M4800 Owner's Thread

Good to know! Worried more about software driver compatibility I think now.

This whole choice business is really a huge time-consuming headache, really difficult to find what will work well outside of a $2k custom build.

Any comments on whether the workstation graphics actually perform well for minor video editing or if they're necessary at all?

 

If you search this thread, there was a guy serious about video editing to the point that he set himself up a RAID-0 of two SSDs. You may go through his postings to see if there are any hints valid for you. I was hoping he would show up and respond to your questions, but, sadly, hasn’t happened.

I was also thinking… You could talk to Dell reps, explain your needs: that you specifically need to check if the machine would support your application. Typically, there are return windows… and Dell people seem to be responsive to those serious about some pro use of these workstations, from what I gather. They might allow you a return period without any fee?

 

Thanks, will do to both when Dell is open again. I'm actually looking at refurb'd or redistributed models on ebay through another company, but I'll call Dell and see what they say.

In the meantime, I'm confused about the Quadro costing more. I thought the Firepro is a good deal better in terms of benchmarks? Is it limited in the software it's compatible with?
Secondly, a few pages ago people said not to get the FHD screen (1080p I assume), due to issues. Why is this?

 

Yes, workstation cards from NVIDIA have CUDA enabled, so that some software can offload calculations to the GPU from the CPU. AMD's FirePro cards have a similar option, openCL.

 

Is one "better" than the other? Or more accessible?

 

The pros and cons of FHD screen in M4800:

Cons: it’s just TN LCD, therefore what you see depends on the angle of view. The angles afforded by panels commonly fitted into M4800 cover only so-so the relatively wide field of view one needs when working on a 16:9 15″ laptop. Color accuracy suffers.
Overall, color accuracy of these panels isn’t pro-grade, but with calibration, the panel is arguably acceptable as a “budget sRGB device”.

Pros: You get Optimus, therefore long battery life: up to eight hours of light use.

Other notes: The screen can be very bright (but the QHD+ panels are supposedly bright too).

Resolution: The actual resolution of ~140 ppi may you find fine enough or coarse, it’s really up to what you’re used to. Some software will display its UI elements very minuscule on QHD+, but these issues are gradually being taken care of.

 

Just a few posts back, another user is looking into replacing his FirePro with Quadro because his CAD application isn’t tested for FirePros. Benchmarks mean anything only if the card will run what you need it to.

 

Hey M.J.S,

I checked the detailed list and my AMD FirePro M5100 says the following:

C7KH5 - ASSEMBLY, HEATSINK, VIDEO GRAPHICS ADAPTER, ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES, M4800

Which doesn't say much about whether or not the heatsink will fit. Do you have any other suggestions?

Thanks!

 

It certainly differs from my heatsink designation and lists specifically AMD, so I’d be concerned. Also, the code of mine is CF7NG, but that alone does not prove much.

I’ve been thinking… Just because your local Dell is out-of-stock of K1100M, that doesn’t mean they can’t have the right heatsink. The technician should know whether it is needed. The heatsink alone might not cost that much, or they might just provide it…

I’d consult with the technician before he comes to your place to do the swap.

 

Thank you, M.J.S.! Will do!

Thanks!