Latitude E6510 Owner's Lounge

If it helps:
The Nvidia solution equivalent is the Geforce 310M - 320M
The Intel solution equivalent to a Geforce Go 7400

For solidworks, or multiple monitor setup with great ease, and/or color accuracy: a dedicated video card such as the Nvidia solution (or ATi for that mater.. but that option is not available for this laptop) is a must.

 

Any fix to the freezing problem? We have purchased 10 of these and the first 2 are having issues with fresh installs from a Win7 disk and all the latest drivers and bios applied. Also all win7 updates applied as well. One is blue screening and the other is just freezing randomly. I am loading a third one now to see if it has the same problem.


Also we have having problems with Cisco VPN 5.0 installing or working correctly. Anyone else.

 

I am sorry to infiltrate the E6510 thread with an E6500 question, but here it goes.

I have an E6500 which I bought from Dell not that many months ago. The thing I want to know is why the CPU is on 17, 20, 30, 15, 25, 15, 32, 22, 18 % etc ... almost all the time. Is there something I can do to "fix" this, so it is relatively steady on 3-5%, 6-10% as my "old" Dell Latitude D620 is (purchased in 2006/2007 some time)? On the E6500 I have a CPU desktop gadget recently installed so that I can watch the CPU thing more often. Due to the CPU "issue", the fan is on a lot, and spitting out much hot air out of the exhaust pipe to the left of the laptop. I usually keep a book under the back of the laptop so that the fan can get more airflow underneath aswell.

If I open my web browser (newest Firefox version) and opens another tab, the CPU goes up 2-3% for each tab I think. This is not an issue with my other D620, where I today have had like 15-20 tabs open in Firefox all day (researching something) and the CPU is on 2, 7, 12 % ...

I'd be really glad to figure this "mystery" out, so that my soul can relax once again. Thanks alot.

 

Hi, i used to think about getting a e6410, but now im looking the e6510 for varius reasons including
-seemingly larger/better speakers
-i found it very difficult typing on a e6400, my vaio vgn-fs980, a 15" laptop was very easy to type on.
-the HD+ screen seems to have a better reputation as a better screen
-and better ventalation.

so here is the spec im going for

- i5 2.5 ghz
- win7 (will elaborate)
- ram 1gb (will elaborate)
- HD 180 gb 5400 rpm(will elaborate)
- Intel WIfi 6200
- bluetooth
- HD+ screen
- normal keyboard
- NVIDIA graphics


win7
im now a college student and i can buy a windows 7 upgrade for $35 bucks. if i buy home premium i can technically save 69-35= $34 right?
my questions are:
-can i do a full re-installation with this upgrade?
- is it better if i get the win7 pro OEM so i can download the iso later, or will i be able to do a clean reinstall later on with the OEM
- Im aiming for 32-bit windows because most applications aren't made for 64 bit yet. Ive also seen alot of quirks in my friends copy of 64-bit win7 additionally i dont trust linux on 64-bit yet.

RAM
the default ram for this machine is 1gb, with 1037 MHZ

i can either: get the following 1333 mhz ram
3gb for 100
4gb for 125

-i can buy 4gb on newegg for 100 bucks so im not sure.
- another important question is the fact that im gonna use an nvidia card. since the RAM on that card is gonna add to the total RAM capacity, im not exactly sure how much RAM usage i use if i have 4gb on.
--- im planning on getting either 4gb from crucial for $100 OR 3gb for $85 (or less if i can find a 1gb stick on newegg) [both 1333mhz]

the main question is if i lose performance if the OS cant allocate all of the RAM

Harddisk
to upgrade to a 320 GB 7200 RPM harddisk, i have to cough up some $80

on newegg they sell a Western Digital disk with all of the above AND a free-fall sensor for $80.

is this a good plan on my end?
for that RAM i dont save that much money, and the harddisk i save nothing, (i want that free fall sensor... im clumsy and drop my machine sometimes :x) and i save a bit on th eOS if my plan works.. feedback?

thanks in advance

 

If I am not mistaken the keyboard of the E65x0 is the same as the E6400

Everything look good to me. Just make sure at the end of teh day you have:
- Windows 7 64-bit
- 4GB of RAM

