How do Dell-Notebooks work with FreeBSD (video/audio/wlan)?

[M. Hueck]

...
> Has anyone any experience with them?
> Is all of the build-in hardware supported? What about accelerated video?

I'm using an Inspiron 8200 with a nvidia card and the nvidia driver works
fine.

> There is some choice about different displays, and some of them have
> very very high resolutions like 1600x1200 on a 15"-screen. Is such a
> display usable under X?

I'm using a 1600x1200 15" screen right now with X and its definitely usable,
not too small at all, and _VERY_ sharp.

> And another very important question:
...

> Especially I would like to know whether Dell-Notebooks have
> an line-in, since I'm not certain from the descriptions on the web-site.

My 8200 has a line-in and a mic-in.

> Also: is the audio-output very noisy or can I use the line in for any
> recordings? (I don't need very high quality, but I'd like to record
> Myself playing guitar and use that as background-music for
> improvisations).

Audio quality is decent, but not great.

...

> I'm not entirely sure, but I think that the wlan hardware kinda works,
> even if I have to use ndisulator, right? Is there any hope that I don't
> have use it one day?

I have had the 54 mbit mini-pci card working under linux with ndiswrapper.
I'd say the same should be possible in FreeBSD, but I yet have to try to get
it to work.

M. Hueck