Fan is RELENTLESS on my 6400!

I have canceled my order But not because of this. I really believe that the quiet fan thing can and will be worked out. The $1786 simply got to be too much for me to spend as things are pretty tight right now. Darn. Maybe if it had been possible to configure the BLUE E6400 the way I wanted it which would have been cheaper, but I will just have to wait and get some good jobs and earn some big $$$.

 

Good thing I am not a computer nut. I re-ordered the machine after paring it down as much as possible. Back on the E6400 train!

Quantity Item Number Description Unit Price
1 223-9335 Latitude E6400, Intel Core 2 Duo P8600, 2.40GHz, 1066MHz 3M L2 Cache, Dual Core $1335.70
1 311-9218 2.0GB, DDR2-800 SDRAM, 1 DIMM for Latitude $0.00
1 330-0841 Internal Backlit English Keyboard for Latitude E $0.00
1 330-1652 Documentation (English) Latitude E-Family/Mobile Precision $0.00
1 320-6972 NVIDIA Quadro NVS 160M, 256MB With PC-Card, Latitude E6400 $0.00
1 341-6970 160GB Hard Drive 9.5MM,7200RPMFFS for Latitude E6X00 $0.00
1 311-8849 Internal Fingerprint Reader Latitude E6400 $0.00
1 320-6943 Regatta Blue Wide Screen WXGA+LCD for Latitude E6500 $0.00
1 467-5791 Vista Business 64-BIT Service Pack 1, with media, English Latitude $0.00
1 430-3090 Dell Wireless 370 Bluetooth 2.1 Minicard for Latitude E/Mobile Precision $0.00
1 330-0876 90W 3-Pin, AC Adapter for Latitude E-Family $0.00
1 330-0879 US - 3-FT, 3-Pin Flat E-FamilyPower Cord for Latitude E-Family $0.00
1 313-6722 8X DVD+/-RW for Latitude E-Family $0.00
1 420-8010 Roxio Creator Dell Edition,9.0Dell Latitude/Mobile Precision $0.00
1 420-9184 Cyberlink Power DVD 8.1,with Media,Dell Latitude/Mobile Precision $0.00
1 313-6710 Integrated VGA webcam with single digital microphone Latitude E6400/MPWS M2400 $0.00
1 430-3362 Intel WiFi Link 5300 (802.11 a/g/n 3X3) 1/2 MiniCard for VPRO Latitude E/Mobile Precision $0.00
1 330-0884 No Intel vPro Technologys advanced management features for Latitude, Mobile Precision $0.00
1 330-0895 Resource DVD with Diagnostics and Drivers for Latitude E6400Notebook $0.00
1 312-0729 6-Cell/54-WHr Battery for Latitude E/Mobile Precision $0.00
1 989-1602 Basic Support: Next Business Day Parts and Labor Onsite Response 2 Year Extended $0.00
1 989-4560 Basic Support: Next Business Day Parts and Labor Onsite Response Initial Year $0.00
1 991-2948 Dell Hardware Limited Warranty Plus Onsite Service Extended Year(s) $0.00
1 991-2947 Dell Hardware Limited Warranty Plus Onsite Service Initial Year $0.00
1 991-2878 Dell ProSupport Service Offering Declined $0.00
1 900-9987 Standard On-Site Installation Declined $0.00
1 313-6737 Latitude E6400 Color - RegattaBlue $0.00
1 313-6707 Blue Finish for WXGA+ Backlight, Latitude E6400 $0.00
1 313-6714 Integrated 0.3 megapixel VGA webcam with single digital mic for WXGA+ LCD, Latitude E6400 $0.00
1 313-6719 Dell Webcam Central Software for Dell Latitude $0.00
1 320-6945 14.1 inch Wide WXGA+ AntiglareScreen for Latitude E6400 $0.00

 

I got an answer from Dell today regarding my issue report on the fan problem on E6400. I didn't get a solution to the missing 3600 RPM fan mode in the docking station but I got one good tip about general fan noise:

Press Fn+Z when the computer is running. This will reset the sensor that is controlling the fan speed.

I tried this when the fan was still running in high speed some time after the laptop had cooled down and it worked as expected: The fan speed was reset to the appropriate speed for the current temperature. In other words, it slowed down. While this is just a workaround it is still good to have a way to reset the sensor. Unfortunately Fn is not present on normal desktop keyboards so it is a bit difficult to use the key combination in the docking station with the lid closed.

Örjan

 

Useful tip about Fn+Z.

Did you try the Fn key emulation in the BIOS? If enabled then you can use Scroll Lock on the external keyboard to emulate Fn. See the attached (I photographed most of the BIOS pages some time ago for ease of reference).

John

 

Both great tips! Am repping both, thanks.

 

Thank you for the tip about the Scroll Lock Fn key emulation. I tried it out and it worked as it said in BIOS, i.e. it works with a PS/2 keyboard but not with USB.

Currently I need to use a USB keyboard because I use a USB KVM switch to switch between my laptop and an old desktop but I am planning to to get rid of the old desktop and then I could switch to a PS/2 keyboard.

BTW, I have already used the Fn+Z trick a couple of times and it is very useful to stop the fan from running many minutes after the laptop has cooled down.

Örjan

 

Any other undocumented Fn+letter codes? I notice Fn-D seems to toggle on/off the internal LCD screen, or maybe it toggles between internal/external monitor, can't tell at the moment as I have not other screen attached.

 

How do i get to this screen?

 

I tried the Fn+Z on my M2400 and it worked perfect. Thanks for the info!!

ym

 

Press F2 when the BIOS splash screen is showing (F12 should also work, but brings up a boot options menu).

John