What Dell laptop to buy?

[widgetrich]

Iam looking f or a 15'' laptop with windows xp help please...janis

[jdmsds]

I just bought a Dell Inspiron laptop with a 15in screen........it has Vista but so far i love it. A gig of ram and 120gig hard drive.....no complaints.

[johndeerrm]

I recommend you only buy XPS or business series laptops from dell. They seem to be built a little better plus have the abillity to be used with a docking station.

http://www.dell.com/content/products/category.aspx/vostronb?c=us&cs=04&l=en&s=bsd

The Vostro series looks pretty nice.

My recommendations,

Core 2 duo processor
2gb RAM
any of the 7200RPM hard drives.

[4x4rock]

The new color-shell Inspiron one. They look cool :)

[cappy1927]

:lol: My only problem with Dell is their service...you are transferred to India and most of the time it is difficult to understand them and you are left hanging...If they don't know how to help you ,they cut you off..in short service is terrible.

[ACDCROCKS]

:lol: My only problem with Dell is their service...you are transferred to India and most of the time it is difficult to understand them and you are left hanging...If they don't know how to help you ,they cut you off..in short service is terrible.

I had a dell, and they charged me for that. Don't buy Dell. But a friend told me lately they have gotten better. I use HP, I almost went to Mac. Also, get Windows XP, Vista isn't really good.

[jdmsds]

get Windows XP, Vista isn't really good.

Everyone i talked to about Vista before i bought my laptop said it was bad and no good blah blah blah but i really haven't seen anything that would make me say that, i haven't noticed anything about it that makes it perform any differently than any other version of windows ive used, just my 2 cents though.

again, i like my Inspiron :)

[kimmeesook]

would not buy an xps again. prefer my inspiron e1505.... with vista. no problems with vista.

[deadpass]

i'd look for a e1505 on the factory outlet page. it'll probably have xp on it still and you can get great deals on them. I love my 1405 and while it's not built like a tank it has withstood a semester of class and travel just fine.

[the_incubus]

The best advice i can give you is to get a mac. You will not regret it.

[cosworth]

The best advice i can give you is to get a mac. You will not regret it.


The question is what Dell to buy.

Fanboys please leave.

Get the top Inspiron of the day. My wife has my old inspiron 9300 that rocks. I went XPS and love it - but you may not want to spend that much cash.

[lauderdalems]

the models change so it is hard to recommend a certain laptop. Just remember this

Get extra extra extra memory and hard drive. May cost a little more but you will appreciate it later.

Get extented warranty

IF you need service on the laptop, get on another computer and contact Dell service via email or IM. That way you do not end up talking with someone you can not understand. I've purchase 5 laptops over the past several years. Whenever I needed service I always email or IM...never called.

[BTBeilke]

Check out the Dell Precision M90:
http://www.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/precn_m90?c=us&cs=555&l=en&s=biz

The Precision line is Dell's top-of-the-line workstation class line of computers. The Precision notebooks are very durable and are designed for use with high-end applications. I've used a Precision laptop for 3D solids modeling for several years now and have never had a problem with these notebooks. And, for what it is worth, there is a separate support group for the Precision line that was not outsourced to India. You can get very high-end graphics adapters in the Precision notebooks. I've had some PSD files that were over 1GB in size (due to the resolution and multiple layers) and my M70 powers through them with no trouble at all.

[grego]

XPS are overrated. The Inspirons offer great value. But they do get big and heavy if you want it to pack a punch.

[SHULTSIE!!!]

:lol: My only problem with Dell is their service...you are transferred to India and most of the time it is difficult to understand them and you are left hanging...If they don't know how to help you ,they cut you off..in short service is terrible.

HP has the same customer service...

[joayne]

Just purchased a Latitude from Dell, never dealt with anyone Non-English speaking. Perfect service, xtreamely FAST delivery and I wanted XP. Vista does not support a lot of peripherals or applications that I like/need/want to use. I am forced to use/deal with Vista in my work and I loath that operating system and the office applications that it runs. Annoying. nuf said.

