Need some help: E6400 vs. E6500 and decision on some parts...

Since my good old 15" notebook (from summer 2003) died in the beginning of the year, I was looking for a replacement and soon came across the E-series leak. I was immediately impressed by the sleek look and the nice set of features, but I couldn't decide on a certain configuration until now. The result was spending almost 9 months with my old Pentium 3 desktop and its 17" CRT - not exactly the finest web experience you can imagine. This desktop will soon be replaced by a budget gaming system, but I'm sure it will still play a secondary role. Became too accustomed to solely using a notebook, I guess

I should first introduce myself a little bit and talk about what I'll do with this machine. I've just finished school and I'm beginning to study Computer Science at a nearby university this week - staying at home and commuting every day with the notebook in my backpack. Its main purpose will be nothing special, the usual word processing and internet stuff, but also coding and anything else I'll do for university. I still have to try out if it's necessary to take notes on it during part of the lectures, but I think the battery life of the 6-cell should be sufficient. If not, I might just buy a second 6-cell, which doesn't cost much more than upgrading to the 9-cell battery and is more flexible in my opinion.

Here are the parts I've almost decided on, while I'm free for your suggestions:

- P8400 processor
- Vista Business (unsure if I should get Home Basic, it will be secondary besides Linux anyway)
- 2 GB of RAM
- Intel X4500 graphics (keeps cool, saves power, and runs fine with Linux)
- WXGA+ LED display with webcam (WSXGA+ would have pushed me towards 15,4")
- DVD burner (don't need it much, but still hope the firmware issues get sorted out)
- Intel Wifi Link 5100 (good Linux support in the future, but won't pay EUR 45 more for the 5300)
- Bluetooth (standard except for the absolute budget class, isn't it?)
- Backlit keyboard (pure gimmick, but might be nice for those nightly sessions )
- NO fingerprint reader
- 6-cell battery
- 3 years NBD service and nothing else

You might have noticed that there are two things missing: the display size and the hard drive. These are the reasons why I decided to open this thread, hoping to get some information that might help me with my decision.

1. The display size

15" standard is both the effective display size of my old 17" CRT and my old notebook, which had SXGA+ resolution - so that's what I'm used to. There is no significantly bigger screen around the house, so I'm already considering the 15,4" WSXGA+ display of my dad's notebook to be rather big. But it just puzzles me that most of the notebooks around campus are 15,4", there just must be a reason. When I'm at the warehouses, 15,4" doesn't look that big anymore and 14,1" seems to be a bit small, so that doesn't help me much with my decision. The problem is the viewing perspective...

On the one hand, I want something that isn't less portable than my old notebook (which was 95% desktop-replacement), on the other hand, it will still double-act as a DTR, which means that I need a fullsize keyboard and a somehow reasonable screen size...

2. The hard disk drive

First, I want to clarify that my primary concern is NOT space. 160 GB should be enough for my dual-boot - I'm used to external storage for my additional data. I also know thanks my dad's notebook (equipped with a 120 GB 5400 rpm HD) that even 5400 rpm would be a big jump ahead from that horrible 4200 rpm Hitachi HDD I've been enduring for years. Everything seemed fine until I read that the HDD is hard-mounted to the case without any protection - and that's the point where my cautiousness pushed me towards FUD...

I thought, fine, that's where the hardware-based FFS might come in handy. But then I heard bad things about the Seagate Momentus 7200.2, and I didn't want to pay for the 250 GB 7200rpm, which is over EUR 100 more expensive than 160 GB 7200rpm - now I'm absolutely stuck in decision.

I read the suggestion many times that one should order the system with the smallest hard drive and upgrade with an aftermarket one. Well, I'm anything but a newbie, if it weren't for my overcautiousness. For example, I'd like to know previously if there is only one big partition or are there recovery partitions that have to be at the correct end of the hard drive if I ever want or have to reinstall Windows? I know might be a rather dumb question - where the manuals don't give me an answer - but if such questions wouldn't exist in my head, my new notebook even could have arrived already...

Big thanks to everyone who has read my lengthy post till the end and can help to clear things up!

