Currently I have a dell Inspiron 1300.

It has an Intel Centrino processor 1.7 GHz, 512MB Ram (Recognizes 504MB?) And i think it has a 60GB Hard Drive, though it recognises 52.6 GB of this. (It's seperated onto 2 disk drives, the main drive and a backup drive).

What improvements would you suggest for my laptop? Also, what kind of devices are available for the express card slot on the side, which I have not used yet.

Thanks.

Before telling you what improvements you can make, can you tell us what is wrong with the PC? Meaning, do you feel it's too slow already?

Also what OS do you run, and what programs do you use the most?

Nothing is actually wrong with it, I feel it just needs a bit of a RAM boost, i'd like a fast laptop as i'm a bit of a performance freak at the moment.

Programs could range from photoshop to word, mIRC... pretty much anything, I use windows XP.

Yes, a portion of your system memory is used for your graphics card, which means you have an integrated graphics chip that does not have dedicated memory. This is bad for gaming, but shouldn't matter anywhere else.

I would definitely boost the amount of RAM in your system. Doubling it would be good, but the more the merrier. That system in particular, if I remember correctly, takes DDR-2. You might want to consult with a website like www.crucial.com or www.memoryx.net to find out exactly what you need and once you've decided on what size and type of RAM module to purchase, check out the prices at www.newegg.com.

The processor is upgradeable in that system, but not by much, so that isn't worth considering. Your graphics card cannot be upgraded. Your hard drive could be upgraded, but for speed, the difference would probably be minimal. So, memory is definitely your best bet. Keep in mind you may have software issues too, which are slowing your computer down. A fresh install of Windows XP or some troubleshooting (spyware, viruses, lots of programs on startu etc?) could give you better performance as well.

Really, not much. Connectivity expansion gadgets (eSATA, USB, Firwire ports, network connectivity etc..), TV tuners and sound cards.. that's about all I've seen.

what product would i need to get firewire on the inspiron 1300?

or how would i get my data from my dv camera onto the inspiron, im realy stuck!

thanks 70013

buy a PCMCIA Firewire Card at ebay