E6420 Owner's Thread

No. Otherwise I wouldn't have said anything.

 

I just got in a E6520 and don't have any of the issues described above. My clip on the bottom has a little, and I mean very little, play when pressed, but nothing I would have noticed. My back lit keyboard is even and bright across the entire keyboard.

I think you should get that laptop replaced.

 

There should be no play, it should be designed right.

A new one is already on its way. It absolutely amazes me that PC manufacturers fail to compete with Apple in terms of design and build quality. Argh, Apple! (though, I'd never buy one due to a lack of dock port.)

BTW, how loud does the audio get on your e6520?

 

I agree. Dell is stuck somewhere in no mans land on design of the new E6520, some parts look consumer and others business? I would rather them do one or the other all the way and perfect it. Can't beat the bang for your buck though with dell.

 

What is your honest assessment of the volume level from the speakers on your e6520? My e6420 volume is honestly extremely quiet, maybe 1/3 to 1/2 as loud as my e6410...How loud is yours?

 

Ubuntu 10.10 works.

Ubuntu 10.10 installs without issues. Wireless and wired network drivers show up and work after the install.

Graphics is more tricky - you have to make a choice about what graphics you want to run.

Intel Graphics work when you leave Optimus enabled. These graphics install automatically. It does not appear that the computer can switch the Quadro card on in Ubuntu at this point.

When you disable Optimus, the Quadro NVS 4200M is enabled and the Intel Graphics are disabled. You will need to install the "270.26 February 21, 2011" Graphics drivers from the Nvidia website. These drivers are still in Beta, so you will have to search for Beta drivers at this point.

BUT HERE IS THE ISSUE - Once you install the Nvidia Drivers, you will have to leave Optimus disabled. So you can not just switch back and forth in Bios. You have to either be Intel only and never install the Nvidia drivers, or be Nivida only and give up the Intel drivers. You may be able to swap out conf files at the command line or come up with some other workaround.

At this point, I would say the E series works with Ubuntu 10.10. I will leave it up to others to see what doesn't work.

 

I can't get a Gaming Graphics score lower than 6.4 or a normal Graphics score lower than 5.9. I tried every power scheme.

The 5.9 is likely because it has 512mb of RAM and is limited by Windows. Just like my 4GB of 1333 ram can only get 5.9.

 

Has anyone found a modular bay for a second 2.5" drive? I can't figure out if the one on Dell's site is a 1.8" drive like the older E-series.

 

Thanks a lot for your report Bokeh. Just a final question (last one, I promise). If you start with Optimus enabled in bios, do not install the nvidia drivers and so use the intel card... is the nvidia card still on and sucking your energy or not?

To test you could do:
sudo cat /proc/acpi/battery/BAT0/state
while under battery both when using the nvidia card (optimus switched off in bios and nvidia driver installed) and when using the intel card only (optimus switched on in bios and nvidia driver not installed). You should measure a relevant difference. If not, this means the nvidia card remains on even if linux is not using it (which means we have to find a way to switch it off from the OS).

I know, it is a time consuming test to do, but I am sure all potential linux users would be happy to know (me first

Thanks
G.

 

It seems fine to me for a business laptop, BUT i don't listen to music or movies on it. I also have only had it sitting on a desk not in my lap. The placement of the speakers will make the surface it is sitting on play a big role in sound loudness and quality.

How they would work in a conf room for a presentation, not sure. It wouldn't be ideal.