Dell is finally set to release the Inspiron Mini 12 in North America. The company has begun taking orders for the 12-inch netbook. The base price of $549 will net you a unit featuring a 1.33GHz Atom processor, 1GB of memory, 40GB hard drive and a standard 3 cell battery. If you cough up $758, you’ll get the top end machine. This model comes equipped with a 1.66GHz Atom processor, 80GB hard drive and a 6 cell battery. All versions ship with Windows Vista Home. The units will ship out to American consumers in December.

Dell has released a new member of it’s popular Inspiron Mini line, the Mini 12. The netbook is only available in Japan, but that will change soon. The computer comes with either a 1.3 GHz Atom Z520 processor or a 1.6GHz Atom Z530 processor. It can sport a hard drive up to 80GBs. It has 1GB of RAM, bluetooth functionality and WiFi. There is also a 12-inch 1280 x 800 display. Amazingly, it weighs only 2.72 pounds and is less than one inch thick.

It hits the States late next month with a suggested retail price of somewhere just under $600. Early units will come shipped with Vista with XP and Ubuntu variants available by the end of the year. Click here for a Dell press release and here for a hands-on report.