[4x4rock]

Just purchased a Inspiron 1420 Pink Flamingo :) 1.6 Ghz, 2GB Ram, 160GB HD, 14.1 screen, webcam,bluetooth, etc... for $899 last night. It was for my brother's daughter 16th bb

Dell is having a free upgrade for 2GB ram and 160 GB HD on certain model now. If you use the link from fatwallet, you'll get $234 off of the original price.

[Snapman]

Unfortunately, I doubt whether you'll be able to buy a new one with XP. I have XP in my laptop but my new PC desktop came with Vista which caused a lot of incomatibility issues.

Personally, I prefer XP to Vista.

[AussiePup]

Whatever dell you decide, buy the business class machines. We buy a couple Dells a year for my company and I have talked with our rep and lengths about buying a laptop for home, and he keeps telling the business class systems are the better way to go. They use better components, and are typically more expandable than the home use systems. Before the new line came out, his last recommendation was I believe the inspiron 6400. Also, most of the busines models will let you choose between XP Pro and Vista, since business are slower to move to a new O/S.

[cskn0125]

an xps is good. You want your basics obviously (im assuming photo editing and general use) 1-2gig RAM 120gig HD the better of the couple video cards they offer.

If you can, go HP.

[Sathi]

This looks like a great deal to me:

Vostro 1500 with Windows XP Home or Windows Vista Home Basic $599. Thanks Selma and billcsho [Discuss]

* Intel Core 2 Duo T5470 (1.6GHz, 2MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB)
* Genuine Windows XP Home Edition, SP2 or Windows Vista Home Basic
* 15.4 inch Wide Screen XGA LCD Display
* 1GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz, 2 DIMM
* 120G 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
* 8X CD/DVD Burner w/ double-layer DVD+R write capability, w/o Roxio Creator
* 128MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS
* Dell Wireless 1390 802.11g Wi-Fi Mini Card
* High Definition Audio 2.0
* 56 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
* MS Works 8.5-Eng: Basic Spreadsheet, Word Processing & Calendar Program
* Norton Internet Security 2006 90 Day Subscription
* Adobe Acrobat Reader 7.08
* 1 Year Limited Hardware Warranty with Mail-in Service
* 10GB for 1yr Online Backup by Dell Datasafe
* 1 Year Dell Automated PC Tuneup
* Starts at 6.33 lbs

Upgrades to consider for Vostro 1500

15.4 inch Wide Screen XGA LCD Display with TrueLife add $0

Common features of the Vostro line

* Magnesium alloy chassis
* Hard drive shock absorption
* Dust/spill-proof keyboard
* No trialware installed
* 30-day money back guarantee (no restocking fees and free return shipping)
* 4 USB ports, S-Video and 1394/FireWire port
* 1 year of free 10GB online data backup

http://www.slickdeals.net/

I am strongly considering this myself...only thing is I really want the 15.4" WUXGA panel, but they don't offer it on thise line of laptop at any price.

[johndeerrm]

XPS are overrated.

How so?

If you want a desktop replacement you cant go wrong with an XPS. The fastest mobil video cards dell offers are only in the XPS series.

[johndeerrm]

I also want to mention that you only get transfered to india if you call after normal business hours.

[mrclark321]

I bought a Dell 15" 6400 with 2 gig of ram and loaded with Vista, seemed to have quite a few problems so I returned it. It was the only Dell that I did not like and I still have two
work stations. I bought a HP laptop instead and realy like it, runs great on Vista and the customer service is way better.

[cosworth]

Nothing about my XPS m1710 is overrated. The price could be about $300 cheaper but unless you own one and see what comes in the box, how it performs and the Dell support you get...oh an Dells don't have "trial ware". DON'T forget, an XPS can show movies, powerpoints and images without booting up. Dell has "media direct" which is a small partition with a thin OS that allows DVD viewing etc. with no Windows OS sucking your battery dry.

I was happy with my XPS purchase strictly from the freakin' headphones it shipped with. Excellent quality. The backpack that the XPS comes with it padded to avoid any issues in the field and is very comfortable.

