dell vostro 1310 opinions

Good afternoon

I am at that horrible stage of deciding on a new laptop after my brilliant yet flawed ibook decided to break, signaling the end of my relationship with anything mac. I need a compact notebook for traveling (2 year overland trip starting in October - africa/mid east/asia). i have been looking at several 12-13" notebooks and i have come across the Dell.

While it is listed under the business market i think it might suit my needs. Primeraly i need to use photoshop and lightroom to manage my photography workflow, write reports in word, browse the web wirelessly and (last but not least) play football manager while im sitting on trains and buses!

It seems that i can spec the dell with a T8100 dual core 2 processer (2.16 Ghz), 3mb cache, Nvidia video card, 3GB RAM and a 6 cell for around £550, which is pretty good considering the spec. However coming from mac i really need some advice into whether or not this processing speed will be enough for me as i am not up to speed, i know that the centrino chips are better but with a sub £550 buget im just looking for the best i can get and i like the service that Dell gave my parents when they got a desktop from them

If anyone can give me some advice as to whether this machine is suitable for me and if not, point me in the right direction i would most appreciate the help

regards

Richard

 

I have just seen there is a 1320 available in the US and Canada for far cheaper than we have to pay over here - will that laptop be coming to England any time soon?

 

I have a Vostro 1310 that i purchase through the Dell Outlet. I upgraded the CPU, memory and the Hard Drive myself, so some of the specifications are relative at purchase for me. Upgrading all of these items was extremely simple.

It is a great sized, well performing Desktop Computer for me. I do not move it from my Desk. But as such, I will not be replacing it for a long time, as I like everything about it, including how little Desk space it demands.

I did put a Intel T9500 [2.6 ghz] CPU in it and it does have the discrete Video, so the exhaust is hot [left rear side].

 

Thanks Alan, nice to know its easily upgradable, as i mentioned i am not up to speed with what will be a good system to last me a couple of years although i will not be requiring anything to play huge 3D games or anything - google earth for navigation is all im thinking i better get the NVIDIA card for.

Im trying to find out if the 1320 is out in the UK any time soon as i beleive the base model of this is spec'd up pretty nicely for the same as the current low end 1310 - Dell have no info on a release date so if anyone knows please let me know

richard

 

I use the 1310 and a 90 degree workstation from my Desktop. With CAD, I can display the Layout on the Desktop, while viewing the Details for checking on the Laptop. Or quotes on one while looking up information on the other. It also lets me program for two different maintenance cycles, so I can keep working on one.

The Inspiron 1520 and a Vostro 1500 run Astrophotography Imaging and processing Programs, and Photoshop post processing. The 1500 came off Ebay, which has more risks, costs and simply isn't worth the savings imho.

However both of the later Laptops have had the CPU updated, which is fairly involved. Even the under-the-keyboard memory slot is more involved that with the access panels on the 1310... Life is too short for bad beer and slow Computers!