 

I wouldn't be concerned with the mounting of the hard drive. Before manufacturers came up with these shock absorbing mountings, hard drives weren't dying left and right. Now, since then the hard drives in themselves have gotten more reliable.

I ordered the 160GB 5.4k drive, since it was relatively inexpensive and was all of the space I would need.

When you say you are used to a 15 inch laptop, you mean 4:3, correct? A 14.1 inch laptop is about the same width as a 15 inch 4:3 laptop.

1440x900 is a nice resolution for a 14.1 inch screen, things are slightly larger than WSXGA+ on a 15.4 inch screen.

I might add that the E6500 doesn't seem to have the battery life the E6400 has obtained.

Greg

 

the latitudes are kinda expensive and come with a quadro card, not the best for gaming, as it is not intended for it.

 

He specifically said he was getting the Intel x4500, why comment on the Quadro card?

Btw, bluetooth is not standard. (I know!) It is a $25 upgrade I believe.

There is one recovery partition, but it isn't hidden or anything. You can access it from within Windows.

My hard drive is by no means slow. I have HD tune scores about the same as John Ratsey got in his review, which were on par with 250gb+ 5400rpm drives.

Oh, and reformatting seems straightforward on this, I simply formatted the original OS partition and installed Vista Home Premium there.

It's nice not having to deal with Mediadirect or other things like that.

Greg

 

Cloning the harddrive is easy with Acronis True Image. You can even use the trial version for it I believe.

If you order the harddrive yourself: the 320GB Seagate 7200.3 is very cheap. 70 euros with G shock protection. http://geizhals.at/deutschland/?fs=7200.3+momentus&in=&x=0&y=0

If you do decide to buy from Dell, go for the 160GB 7200rpm. You may get a one platter drive of the latest genaration, but it's not sure.

 

I suggest you consider the E6400 with WXGA+. The keyboard appears to be the same as the E6500. Someone posted the actual weight of the E6500 and it's around 0.5kg heavier than the E6400.

As for the HDD, yes it is easier to clone onto one of your own choice. So I would tend to buy cheap from Dell then clone it on to one of your own choice. One consideration for the HDD may be power consumption, as well as performance.

John

 

Thanks guys...seems like I'm seeing things a bit clearer now.

Regarding the display, it seems like I'll take the E6400. Can't really imagine how 15" 4:3 would be like when you chop 4 cm off the top, which almost exactly equals 14,1" wide. But I know that my dad's 15,4" also feels huge in another situation - putting it into his backpack...

There's still the 14-days return policy forced by law for private customers, but I have to ask at some German forums how to get this when ordering a Latitude. The educational reseller Asknet doesn't offer it for custom-built notebooks (which means any notebook you can order there) - and if you order as a business customer, you won't get it, either.

Regarding the hard drive, I'm somehow lured by the Western Digital WD1600BJKT. 160 GB on one platter, 7200 rpm, free fall sensor. I can get it for 66 euro from Alternate - without any shipping costs because my dad can collect it at the warehouse on the way home from work. Dell's upgrade price for a similar spec HD is around EUR 58, so it's just 8 Euros saving me from challenging my luck...

@SpeedyMods: When I said that bluetooth is standard in this price class, I thought of the competitors, not of Dell's price policy. I know that this will cost me almost EUR 25 extra, but so would an additional Bluetooth dongle if I appear to need it some day...

 

Save yourself a bit of money, get the 1GB 1DIMM and buy yourself a second 1GB stick of RAM. Cheaper and you'll be know what you're putting into your machine.

 

Just configured that machine online and ended up with EUR 982 excl. VAT, which translates to EUR 1168.58 incl. VAT, shipping not included. Seems like I'll order on the phone anyway, because it's the only official way to order a Latitude as a private customer - and because the online store doesn't offer the backlit keyboard, which was EUR 45 excl. VAT when you could still order it.

In addition to that, I would order the Western Digital WD1600BJKT and 1 GB of Buffalo DDR2-800 CL5 RAM for EUR 83.50. Together with the notebook, the total price would be EUR 1252.08, a price you can be comfortable with in Germany. Ok, still have to find out how much Dell wants for shipping...

 

That looks to be a reasonable price.

You should be able to negotiate a discount if you order by phone, perhaps a reduced shipping cost.

John