drivers & Downloads

Enter your Service Tag or product model, and then click

Select your operating system and language, and then click or under the keyword

NOTE: The support.dell.com user interface

may vary depending on your selections.

, select your

Find Downloads

Downloads Search

Notebook System Software

, search for

Finding Information 15

What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

• Software upgrades and troubleshooting hints — Frequently asked questions, hot topics, and general health of your computing environment

Dell Support Utility

The Dell Support Utility is an automated upgrade and notification system installed on your computer. This support provides real-time health scans of your computing environment, software updates, and relevant self-support information. Access the Dell Support Utility from the

icon on the taskbar. For more information, see "Dell Support Utility

• How to use Windows Vista

• How to work with programs and files

• How to personalize my desktop

Windows Help and Support

Click the Windows Vista Start button

, and then click

Search Help

describes your problem, and then press <Enter> or click the magnifying glass.

Click the topic that describes your problem.

Follow the instructions on the screen.

• Information on network activity, the Power Management Wizard, hotkeys, and other items controlled by Dell QuickSet

Dell QuickSet Help

To view

Dell QuickSet Help, right-click

the QuickSet icon in the Microsoft Windows taskbar is located in the lower-right corner of your screen.

" on page 99

Help and Support

, type a word or phrase that

taskbar, and select Help. The

16 Finding Information

What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

• How to reinstall my operating system

Operating System Media

The operating system is already installed on your computer. To reinstall your operating system, use one of the following methods:

• Microsoft Windows System Restore — Microsoft Windows System Restore returns your computer to an earlier operating state without affecting data files.

• Operating System Installation Media — If you received operating system media with your computer, you can use it to restore your operating system.

For more information, see "Restoring Your Operating System" on page 128.

After you reinstall your operating system, use the Drivers and Utilities media to reinstall drivers for the devices that came with your computer.

Your operating system product key label is located on your computer.

NOTE: The color of your operating system

installation media varies according to the operating system you ordered.

Finding Information 17

18 Finding Information

About Your Computer

Front View

11 10 8169

About Your Computer 19

1 camera indicator (optional) 2 camera (optional)

3 display 4 power button

5 media control buttons (7) 6 keyboard

7 touch pad 8 8-in-1 media card reader

9 analog microphone 10 microphone connector

11 headphone connectors (2) 12 consumer IR

13 touch pad buttons (2) 14 device status lights

15 Dell MediaDirect™ button 16 keyboard status lights

17 digital array microphones (optional)

CAMERA INDICATOR — Indicates that the camera is on. Based on configuration

selections you made when ordering your computer, your computer may not include a camera.

CAMERA — Built-in camera for video capture, conferencing, and chat. Based on

configuration selections you made when ordering your computer, your computer may not include a camera.

DISPLAY — For more information about your display, see "Using the Display" on page 39.

POWER BUTTON — Press the power button to turn on the computer or exit a power

management mode (see "Configuring Power Management Settings" on page 50).

NOTICE: To avoid losing data, turn off your computer by performing a Microsoft

Windows® operating system shutdown rather than by pressing the power button.

If the computer stops responding, press and hold the power button until the computer turns off completely (may take several seconds).

MEDIA CONTROL BUTTONS — Control CD, DVD, and Media Player playback.

Mute the sound Play the previous track

Turn the volume down Play the next track

Turn the volume up Stop

Play or pause

20 About Your Computer

KEYBOARD — For more information about the keyboard, see "Using the Keyboard

and Touchpad" on page 41.

TOUCH PAD — Provides the functionality of a mouse (see "Touch Pad" on page 43).

IN-1 MEDIA CARD READER — Provides a fast and convenient way to view and share

digital photos, music, and videos stored on a media memory card. The computer ships with a plastic blank installed in the slot. The 8-in-1 memory card reader reads the following digital media memory cards:

• Secure Digital (SD) memory card

• Secure Digital Input Output (SDIO) card

• MultiMediaCard (MMC)

•Memory Stick

• Memory Stick PRO

• xD-Picture Card

• Hi Speed-SD

• Hi Density-SD

ANALOG MICROPHONE — Integrated single microphone for conferencing and chat.

AUDIO CONNECTORS

Attach headphones to the connector

Attach a microphone to the connector

CONSUMER IR — Infrared sensor for using the Dell Travel Remote. See "Playing Media Using Dell Travel Remote (Optional)" on page 53.

TOUCH PAD BUTTONS — Use these buttons much like the buttons on a mouse when

you use the touch pad to move the cursor on the display (see "Touch Pad" on page 43).

About Your Computer 21

DEVICE STATUS LIGHTS

The lights located on the palm rest towards the front of the computer indicate the following:

Power light – Turns on when you turn on the computer, and blinks when the computer is in a power management mode.

Hard drive activity light – Turns on when the computer reads or writes data.

NOTICE: To avoid loss of data, never turn off the computer while the

light is flashing.

Battery status light – Turns on steadily or blinks to indicate battery charge status.

WiFi status light – Turns on when wireless networking is enabled. To enable or disable wireless networking, use the wireless switch (see "wireless switch" on page 27).

22 About Your Computer

Bluetooth® status light – Turns on when a card with Bluetooth wireless technology is enabled.

NOTE: The card with Bluetooth wireless technology is an optional feature. The

light turns on only if you ordered the card with your computer. For more

information, see the documentation that came with your card.

To turn off only the Bluetooth wireless technology functionality, right-click the icon in the notification area, and then click Disable Bluetooth Radio.

To quickly enable or disable all wireless devices, use the wireless switch (see "wireless switch" on page 24).

If the computer is connected to an electrical outlet, the light operates as follows:

– Solid blue: The battery is charging. – Flashing blue: The battery is almost fully charged. – Off: The battery is adequately charged.

