D630 Owners Thread

Duplicated Post - See Below

 

Hi,

I have just done a clean install of WinXP Pro on a 2nd bootable HDD for my D630 but when installing the chipset drivers received an error message and the chipset installation failed to complete.

The chipset drivers from Dell are version 965M and dated March 2007, the WinXP installation was done using Dell WinXP Pro SP2 disk. Is it possible that these are out of synchrony, ie, if I am loading WinXP Pro SP2 do I need a more up to date set of chipset drivers? Also, I am running BIOS version A17 if that is relevant to the choice of chipset drivers.

Finally, am I better off trying to find a chipset driver from the Intel website rather than use the Dell download? If the Intel chipset driver is best would anyone please have a link as when I check out their site I am getting lost in a maze of drivers and download options?

Any help most appreciated


Rgds
Snaffos

 

hmm, the dell chipset drivers work for me under Windows Vista/7. Have you made sure that you chose Windows XP from the drivers and downloads drop down?

What error message does the installer give you? That could help us isolate the problem.

 

I would just use the drivers from Intel or even windows update.

 

Waiting on my Laptop to come through Canadian Customs.

Specs:
D630
1440x900 WXGA+
T7300 Core 2 Duo
120GB SATA HD
Intel Integrated Video
Brand New 6 Cell
Dying 9 Cell

I was looking at getting a laptop for quite sometime and decided against getting anything with a dedicated video card. I don't really need to play games anymore anyways! I couldn't give in to paying twice as much for any of the new latitudes and I do not like their build as much as D630/D830s.

I will be throwing my Intel X-25M 80GB G2 into it as well as 4GB of ram. I have been toying with the idea of throwing T8300, T9300 or T9500 into as well. The hard drive will definitely not be the bottle neck in this laptop. I gave myself my tax return from 09' as a budget.

Budget $700 (including tax)
D630 - $450 (tax/shipping/total) - Ordered
Second HD Caddy - <50 - Yet to be ordered
500GB 2.5" Drive -
New 9 Cell battery 7200mah - $75 - Yet to be ordered

Been reading a lot about processor upgrades for this model and it doesn't look too great unless maybe I go for 9500 or a X9000! Be nice to make it closer to current gen then not. Considering I will have a SSD a CPU upgrade would be the next thing to go for.

 

Nice spec's man! The High-Res screen is a beauty. I'll never be able to buy a full size laptop without one. My machine is pretty much a carbon copy of yours except I have a Core 2 Duo T7100 and only have a 9 cell battery. Out of curiosity, where are you going to order your battery? The OEM battery from Dell is expensive and, I know this from experience, flaky as hell in terms of battery longevity over time.

As far as the new Latitudes, I spend a lot of time with them at work and yeah....they're nice but don't feel nearly as "tank-like" as a D series anything.

 

I dont own D630, but I must admit that somehow I like their design better than current Latitudes. Theres something oldschool and classic in them.
Before I bought myself ThinkPad I was considering picking up part by part D430 from Ebay, starting with new barebone and then adding everything else that is missing
And there are quite a few D620/D630 Latitudes at Ebay for somewhat good prices
So at least design wise you should be happy with your D630, Im sure I would get one if good bargain came by and if I had the money for another laptop

 

It's too bad there isn't an even higher res option! Used a D830 at work with a WUXGA screen.

Probably one of these two places. I believe the first link has more warranty
Replacement Laptop Battery for Dell
BATTERIES for DELL LAPTOPS in VANCOUVER & OTTAWA from $99. LAPTOP REPAIR Vancouver. Used, refurbished and new. CHEAP LAPTOP AC ADAPTER.

My whole family has one of there own from the D series as well as my work has large deployment. They are quite durable! Accessories are really cheap.

Im running a Q6600 desktop so if I really needed to I would upgrade the CPU on this laptop. It should keep up fine. I couldn't justify 2x the cost for a new E-series latitude which I don't like the design as much and accessories are expensive.

 

For batteries, I would check Ebay. As long as the listing mentions OEM genuine Dell battery and the seller is in the US, you should be OK. Of course, when the battery arrives, be sure to inspect it visually (keep in mind there are several OEMs, so even OEM batteries may have some variation, such as the color of the plastics on the inside, or part #s).

Aftermarket batteries are always shady, and regardless of the brand, they usually don't last long.

 

Intelligent batteries has 90 days defective warranty plus a 1 year limited warranty. Anything below 80% charge after 12 months and they have to fix. I doubt their batteries can be that bad