Yes you can do a clean install with Win7. Just start the setup in your current Windows and click on "Custom install". You don't HAVE TO start the setup in Windows everytime, you can boot from the disk. But you need to tell Microsoft servers that your porduct is really an upgrade of a previously installed Windows.
If you don't , it's ok!
Follow Method #2 here: Paul Thurrott's SuperSite for Windows: Clean Install Windows 7 with Upgrade Media
This new tweak is new to Windows 7, to allow people who can't boot their current Windows (let's say your Windows is corrupted, and install of re-installing the old one, you install the upgrade with a clean install to avoid the trouble of installing the old one first), or have a new HDD or any possible problem.

The decision to get an OEM Pro edition is up to you. But note that OEM edition is either 32 or 64-bit version, not both, and can't be transferred to a different system.

Windows 64-bit can perfectly run your 32-bit without any performance degrease, at best you'll see a performance increase by the simple fact the OS and all it's utilities, drivers, services and software (everything) are in 64-bit. Windows uses WOW (Windows - On - Windows) technology is basically provide all Windows programming libraries and software that something else could potentially use in 32-bit, ensuring 100% compatibility with 32-bit applications. IE: If your program can run under Windows 7 and is in 32-bit, it will run fine under Windows 7 64-bit without any issues.

Your CPU in your computer follows a x86-64 architecture, meaning it can execute both instruction (32 and 64-bit) hence why you can run both with 0 performance degrease in any shape or form... ok I lie at a technical level, but as it only applies on certain specific condition and we talk about <1% it's impossible to notice, and they are other things that comes into play which most of the resolve this issue. But I won't get there, as it's nothing visual and won't even impact your games, not even 1fps.

I encourage you to run Windows 7 64-bit as:
1- It address 4GB and more (32-bit OS's (all of them) can't natively).

2- Support for 2TB HDD (even thus it's unlikely, the laptop has eSATA port, and one day you might want to plug a 2TB drive or more or something).

3- Ability to use Windows Media Player 12 64-bit, allowing better performance and allow you to use Windows 64-bit built-in codecs (and use any 64-bit that you add, See Shark007 (free donation supported) codec pack.. the best you'll find for Windows 7/Vista - thumbnail support, Media Center support, and has a neat control panel that allows you to change codec settings very easily, and allows you to change all WMP12 shortcuts from the 32 to the 64-bit version, and the same for file associations). 64-bit Codec will allow you possibly (as it depends on the video codec, video format, and compression), save battery life.

4- Ability to run 64-bit programs when they appear. Already Windows Live is in 64-bit, Office 2010, nearly all video/audio codecs (and already Windows 7 cover almost all of famous ones, by default), Microsoft Security Essential (anti-virus, and spyware removal software - very good, and one of the best free solutions out there, check out reviews!)

5- You pay for a 64-bit CPU, why not use it?!

The downside:
- Windows 64-bit drop support 16-bit applications, so DOS base games and software will not be able to run. However, if you have Windows 7 Pro, you have XP Mode. It can't do 3D or anything fancy, but at least normal programs will run. Most unlikely you'll fall into problem. Usually a new version of the program has the problem solved, or you can use the free DOSBox to run the DOS games/software.

Nvidia solution has dedicated memory, it won't use your RAM.


For your RAM, try and call Dell to order your system, you can negotiate some free upgrades., you might get the RAM upgrade to GB free... you never know.. I did (for my E6400).

SOME people have reported a reduction in performance in having 4GB of RAM in 32-bit OS... It seams to be system configuration based.

Do you need the space, that is the question you need to ask. Again see with Dell, it might offered to you for free if you negotiate.

BTW if negotiation fails, it's ok, end the conversation, and try again later.
HDD brands varies with Dell, so if you know and trust Western Digital, and really want one, then you can simply buy one yourself.

I recommend also, next business day service if you can't afford to not have your system for 1-2 weeks while Dell has it for repair. This service assures that the job is done right, in front of you, making sure the work is done correctly. It will be a contracted firm which offer IT support to small businesses, that comes and do it for you, not Dell itself. Anything that the technician does, even scratch your machine (well in Canada at least), Dell covers the damage.