If the computer is running on a battery, the light operates as follows:

– Off: The battery is adequately charged (or the computer is turned off). – Flashing orange: The battery charge is low. – Solid

orange

: The battery charge is critically low.

DELL MEDIADIRECT™ BUTTON — Press the Dell MediaDirect button to launch Dell MediaDirect (see "Using Dell MediaDirect™" on page 62).

KEYBOARD STATUS LIGHTS

The blue lights located above the keyboard indicate the following:

About Your Computer 23

Turns on when the numeric keypad is enabled.

Turns on when the uppercase letter (caps lock) function is enabled.

Turns on when the scroll lock function is enabled.

DIGITAL ARRAY MICROPHONES — Built-in microphone for conferencing and chat.

NOTE: Digital array microphones are optional and may not be present in your

computer unless you have ordered for the optional camera. Instead, your computer will have an integrated single analog microphone.

24 About Your Computer

Left Side View

1 27934 5 6 8

1 security cable slot 2 AC power adapter

3 USB connectors (2) 4 video connector (VGA)

5 network connector (RJ-45) 6 modem connector (RJ-11)

7 HDMI connector 8 IEEE 1394a connector

9 hard drive

SECURITY CABLE SLOT — Lets you attach a commercially available antitheft device

to the computer (see "Security Cable Lock" on page 93).

ADAPTER CONNECTOR — Attaches an AC adapter to the computer.

The AC adapter converts AC power to the DC power required by the computer. You can connect the AC adapter with your computer turned on or off.

About Your Computer 25

CAUTION: The AC adapter works with electrical outlets worldwide. However,

power connectors and power strips vary among countries. Using an incompatible cable or improperly connecting the cable to the power strip or electrical outlet may cause fire or equipment damage.

NOTICE: When you disconnect the AC adapter cable from the computer, grasp the

connector, not the cable itself, and pull firmly, but gently to help prevent damage to the cable.

NOTE: Plug the power cord and the adapter firmly in, and ensure that the

green LED is on.

CONNECTORS

USB

Connect USB devices, such as a mouse, keyboard, or printer.

VIDEO CONNECTOR

Connects video devices, such as a monitor.

NETWORK

CONNECTOR (RJ-45)

Connects the computer to a network. The two lights next to the connector indicate status and activity for wired network connections.

For information on using the network adapter, see the device user’s guide supplied with your computer.

MODEM CONNECTOR (RJ-11)

Connect the telephone line to the modem connector.

For information on using the modem, see the online modem documentation supplied with your computer.

HDMI C

ONNECTOR — HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface)

connector carries an uncompressed all digital signal to produce hi-definition video and audio.

26 About Your Computer

IEEE 1394 CONNECTOR — Connects devices supporting IEEE 1394a high-speed

transfer rates, such as some digital video cameras.

HARD DRIVE — Stores software and data.

Right Side View

1 5 6743

1 wireless switch 2 Wi-Fi Catcher light

3 ExpressCard slot 4 optical drive

5 eject button 6 S-video TV-out connector

7 USB connectors (2)

About Your Computer 27

WIRELESS SWITCH — When enabled through Dell QuickSet, this switch can scan for

a wireless local area network (WLAN) in your vicinity. You can also use it to rapidly turn off or on any wireless devices such as WLAN cards and internal cards with Bluetooth wireless technology (see "Dell Wi-Fi Catcher™ Network Locator" on page 91).

1 2

1 off Disables wireless devices

2 on Enables wireless devices

3 momentary Scans for WLAN networks (see "Dell Wi-Fi

Catcher™ Network Locator" on page 91).

4 Wi-Fi Catcher light Flashing blue: Searching for networks

Solid blue: Strong network found

Solid yellow: Weak network found

Off: No signal found

XPRESSCARD SLOT — Supports one ExpressCard. The computer ships with a

plastic blank installed in the slot. For more information, see "Using Cards" on page 85.

OPTICAL DRIVE — For more information about the optical drive, see "Using

Multimedia" on page 55.

EJECT BUTTON — Press the eject button to open the optical drive.

28 About Your Computer

S-VIDEO TV-OUT CONNECTOR

Connects your computer to a TV. Also connects digital audiocapable devices using the TV/digital audio adapter cable.

USB CONNECTORS

Connect USB devices, such as a mouse, keyboard, or printer.

NOTE: Your computer may have one or two USB connectors depending on what

you ordered.

Back View

1 battery 2 air vents

CAUTION: Do not block, push objects into, or allow dust to accumulate in the air

vents. Do not store your computer in a low-airflow environment, such as a closed briefcase, while it is running. Restricting the airflow can damage the computer or cause a fire.

AIR VENTS — The computer uses an internal fan to create airflow through the vents,

which prevents the computer from overheating. The computer turns the fan on when the computer gets hot. Fan noise is normal and does not indicate a problem with the fan or the computer.

About Your Computer 29

Bottom View

2 3

1 battery 2 battery release latch

3 processor/memory module/mini-card compartment 4 hard drive

5 optical drive

BATTERY — When a battery is installed, you can use the computer without

connecting the computer to an electrical outlet (see "Using a Battery" on page 45).

BATTERY RELEASE LATCH —Releases the battery (see "Replacing the Battery" on

page 49 for instructions).

ROCESSOR/MEMORY MODULE/MINI-CARD COMPARTMENT — Compartment that

contains the memory modules, WLAN, WWAN, Ultra Wideband (UWB) cards or Flash Cache Module (FCM) (see "Wireless Mini-Cards" on page 147).

ARD DRIVE — Stores software and data.

OPTICAL DRIVE — For more information about the optical drive, see "Using

Multimedia" on page 51.

30 About Your Computer

+ 176 hidden pages