precisionm4400 screen question

Just snagged a m4400 with 1920x1200 screen off ebay for 175$ shipped this morning.I have an e6400 that has the regular 1280x800 screen on that oneand it isn't that great.How are the 1920x1200 screens on the m4400?

 

My old M4400 with the 1200p has dust stuck inside. I am pretty sure it was dust and not dead pixels because.. well it was everywhere if you look closely.

Nothing special as far as I can remember. Similar quality as the 800p, just more pixels.

 

Dell offered at least three different screen options on the M4400. Two different ones at the 1920x1200 WUXGA resolution.

A quote from the "notebookcheck" review:

"For the actual target group of the Precision M4400, photo, CAD, and 3D visualisation professionals, only one of the top two panels are of interest. First of all the matte dual CCFLbacklight (dual lamp technology) WUXGA panel with a resolution of 1920x1200 pixels, which should be very bright and ready for outdoor operation, or the RGB-LED backlight display in WUXGA format, for best colour depiction (TrueLife - reflecting)."

To recap, at 1920x1200, the dual CCFL LCD model, which is what I have on mine, is a matte screen. And with the dual CCFL backlights, you can bump the brightness up quite a bit...so much that it's usable outdoors in bright sunlight. Of course, that will also eat the battery up faster, so it's a trade-off. Also, the dual CCFL model has excellent off-center visibility. I can be at a 45% angle off center and still see the screen without a problem.

I cannot give you a first hand opinion on the RGB-LED model, but most folks who have owned one really like it. Supposedly the RGB LED screen is better for "true color" rendition, but some folks feel it's a bit TOO bright.

There is a long thread on this forum from a few years back, discussing all of the pros and cons of each type:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/del...sion/333840-m4400-wuxga-vs-wuxga-rgb-led.html

Bottom like, either option should provide you a good screen, assuming that it's in good condition (no dead pixels, cracks in the screen, burn-in, etc.)

I will say the only "complaint" that I have is...if you want to call it that...the 1900x1200 WUXGA format is a bit dense, pixel-wise, for a 15.4" screen. It's a bit of overkill, in my opinion, but it's a bit it's nice to look at when you have it setup properly. See the above referenced thread for more details.

 

Thanks man.How has your m4400 been?

 

I am perfectly happy with my M4400, knowing that it's an older "mobile workstation" and not an "ultrabook"...which is the hot thing now.

Performance-wise, the M4400 is now two generations back from the state of the art. If you can accept that limitation, it's still a good machine with some life in it for a while longer.

But if you really need mid-range i5 or i7 performance, it's a bit lacking. Yes, you can bump the M4400 CPU up to a Core2 Quad, but it uses more power, runs hotter, and you're not as fast as a newer i5...it could probably can match or beat all the i3s out there, though.

If you need MORE than 4GB RAM, again, the M4400 is not ideal. Yes, the laptop supports at least 8GB RAM (2x4GB), but it's DDR2, which is both slower than DDR3 and more expensive to upgrade.

Depending on which graphic chip you get (Quadro FX 770M here), you will get fairly decent 3D performance. That's the main strength of the platform, in my opinion.

Of course, the basic Precision chassis is very similar to the E6500, so you are assured of a wide range of hardware compatibility (such as docking stations, etc) with the E series Latitudes.

 

Got it today and the screen has no defects.