External ports/interface?

[maniac_X]

Anyone know what external ports are on the laptop? Specifically, does it come with a serial port(for using a hardware modem)?? I went to the website and could not find the specifics regarding this. I did note that it DOES NOT come with a modem. For some of us who have no option except dial-up, this would pretty much kill the deal for aquiring the laptop unless there is a serial port to hook up a external hardware modem for internet access.

[ernestw]

The E1505 does come with a modem - I see the RJ-11 jack on the back of the laptop and under the restricted drivers list I see "Conexant modem engine". No serial port though.

[maniac_X]

I guess things over at Dell are a little fluid still. I could have sworn when I visited thier site prior to my initial post here that the website specifically had a small listing saying "no modem". From past experience I know better than to assume certain hardware will be included unless it's specifically mentioned. On that point, I find it odd that they would exclude the mention of a modem especially since many developing countries will find that little bit of info pretty valuable once Dell starts offering the Ubuntu/Linux units outside the U.S.

After further research (http://linux.dell.com/wiki/index.php/Tech/Modems), it looks like currently the modem is a built-in Intel chipset using a Conexant driver(as noted by ernestw above). Things are looking extremely promising for my first laptop purchase :D

They sure make you dig for the info though which is probably my only bone of contention with Dell right now.

.