Not a lot of laptops out there with 7200 sata drive options either.

so back to business class machine and/or buying a Dell Latitude. Gross. Good work machines (I'm typing on one right now - a D610) but for graphics or photo editing/viewing they suck. 1024 max res and the colour gamut is about 7 colours. If you get a Latitude, buy a nice monitor for it. The LCD screen is garbage. I leave work and go home to my WUXGA 1920x1200 XPS brightscreen display and it's like Christmas all over again.

[superdiver]

I have the XPS and have been happy with it, runs DPP, CS3 and it works great. It is about 4 years old and I con only expect the newer versions would be even better!

[Ultimate CC]

i run the xps m1210 and love it...

[goldboughtrue]

I bought an Inspiron 6400 a couple months ago. It has 2 GB RAM and XP Home. I had to buy it from the small business section, so then they called me to see how the computer was doing and if I needed anything else. I did talk to someone in India about something regarding the order (not technical issue). It runs great.

[grego]

How so?

If you want a desktop replacement you cant go wrong with an XPS. The fastest mobil video cards dell offers are only in the XPS series.

For the price they are. My friend has an Inspiron from Dell that handles CS3 on Vista just fine with a Core Duo processor and 1 gig of ram. Obviously it can do better, but it ran without anything really wrong with it.

But then I'm a big fan of desktop for the primary editing computer. So much more power for the money.

[kingdean]

I bought a 630m about 18 months ago and got the 3 year Ultra warranty with it (covers everything including accidental damages)

Dell Service and Warranty Claim is really good, I sent an email to Dell because and back of my laptop had come apart and the next day I had a whole new screen and top of my laptop, no problems or anything

Price is really good

15" screen isn't good for imaging or anything because of the tiny resolution, I mainly use my laptop for typing, web and network analysis etc

[Michael1116]

I had an XPS running Windows XP. No complaints other than it was a battery killer. Just switched to a 15" MacBook Pro. It is awesome. I KNOW you asked about Dell machines, but if the bulk of your work is graphics related, there is no other choice (IMO).

[SuzyView]

I have a 2 year old Inspiron 600 and it's not bad. I haven't used it yet for PP since I have to put 1gb RAM module in this week. Hope it helps me.

[RobotDoctor]

I have a Latitude D610 (14") and it is a good computer. It is a basic computer in terms of specifications and does not have a Duo Core CPU. I have been trying to convince my boss into getting me another computer. We use Dell computers and have had no problems to speak of. I would probably get a XPS, either the 12" or 13". I have a second monitor and run a dual screen set up in the office. When on the road for business, I want a smaller machine.

[PhotosGuy]

Post #14

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=177539

[DarrenL]

I've just bought a new Precision M4300 to replace my Latitude D610. I use my D610 everyday and was perfect. I was going to buy an XPS but they only had a 12", the new 13" and the 17". I really wanted a 15" as I carry it everywhere and my bags gets heavy as it is.

As others have said, the Inspiron's is basically an XPS (but without the fancy shell and a few other bits).

I order 100's of Dells every year (I work in IT) and I've found their customer service to be the same as every other PC manufacturer. I'd have no problems ordering again.

Darren

[johndeerrm]

Nothing about my XPS m1710 is overrated. The price could be about $300 cheaper but unless you own one and see what comes in the box, how it performs and the Dell support you get...oh an Dells don't have "trial ware". DON'T forget, an XPS can show movies, powerpoints and images without booting up. Dell has "media direct" which is a small partition with a thin OS that allows DVD viewing etc. with no Windows OS sucking your battery dry.

I was happy with my XPS purchase strictly from the freakin' headphones it shipped with. Excellent quality. The backpack that the XPS comes with it padded to avoid any issues in the field and is very comfortable.

Not a lot of laptops out there with 7200 sata drive options either.

so back to business class machine and/or buying a Dell Latitude. Gross. Good work machines (I'm typing on one right now - a D610) but for graphics or photo editing/viewing they suck. 1024 max res and the colour gamut is about 7 colours. If you get a Latitude, buy a nice monitor for it. The LCD screen is garbage. I leave work and go home to my WUXGA 1920x1200 XPS brightscreen display and it's like Christmas all over again.

I have the same machine and i love it.