This is a guide to running Linux with the Dell Inspiron E1505 laptop. The Inspiron E1505 is an entry level laptop from Dell but does have decent specifications. Unfortunately at the moment Linux support is not good because of the lack of open source radeon modules.
This guide is intended to provide you details on how well this laptop works with Linux and which modules you need to configure. For details on how to actually install and configure the required modules have a look at our guides section for distribution specific instructions.
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| Name | Dell Inspiron E1505 |
| Processor | Intel Core Duo T2050 1.60GHz |
| Screen | 15.4” WXGA |
| RAM | 1GB |
| HDD | 160GB |
| Optical Drive | DVD+-RW |
| Graphics | ATI Mobility Radeon X1300 |
| Network | 10/100 Ethernet, Intel 3945 802.11g Wireless |
| Other | 4 x USB2.0, 1 x Firewire |
| Device | Compatibility | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Processor | Yes | |
| Screen | Yes | |
| Optical Drive | Yes | |
| Graphics | Yes | |
| Sound | Yes | Use the snd-hda-intel module |
| Ethernet | Yes | |
| Wireless | Yes | Use ipw3945 module |
| Bluetooth | Not Tested | |
| 56K Modem | Not Tested | |
| USB | Yes | |
| Firewire | Not Tested | |
| Card Reader | Not Tested | |
| ExpressCard | Not Tested |
The ATI Mobility Radeon X1300 in the Inspiron E1505 is not yet supported by the open source radeon module so you will need to used the proprietary ATI module. These driver will need to be installed to get the display working properly.
Certain models of the Dell Inspiron E1505 use the ATI Mobility Radeon x1400. There shouldn't be any difference to this compared to the X1300.
Other models of the Dell Inspiron E1505 include the Intel Media Accelerator 950. You can read our guide for information on dealing with this graphics chip.
Certain models of the Dell Inspiron E1505 come with the Dell Wireless 1390 wireless controller rather than the Intel 3945. Linux users with kernel versions 2.6.22.x or less should use ndiswrapper with the driver provided by Dell via their website. Although newer kernels (e.g. 2.6.24.x) now contain a built in driver for this wireless card, development is still work in progress.
The main difficulty in getting the Dell Inspiron E1505 working with Linux is the display controller. However future Linux distributions should fix this issue.
Discussion
I have Puppy Linux 4.3.1 running on this laptop model.
Everything seems to work but Hibernate/Resume. Upon
closing the lid, the display goes black, the WIFI LED stays
blinking, but when you open the lid, it does not resume.
Any ideas?
I have just started messing with Linux and was able to successfully install Ubuntu within Windows XP on my Dell Inspiron E1505. As I am new to this and I am experimenting, I am pleased that I was able to get Ubuntu running. However, I don't have a hardwire internet connection and am having difficulty activating my wireless card.