 

The freezing / blue screening are likely driver or kernel related issues. Installing the Cisco VPN 5.0 is likely an application-level software issue. They are likely different.

When it blue screens, when does it do it? On a resume from hibernation? Resume from sleep? Randomly while you're working on it? When it blue screens, what is the error message? What are the hex error codes displayed?

I have a suspicion that the freezes are due to a power management problem with one of the dell components and/or the dell drivers that go with the component. If you set the power plan to "Balanced" or "High Performance" (which, if they are configured as defaults, should have the "Dell Enhanced Settings" all set to "OS Controlled" or "Enabled") do you still get the freezes?

 

So I got my E6510 (Core i7 620M, NVIDIA NVS 3100M) today, two weeks before the initial expected delivery date! The screen is awesome and everything's great ... except the noise levels:

1. (The HDD is rather loud when reading/writing. Wouldn't bother me if I were to keep this laptop though, since I'd be replacing it with an SSD anyway.)
2. The fan is noisy, even after adjusting settings in Dell ControlPoint and even downclocking the graphics card using NVIDIA Control Panel.
3. There's a high pitched noise which is constantly present and very annoying. I'm unable to figure out if this is what they call "CPU whine" or if it's the hard disk drive. Does anyone know?

Unless I can get rid of that high pitched noise, I'm returning this one. I've tried some of the "fixes" that some claim solves the "CPU whine" issue, but without success.

 

When plug-in the system goes full power, therefore the fan kicks in.
The Fan can kick if the northbridge, or CPU or GPU is warm. As you downlock your GPU, it could be the northbridge or CPU. If you look at the power option of the power profile you use, you have the ability to control the fan form Active (default) to Passive (like in battery, where it will TRY not to spin the fan). I don't recommend Passive mode while plug-in, as you increase the chance of the system from throttling (slowing down when you need the performance). But it's a try.



[*]There's a high pitched noise which is constantly present and very annoying. I'm unable to figure out if this is what they call "CPU whine" or if it's the hard disk drive. Does anyone know?
[/LIST]
Does the whine occur when you play music (mute the speakers)?
If it does, than that is Intel fault. Since the early Core 2 Duo's, the power system of Intel mobile CPU's makes a whine noise. Because they force OEM's to use their specification to the letter, which include low-end components and not so great circuitry. In result you ave the whine problem. Intel denies the issue, as a problem they can't replicate and blames OEM's (even thought it effects ALL OF THEM, including Apple's). The thing is, some can be luckier than other where the components used doesn't produce a as much high pitch noise as the others. If yours is too excessive, maybe something is wrong, and might be best to return the system, and order a new one (avoid exchange, as it won't restart your 21 days return).

The only real solution is to go with AMD or complain some more to Intel and hope that one day they will be tiered of hearing it and fix the problem... but it's hard when:
- Intel is #1, and people still buy them despite the problem. But who can blame them, AMD is too scared in making competition with Intel, in the fear in loosing their license to make x86 architecture CPU's, which in another way is understandable. The way I would do it, is if Intel remove x86 license, then I'll (AMD, if I was them) remove their license to make 64-bit component license, and now AMD can make true 64-bit CPUs (can only run 64-bit programs), and Intel is stuck with their Pentium 4 and worse Pentium D's. But I guess that is a world of risk that is understandable to that no ones to take and not helpful to the consumer at the short term. My vote is to have Windows that can run on different CPU architecture, and that would be interesting..but it' snot an easy thing to do, and extremely difficult to support. Anyway, my point is that we need competition.

- Intel doesn't allow anyone to make - sorry, I mean: - sale, chipset for their CPU's. We had a possibility with Nvidia, but Intel took Nvidia to court.

Anyway, that is the whine issue, and we all have it, some louder than others.

Again, my recommendation is to return the system, and order it again, maybe this time you won't have the problem.

 

Anyone? I'd appreciate it.

 

Open up the CPU Time column on the processes page in Task Manager so you can more clearly see what processes are using the CPU. You may also want to install the FlashBlock Add-on for Firefox so that you can stop unnecessary Flash usage of the CPU.

Also, have you installed a full anti-virus + web security package? It may be checking everything that gets downloaded onto every open web page. Where does the CPU usage go if you temporarily kill the AV software?

John