The large, matte trackpad, which is located in the center of the keyboard deck, is accurate but a bit too sensitive. In my tests, the mouse jumped around every time I touched the trackpad. After some acclimation, however, I found the trackpad (which is multitouch-capable) pretty easy to use. The two large discrete mouse buttons on the trackpad are soft and easy to press, but seem a little flimsy.

Four buttons are located on the keyboard deck: the power button, a settings button that takes you to Windows Mobility Center, an audio button that opens Dell Audio software, and a programmable hotkey.

This Ultrabook offers only two USB ports (though both are USB 3.0), an HDMI port, an ethernet port, and a combination microphone/headphone jack. The ports on the left side of the machine (one of the USB ports, the ethernet port, and the HDMI port) are covered by little flaps, which are mostly just annoying.

The Inspiron 14z's glossy 14-inch screen has a native resolution of 1366 by 768 pixels. The screen looks generally good, with bright whites, slightly grayish blacks, and good color representation, but overall it's a little too dim, even at the highest brightness setting in a darkened room. On a more positive note, the range of acceptable viewing angles is pretty impressive, with little darkening or washing out when you move a few feet to either side of the screen.