The 1130 has less in common than you might assume with the similarly named Dell 1130n Laser Printer ($179 direct, 2.5 stars), that I reviewed about a year ago. Aside from lacking a network connector (the giveaway that the 1130 is meant as a personal printer), the 1130 has a slower engine rating and a lower rated duty cycle (the maximum number of pages it can print per month without harming the printer).
What the two share is essentially the same size and weight, at 7.8 by 14.2 by 15.3 inches (HWD) and 16 pounds for the 1130. That makes them both smaller and lighter than some inkjets, which also helps define them as personal printers. Both also offer the same paper handling, with a 250-page tray, which is generous for a personal printer, and a 1-page manual feed, a highly useful convenience that lets you feed different types of paper without having to swap out the paper in the tray.
Speed and Quality
Setting up the 1130 on a Windows Vista system was standard for a USB-connected printer. Note that Dell rates the 1130 at 19 pages per minute (ppm), which should be close to the speed you'll see for text files without graphics or photos. On our business applications suite, however, (using QualityLogic's hardware and software for timing), I timed the 1130 at an effective 6 pages per minute (ppm). That counts as a reasonable speed for a personal printer, but it's far slower than the directly competitive Editors' Choice Brother HL-2240 ($120 street, 4 stars), at 11.4 ppm.
The 1130's output quality is similarly good enough for most purposes, but unimpressive. Text quality is at the low end of the range where the vast majority of mono lasers fall, which still makes it easily good enough for most business purposes unless you have an unusual need for small fonts.
Graphics were at the high end of the tight range where most mono lasers fall, also making them good enough for most business purposes, including PowerPoint handouts and the like, as long as you don't mind obvious, if minor, flaws in the output. Photo quality was good enough to print recognizable photos from Web pages, but a little short of what I'd want for, say, client newsletters.
Ultimately, the Dell 1130 can do its job well enough, but there's no compelling argument to choose it. Compared with the Brother HL-2240, it offers better-quality graphics and a close match on most other points, but at the cost of much slower speed. On the other hand, it's perfectly capable of filling the slot it's designed for, as a personal mono laser printer, and may be worth picking up if you can get it at a low enough price.