The disadvantage as mentioned is that with any branded computer or laptop that you will have to likely deal with proprietary software, hardware, etc. Obviously, that means you have to deal with the manufacturer for your upgrades, updates, etc.

Aside from that, my old Inspiron 8100 works fine. I wasn't terrribly happy with tech support the few times I called them because they (at the time, not sure if it's still like that), outsourced it to some place in India and I had a major problem understanding what they're saying with their heavy East Indian accent.