Purchasing Questions

I'm about to order a M11x with the Core i5 520UM. I plan on using this laptop for university and gaming. I've heard that the i5 version is not that great? But the i7 version would really be pushing my budget. Is it worth the extra $150?

Also, can I get any sort of university student discount? Or are there any other types of discounts I can get?

 

If you have to be bringing it to class a lot, you might want to consider the R1 for the extended battery life. Though I guess that's dependent on what type of gaming you do.

I don't know if Dell has any sort of generic student discount, but I know that there can be discounts on a school to school basis.

 

You can get a student discount if you roll over the public sector tab and go to higher learning then go to dell u and select your state, city, and school

 

I'm in Canada and can't find a similar option to that.

Also, if it can last me five hours on integrated graphics, I'll be fine. I would like to have the i5 over the Core 2 Duo as I'd like to have Optimus.

 

When I was configuring mine, I selected the i7 and noticed that it put me over the 15% off mark instead of the 10% off mark (if you don't know what I'm talking about, go here). I calculated the cost difference and figured it would only cost me an extra $80 for the Core i7 instead of the Core i5.

However if you go here you will see two options for the M11x. There is a sort of preconfigured one where you can add extra options (starts at $1099), and there is one you can build from scratch called the back to school edition. They are both R2's. If you go with the preconfigured one on the left, it comes with a Core i7, 320GB 7,200RPM HDD, Bluetooth, Windows 7 HP 64-bit and 4GB DDR3 RAM. If you compare this to a custom "back to school" M11x that is configured the same, you will actually find the sort of preconfigured one is cheaper.

My recommendation is to go with the preconfigured one (you can still add extra options such as RAM, more HDD space, etc). In my opinion it is the ideal configuration for a good gaming system, but it's not too hard on the wallet either. Also getting the Core i7 will make your system more "future resistant" and it will take more time to become obsolete.

 

An i7 can reach 5 hours on integrated graphics if you dim the screen a few notches, and disable a bunch of stuff. You'll need to do some heavy optimizing, just be ready for that.

My R2 came with about 3 hours of battery life out of the box.

 

In the US its under the EPP so heres the canada number 1-877-297-6974 try that and tell them your schools name other than that i don't know
Good luck!

 

Whiplash those deals would appear to be US only.

Thanks, QK78, I'll give them a ring tomorrow.

 

Sorry to hear that.

Going back to the processor issue, i5 vs i7, what are a few examples of games that you plan on playing? And how important is battery life to you?

Also is there anything else you plan on doing besides gaming, specifically tasks that would be CPU-intensive?

 

Gamewise I'd probably be playing SCII, MW2, CSS, WoW, and Diablo 3 (if it ever comes out).

Battery life will only be important to me when I'm using the integrated graphics. Anytime I plan on doing anything intensive I'll have the laptop either plugged in or able to be plugged in.

 

take note that the cpu can not be upgraded after the purchase

 

I tried that Canadian number out but had no luck.

I know that the CPU can't be upgraded. What I'm doing is pretty much purchasing the cheapest of everything I can upgrade in the future. So pretty much everything except for the processor and the Bluetooth. However the i5 is about as high as my budget allows me to go.

I've been trying to find a Canadian coupon or deal of some sort that will save me just a little bit, that way I could bump up to the i7.

 

The Dell Online Store: Build Your System

This config is $1200 CAD

 

Not trying to be rude, but I know how to make it i7. I just can't afford it unless I get a discount. My price range is $1050-1100 before taxes, max.

 

what hard drive are you considering

 

Just the 250GB.

 

Im not sure which i5 model you are considering but in the link that I gave you, it's only an additional $50 for i7. For an additional 7% EPP discount, in the address bar, you should see "cadhs1", change that to "CAPPP1". You will see the 7% discount (around $80) when you add to cart. By the way, this only works for the M11x

 

You have the upgraded memory and hard drive in there though.

 

I think the 4GB RAM is worth it.

 

Everyone does, however I'm not about to give Dell $100 for an extra 2GB of RAM when I can go out and buy aftermarket RAM that's twice as good for the same price.

 

that is a good point, it would be better to purchase the m11x with the i7 and 2 GB of Ram that way you can upgrade the Ram down the road

 

Yeah that's pretty much what my plan is. If I can't upgrade it, go for the best. If I can, go for the bare minimum. However, I was hoping someone might know of a Canadian deal going on or something so I could bring the i7 configuration down into my price range. It seems like Canada gets screwed over pretty bad deal wise though so I will be ordering the i5 version later on tonight.

 

I really wish there was way we could find to make the i7 more affordable for you Tanner(welcome to the forums btw).

Whichever way you go I know you'll be happy with your m11x, just take a look through the optimization guides and such here to put yours through it's paces asap to check for any RMA issues to deal with right away IF they crop up. So far it seems Canadians have been lucky(though I know we have a much lower user count here than americans so it is a skewed ratio).

 

I dunno if Canada has it, but when I ordered mine they gave me a free i7 upgrade on my config, but I had to get the 320gig hard drive and a McAfee 1-year or something that I uninstalled

My R2 ended up being $952 USD before taxes for i7, 4gig, 320gig, bluetooth, accidental damage warranty. Free NBD shipping

 

Where did you get a deal like that? Mine was the same configuration but with standard warranty and standard shipping and it cost me about $1150. And that was after almost $200 in savings!

EDIT: Just realized you said before taxes... that would explain it.

 

Don't forget the $50 off any Dell U system 499 and above(8RHKHGLKT8BZ38). It stacks with the 10% off alienware promotion. If configured right, you can get your I7 + 4 gigs of ram with 160 hdd (only downside of this but Hds are so cheap now) + bluetooth and it will put you right at $1002.10 usd before taxes.

Still not as great as the 15% off +100 off coupon deal that was floating around about a week ago, but still the best bang for your buck for the I7 system and puts you right in your budget. Almost tempted to pull the trigger myself.