Dell Latitude E4200 Info

I got my Dell E4200 from outlet as well. I order it with Vista Business and 2GB of ram. My laptop came with a total of 3GB with Window XP Pro install and I got a disc to upgrade to Vista Business with license key, so that was a surprise. I prefer XP as our company are still using XP. I work for the IT department so I have experience with the D430 and I prefer these a lot better for the look and speed. The SSD card is superfast with 3GB of ram and XP, I can't wait for these to come down in price so I can install one on my desktop. It boots up window in less than 20 second for me. The 5 hour battery is prefect, but I would like to get a 4 cell battery as a backup.

As for my next laptop, I'm really thinking of selling my dell studio 15 and picking up an E6400 when Window 7 comes out.

For those complaining about the loud keyboard, it isn't that bad. I was expecting a typewriter sounding keyboard. It is loud if use in a library or meeting environment . However, I would like to replace with a backlit keyboard though, anyone know the part number and where I can buy it for a decent price in the US?. I have many experience with notebooks and this is the best notebook I've own in terms of size and performance. I came from using a top of the line Sony Vaio SZ, which had the crappiest feeling keyboard ever.

 

I know I never thought the keyboard was loud at all and I have used it in
a group lecture.. no problem.

 

Very disappointed with Dell Tricks at Outlet.

Prices going up app 15%-20% .. over a few days-- then I get a "20% Coupon" in subscription email.

Very funny.

Watched a specific serial number/item E4200 go from $979 (or 999) to $1169. over a few days... then get a 20% 'Off' coupon by email.

After that show Dell-- I think I'll switch brands that I'm considering.. that and they never put the really nicely equipped ones up on the outlet.
-

 

Yes that's how Dell works, all over the world. I think it's quite funny.

 

Hello everyone

this is my first time writing here. i got my e4200 a few days ago. i want to share my experience and answer some questions which i had before buying.

i had bought my e4200 as an outlet version on ebay in ireland and had it customized with a german keyboard and shipped to berlin.
configuration: black, 1,4Ghz, 2GB Ram, 128GB SSD, 6cell battery, fingerprint reader, external dvd-drive, now running windows XP SP2. i paid almost 1000€.
i am very happy with it so far.


fan noise:
i was positively surprised by the fan. i mean before buying, the fan noise was the biggest argument against the e4200 (from what i had read on the internet). now it isn't that bad though. while i am typing this (in battery mode, with laptop on table, 22°C room temperature), the fan does not come on at all! It only starts up if there is CPU-load. I have to say though, that even 5sec of CPU load is enough to make the fan start instantly. The heatsink has like no thermal capacity at all. the fan doesn't sound annoying. the perception of the fan noise depends on the sourrounding noise very much. if there are other people around, i don't really notice the fan. if i have the laptop on my lap and power plugged in, the fan seems to run constantly. not that big of a deal for me though.
from what i had read before, i guess my laptop must be some newer version? because the fan can stop. for hours. bios version is: A07
if it is really quiet, i hear the electronics on the mainboard. some coils swinging in their magnetic fields i guess. i don't like that very much. it gets heavier with load too. for me, thats a bigger issue than the fan.

keyboard and touchpad:
keyboard is fullsize. key arragement is perfect. but it is impossible to type quietly.
there are three touch-buttons for the volume above the keyboard (up, down and disabled) wich are the most stupid things ever. i mean they are fancy and light up in blue when i press them, but it takes half a minute of stupid hammering on them to go from all the way down to all the way up. the software onscreen display for the volume throws me out of fullscreen games when adjusting the volume.
the touchpad is not perfectly aligned within its place. people don't notice it right away though.
the touchpad keys are easy to press (perfect), but they make a sound that sounds rather loud and cheap.

battery life:
i tested it yesterday. settings and paramters:
- new 6cell 58wh battery
- win xp
- display brightness: level 3
- turn off hdd after 3min, reduced display colors and refresh rate, low power state of audio, media card, cardbus and 1394 (you can set all that in dell control point software)
- NO standby, suspend or display turn off
- wlan remained ON
the laptop offered 7:25 hours of internet browsing over wlan.

ambient light sensor:
the light sensor is supposed to adjust the display brightness to fit the environment brightness. i had doubts about that, but it works well. it acts almost stepless, so most times i don't notice it. in some cases, it can can start back coupling and act crazy. changing the position of laptop or screen helps then.
the sensor automatic can be adjusted and/or overwritten with fn + arrow keys very quickly.

case quality:
the case seems to be very stable. i can carry the laptop in any way i want when holding on to the main body and i can carefully carry it with only one hand to the display (ofcourse i don't do that much).
some parts of the case don't sound like quality when i tap against them with my finger, but thats only the sound.

wing antennas and battery sticking out:
as far as i know, the versions that come without wwan (like mine) don't have the overstanding antennas on the sides of the lid. instead, mine has plastic caps which look very good actually.
the 6 cell battery sticking out to the back is okay as far as looks go. i would advise everybody to get the 6 cell version. the battery is very useful as a handle. no matter whether the laptop is open or closed, i carry it around holding on to the battery all the time.

size:
obviously, dell lies about the thickness. maybe they forgot to measure the screen too... it is more like 2.5cm.

color:
the black version looks very serious. i think i would like the red and the blue one at least as much. don't know about scrach resistance with the color-versions. the black one does get little scratches on the cover sooner or later, but you don't see them unless you look for them since the cover is not glossy. it doesn't leave fingerprints at all.

screen:
i don't know which screen i got. in the device manager, it just says: "Plug and Play Monitor"
the screen is very good as far as i can tell. wide viewing angles, bright, no pixel errors. i didn't compare the colors yet.
the screen is not glossy of course.

latitude on:
ofcourse i only have the reader. i haven't tried it and i think i will never need it.

system speed:
the solid state drive (samsung it says) is worth its price for people who use their computer alot. it doesn't slow down when doing multiple things at once. like copying video files and installing apps at the same time.
even though this system is not designed for 3d games, it does run CS:S (based on half-life 2 engine) just fine.
i do not like the dell conrol software alot: i mean it works well and it is fairly easy to use, but it takes at least 80mb of ram and needs a long time starting up.
i measured the following times with Windows XP SP2 and 2gb ram:
- startup time to desktop: 21sec, another 60sec (!!) for all preinstalled systray programs to load
- shutdown time: 31sec
- suspend to disk time: 19sec
- suspend from disk time: 20sec

 

Can you run CoreTemp

http://www.alcpu.com/CoreTemp/

And see when your fan starts to spin? Thanks.

 

@lixuelai:

i just ran "core temp". i am not sure if it is the core temperature that starts the fan. in idle mode the core temp seems to be 39°C and the fan seems to start at 43°C.
if you are interested, i will monitor it some more.

 

Your room is probably just cool then. Damn for hoping for a hardware revision. Mine starts at around the same temperature. In a room with a desktop and a MBP the E4200 is the loudest when the fan spins.

 

NOW. (even tho coupon has expired)

(Drum Roll)....... the item is $1199!

Hey Dell.

NO WAY NOW.

NO WAY.

Electronics go DOWN in Price.

Just Bought a NEW Intel 80GB X25 SSD on one day Newegg Special (6/8, 3PM-11.59PM) for $289. Free ship/NO tax.
Less than half what it started for.
and which will make most any notebook blow past the SSDs in Dells.

 

You should return it lol, it doesnt work in the E4200. Only 1.8".