Precision M4600 Owners Lounge

You have a bigger pair than me if you try that. Might be safer to just wait to see what comes from the next gen 3.0a cards. But that's just me.

 

No it will not fit, and the power requirements are different and thus not compatible either.

 

Hi,
I partially bypassed this bottleneck with an eGPU solution you can see in my sign.
Moreover you can surf into this thread: e-GPU (External Graphics) Discussion
The only real problem is that in our laptops the combination of Nvidia Quadro plus IPS screen does not enable Optimus management by default (Dell BIOS management) with the conseguent unavailability of the iGPU that halves the real potentiality of the external video card you decide to add. I use this system for number crunching in dedicated applications applied to complex biological systems.

 

Hey, first I would like to say that I do not own a M4600. However, I am considering getting one for university and since everyone here has first hand experience with the good and the bad of this laptops I have a few questions which I hope you could answer.

-Is this laptop portable? Or is it too thick.
-How is the battery life?
-Is the IPS screen worth the 449 bucks
-Would the M4600 be good for university life or is it to bulky?
-What are the operating temperatures?
-Are the fans noisy?

If there are any pros or cons that you feel the need to share, Please let me know.

Thanks!

 

-Is this laptop portable? Or is it too thick.

I find it very portable, at least much more than my previous 18" vaio. Don't have any problem fitting it in an eastpak backpack, although it is made for laptops. I never thought "damn, this laptop is too big".

-How is the battery life?

I find it good, I can use my computer for easily 3 hours without recharging, which for me is good enough. I am often docked, though, so my few on-battery experiences are limited.

-Is the IPS screen worth the 449 bucks

I don't know, i don't have it.

-Would the M4600 be good for university life or is it to bulky?

I think it would be good, but it depends what you are looking for. I would be glad to have that laptop as a student though.

-What are the operating temperatures?

Sorry, I don't really know, as I work in an office, I never really put that to the test.

-Are the fans noisy?

Not really noisy, no, definitely much less than most other laptops. The only pain in the is that temperature regulation is made by the bios, and the fan turns on every twenty seconds, stays on for five seconds, turns off for twenty seconds, then turns on for five seconds and so on. I wish it would continuously run at very low RPMs instead, because it is quite noticeable in a very quiet environment. I got used to it though.

Overall I would definitely recommend the laptop, especially if you have budget to choose an SSD, an i7 and a lot of memory, it will run most games smoothly too

 

I have it since about 1 year, here is my opinion:

-Is laptop portable? Or is it too thick.
portable is relative. If you're used to carrying this kind of weight then it'll be ok. But you'll envy your Macbook Air colleagues. And it is pretty thick.
IMHO: if you need the power it's worth the bulk/weight. If not, then don't get it - there definitely are slimmer and lighter laptops around.

-How is the battery life?
Depends - I get around 2-3 hours, but that is with the IPS screen (thus no Optimus). That is too little IMHO for university when power outlets are not always available.

-Is the IPS screen worth the 449 bucks?
If you do graphics work (designing, photoshop,.) on a professional level yes. If not then a clear NO. The non-IPS 1920x1080 display has decent viewing angles and enough color.

-Would the M4600 be good for university life or is it to bulky?
I use it for university work too and in combination with the very big power adaptor it is mostly too large IMHO.

-What are the operating temperatures?
Dell states operating temps: 0 °C to 40 °C (32 °F to 104 °F)

-Are the fans noisy?
Absolutely not. Even under full load, the fans are quiet. If you're in the library and set it to "quiet" power plan it'll be very quiet and fans rarely come alive.

-If there are any pros or cons that you feel the need to share, Please let me know.
The laptop is well built and has plenty of power. If you order your laptop, be sure to get the "minicard SSD" straight away from Dell. With this you can use the SSD for the OS and an HDD for mass storage. SSDs are great to speed up things.
Drawbacks: it's heavy and thick if you need to carry around the power adaptor too. IMHO it's pretty much on the edge of being too large and heavy for carrying it around campus. But again, if you need the power (and that's a big IF) it's worth it.

 

I was wondering if I can get a backlit keyboard for the Precision M4600 (right now it has the regular keyboard and I would like to add the backlit keyboard by myself.)

 

I've managed to fill up my 128GB MyDigital mSATA (mini-card) SSD in my M4600. It has worked great, I just need more than 128GB going forward.

I noticed there is a new batch of 240GB/256GB mSATA SSDs out, or soon coming out. The 240GB Memoright MS-701 looks pretty nice: Memoright MS-701 mSATA SSD Review - SF-2281 Performance and 240GB Capacity Earns Top Marks - The SSD Review There are also drives by Samsung PM830, and Renice X3.

1. Has anyone gotten one of the larger 240GB/256GB mSATA SSDs yet? If so, what was your experience -- anything different or notable other than the larger capacity?

2. If I wanted to swap out my existing mSATA SSD, which is my boot drive, how would I do that, preferably without having to reinstall everything? Can the exiting SSD image be transferred to the new SSD, and then the partition extended to the full capacity? I think I'd need some sort of adapter to allow the new SSD to be written to while the existing one is still in the machine, right? (I could use an mSATA to SATA adapter like Renice mSATA to SATA II SSD Adapter | My Digital Discount and then maybe a USB to SATA if needed.)

Any tips or pointers most appreciated.

 

Yes you can...just go to dell's parts site and they should have it...seems to be a pretty straightforward upgrade, I think...since I already have the backlit keyboard I can't say for sure...

 

yes you can

i got mine on Ebay

just make sure if you get one from ebay it has the ribbon cable with it

mine didn't, I was able to use the one from the original keyboard but was a bit of a pain.

I believe the latitute laptops use the same keyboard as well.