Latitude E6400 Owner's Lounge

I'll go ahead and start this thread, even though I don't have my E6400 yet.

For now, I think forum moderator John Ratsey is the only NBR member with an E6400! So we'll let him take the glory until a few more of us get the notebook!

 

Just ordered one today. Est del is 09/16. Hopefully they've got production ramping up and will get it out early like they usually do.

 

Yup, I have an order in from yesterday...and I have next day shipping . I'm waiting for this notebook and am as excited as a little kid in a candy shop.

 

Yup, ordered mine today as well. Can't wait, my poor old 600m is finally going to get a much needed break from photoshop torture.

 

Well, every one needs to keep an eye out. Rumors have it (thanks Commander Wolf!) that the price on the E6400 is going to drop below the introductory pricing.

 

If the price drops before my order ships (they gave me an est. date of 9/22) does Dell have a price guarantee?

btw, here's my E6400 config:

Intel® Core™ 2 Duo P8600 (2.40GHz, 3M L2 Cache, 1066MHz FSB)
Genuine Windows Vista® Business SP1
1.0GB, DDR2-800 SDRAM, 1 DIMM (2x2GB DDR2-800 already in hand for self-upgrade)
Internal English Backlit Keyboard
NVIDIA Quadro NVS 160M With Express Card
160GB Hard Drive, 5400RPM
Black Wide Screen WXGA+ LCD Panel
Dell Wireless® 370 Bluetooth Module
90W A/C Adapter (3-pin)
8X DVD+/-RW w/Roxio and Cyberlink PowerDVD™
Intel WiFi Link 5300 802.11a/g/n Draft Mini Card

Subtotal: $1,554.02
Shipping and Handling: $0.00
PST: $124.32
GST/HST: $77.70
Total: $1,756.04

 

I'm typing this on my E6400.

Some observations as I discover more things:

Those big speaker grilles each side of the keyboard are decorative. There's one small speaker of about 1/2" size on each side. There's no sound manager software with an equaliser so the default sound is quite rich in the higher frequencies.

The power consumption of the backlight keyboard at full brightness is around 1.5W which is a significant power drain when running on battery. However, about 1/3 brightness is fit for the purpose.

Dell needs to do more work on the ControlPoint software and give more user control over the ambient light sensor / display backlight / keyboard backlight options. I haven't managed to discover how to use the ALS to trigger the keyboard backlight while retaining manual control over the display backlight.

5 hours looks to be a reasonable running time target (with 6 cell battery) with web browsing on wireless.

I'll leave Greg to figure out whether things work better under Vista than under XP.

John

 

Well, after many months of comparing and contrasting, I'd pretty much decided to go with an M1530. However, in making that decision I was navigating away from my preference of a 14" screen, smaller chassis, and possible lack of ruggedness. I was doing this because I absolutely wanted an LED screen, backlit keyboard, Wireless N, and Vista Ultimate. It may seem petty, but even the backlit indicators (power, HDD, WIFI, BT) were highly appealing to me cause I have to work in low-light conditions regularly and they make deciphering my current computer condition easier. I even ordered one, then canceled it two days later. Then the E6400 came along. It seems that Dell pretty much read my mind on the computer I really wanted with this model. I only have a couple of questions:

1. Does the E6400 have gigabit Ethernet?

2. Should I order ASAP, or wait a month or so to see what tweaks Dell makes to the line?

Now, I fully know that question 2 will be eventually, or immediately, be answered with a typical "Well if you always wait for better, you'll never get a computer!" But I do not intend on waiting any further than a month or so, I need this thing by the end of Oct. We are expecting our first child by then and I do tons of work on the computer. My current circa 2004 Toshiba is just not cutting it anymore. Simply put, would I benefit from waiting just one more month?

 

Yes to GigAbit ethernet - SiSoftware Sandra reports:

As for price trends, everthing to do with computers (well, at least the hardware) tends to become cheaper with time. The current uncertainty is whether Dell's current warnings of delays are caused by high demand or limited supply. I personally doubt that the corporate purchasers will be ordering truck-loads of the E series yet. Sensibly they would want to check out a few. In which case there could be a sweet spot in the pricing as They try to ramp up production of these models and need to stimulate the demand before the big orders come in.

The E6400 isn't perfect, but the display is a pleasure to use.

John

PS: I was just looking at the Dell UK site. Options for the backlit keyboard and the slim adaptor have disappeared.

 

Here's my prospective setup, setting at $1982.09, including shipping and taxes. I am using a 12% government employee discount.

edit: Oh yeah, that is just the on line quote, I will probably call tomorrow and actually talk to a rep, hopefully I can get a $100 or so knocked off even further.

Model: Latitude E6400
Processor: Intel® Core™ 2 Duo P9500 (2.53GHz, 6M L2 Cache, 1066MHz FSB)
Operating System: Windows Vista® Ultimate SP1, With media
Memory: 1.0GB, DDR2-800 SDRAM, 2 DIMMS [I am planning to buy 4 gigs of OCZ memory from Newegg]
Keyboard: Internal English Backlit Keyboard
Graphics and Expansion Slot: NVIDIA Quadro NVS 160M With Express Card
Primary Storage: 250GB Hard Drive, 7200RPM with Free Fall Sensor
Fingerprint Reader: Internal Fingerprint Reader
LCD: 14.1" UltraSharp™ WXGA+ (1440x900) LED Display - Brush Metal Black
Bluetooth: Dell Wireless® 370 Bluetooth Module
AC Adapter: 90W A/C Adapter (3-pin) 90AC3P
Primary Optical Device: 8X DVD+/-RW w/Roxio and Cyberlink PowerDVD™
Camera/Microphone: Integrated Webcam with digital microphone
Wireless LAN (802.11): Intel® WiFi Link 5300 802.11a/g/n Draft Mini Card
Systems Management: No Intel® vPro™ Secure Advanced Hardware Enabled Systems Management
System Documentation: Resource DVD and Quick Reference Guide
Primary Battery: 6 Cell Battery
Hardware Support Services: 3 Year Basic Limited Warranty and 3 Year NBD Onsite Service
Installation Services: No Onsite System Setup
Additional Power Options: 90 Watt Additional AC Adapter, 3-Pin
Color Options : Brushed Metal Black
LCD: Black Wide Screen WXGA+ LCD Panel w/Integrated Camera and Microphone
Processor Branding: Intel Centrino 2 Core Duo Processor
OS Labels: Vista Premium Label