Dell E6400 durability

Hello all

I'm looking for a new notebook since my €2000 Acer broke its hinges TWICE after little more than 3 years of use.

How does the E6400 compare to the T400?
I had a T400 in my hand, and despite their assurances I find its build quality not so good. The battery seems to wiggle a lot...

My main interest in a new laptop is:

- build quality and durability
- customer support (in Europe)
- sunlight readable LED screen
- must be whisper quiet

Specifically, how are the hinges on the E6400?

 

The customer support here in Finland is very, very good, second to none that I know of. My previous laptop was overheating and they promptly replaced motherboard and heatsink. That didn't fix the problem, so they sent me a new laptop.

I took the chance to have some fun with the old laptop. It was six months old, and I could grab it by the screen, wiggle it, and the hinges would not bulge. They are very robust. Overall, the build quality is excellent, it's a really solid machine.

The screen is readable in sunlight, no doubt. Minimum brightness on the LED screen is equal to about half brightness on a conventional CCFL screen. Maximum brightness hurts my eyes.

If I use my laptop for basic stuff (MS Office, email, Firefox, etc), it is very quiet indeed. The fan is usually stopped. Of course, if I play a game the fan will come on and it's audible, though not disturbing.

By the way, my battery does not wiggle, but easy-to-replace batteries tend to wiggle a bit. That is normal.

 

Nice! thanks for the reply.

Do you have the backlit keyboard? I read that there is too much flex vs the conventional keyboard... can anyone confirm this?

 

I have the backlit keyboard (I though it was standard) and there is ZERO flex. I second everything being said. I do feel the plastic sometimes isn't as "attached" to the frame as it could be but I have no concern tossing this thing around. The LED screen is abnormally bright. I leave it on 40%ish and then burn peoples eyes when I turn it up.

 

My E6400 is just over a year old and has done a lot a travelling. It still feels very solid although the slack in the hinges when the screen is open has increased over the past year.

I won't know until after the 3 year warranty has expired whether the hinges are a weak point.

John

 

I have the non-backlit keyboard, and also have no flex. It's a real joy typing on this thing.

 

It is 8 months since I bought one. Keyboard is really nice (and I have Thinkpad at work for comparison). Hinges are stiff but you are able to open it by one hand. Thinkpad hinges were stiffier when I've got it 2 years ago - now thay are a bit loose. I was also considering T400 and E6400, main point was weight, battery capacity and robustnes. I must admit that when I opened bottom of Dell and "weighted in hand" bottom panel ... it was a bit scarry. So called "metal case" is surprissingly thin (paper like) one. Dell E6400 was cheaper to buy , but deffinitely T400 is more solid and robust. Thing is that strong plastic that is reinforced with magnesium frame is better than paper-thin metal case. Don't get me wrong I really like this Dell , still it is fact that I wanted you to notice.

 

I have the Latitude E6400 and it's great and solid machine. I really like. If I had to choose today for a new laptop, it would have been the same model.

Just a note.. the laptop lid and base is in metal.. so it will scratch if you trow paper with paper clips or staples on them on the lid, or write on a paper which is on the lid, and so on. The Lenovo, is all in strong plastic.. so it's harder to scratch. I don't think it's a problem for anyone, as I don't think anyone does that either way.

To John:
I had a similar issue after having my laptop for almost a year, I did fix it thought. If you remove the silver caps. next to the battery, I noticed by moving the screen that the screws where not tight. I tight them up and now it's good as new. However, to do this properly, the screen of the laptop need to be in a perfect 'L' shape. What I did is a put a clean, smooth, cloth on edge of the table, open the laptop 90 degrees, flip it over where the screen is outside of the table, and the keyboard pointing down at the cloth, and now you can push the screen upwards and screw the screws tightly.

I think the screws where initially not screwed tightly on ours.

To careta
If you read the above message which was for John, don't worry, the screen will never fall off, it's solid in placed with 2 screws per hinge positing in a way that even if either screw is not placed, the screen holds. Beside with the 3 year warranty (this is the minimum , you can't go less) that is offered (well it's offered in Canada), you don't have to worry as Dell will fix it.

I do strongly suggest to get Next business day on site if you can afford it. I believe it's worth every penny, as just the fact that laptop if fixed the next business day at the time you want, in front of you, where you can assure the problem solved, is simply great.

 

I will NEVER buy a laptop that doesn't have on-site warranty again. Whatever it costs (OK, maximum 500&#8364.

 

I had a Dell tech at my house and he mentioned that I should check\tighten the screws every 6 months or so because they were known to get loose. He showed me what the lid was like with loose screws and tight screws, and the difference was pretty significant.

I have a 4300 but I assume its the same type of hinge.