Alot of questions on this 1720 config...

I've done quite a lot of research on this lappy and decided to make a thread to confirm my results.

My SPECS:

SYSTEM COLOR
Midnight Blue
PROCESSOR
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7500 (2.2GHz/800Mhz FSB/4MB cache)
OPERATING SYSTEM
Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition
DISPLAY
Glossy, high contrast, widescreen 17.0 inch display (1440 x 900)
VIDEO CARD
256MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8600M GT
MEMORY
2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz
HARD DRIVE
Size: 320GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
OPTICAL DRIVE
CD / DVD writer (DVD+/-RW Drive)
WIRELESS NETWORK CARDS
Intel Next-Gen Wireless-N Mini-Card
INTEGRATED WEBCAM
Integrated 2.0 Megapixel Webcam
BATTERY OPTIONS
56Whr Lithium Ion Battery (6 cell)
SOUND OPTIONS
ExpressCard Sound Blaster X-Fi® Xtreme Audio Sound Card

I'll be using this laptop for college work, games, and a lot of anime.
I'm sure this config will handle just about everything, but I have some questions in particular.

First, I'd like some comment on the screen. I know a lot of people prefer the 1920x1200, but I don't like reading small fonts so I think 1440 is enough. The problem is whether the 1920 has better picture quality in terms of contrast or the "TrueLife" thing whatever it is.

Second, I've heard that the GPU for 1720 is DDR2 which is a lot worse than DDR3. Will the DDR3 be configurable on the 1720 in the future and is it really that big of a deal?

Third, the RAM. I'd like 3 gigs of RAM so I considered getting 1 gig then upgrade myself. However, I realized that the 1 gig would probably come in 512mb x 2 and I don't want the 512 to be uselessly lying around.
So, anyone knows if we can config this to 1x1gig stick? otherwise I'd probably have to go with the 2 gig RAM....

Last is the sound card. I thought this was a pretty expensive upgrade that might not be what it's worth. Should I go with the original sound card and upgrade it myself? and is this harder to do compared to RAM upgrade?


Other questions in general

I heard the 1730 is coming out soon. Is it worth waiting for, will it be too expensive compared to this?

What's the best coupon DELL's ever offered for the Inspiron series?



Thank you for any comments anyone may have.

 

the 1730 is already out. been out nearly 3 months now.

 

My bad lol... misunderstood this other thread about the 1730, thought it was an inspiron. nevermind that then LOL

 

Yes the 1730 is an XPS system

Only get the Express Sound Card Adapter if you use external speakers a lot.
I have the sound card and have barely used it, meaning about two or three times, and I've had my computer since september.

I have the 1920 by 1200 res, I really like it. I got used to the smaller font. I had an 15.4 inch before.

oh and get the 9-cell battery.

my 1720: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=174338&highlight=1720

if you have any other questions you can pm me : )

 

I have the 1440x900 res on my 1720. I love it. In my opinion, it's perfect for a 17" screen. The quality is far superior to my well aged but well performing 20" CRT.

 

i have the 1440x900 screen and find it perfect , i love my machine and cant fault it in any way

 

Thx for everyone's comments

I guess that means both the 1440 and 1920 have that Truelife thing?
If so, I'd probably have to go with the 1440 since I'm low on cash right now...

About the 9 cell battery, I just don't like the fact that it sticks out and I think the 6 cell could give me about 2 hrs video playback which is good enough for me.

I'm still not sure about the sound card tho. I heard that the upgraded sound card fixes some headphone issue?

Also, what do guys think about the extended warranty?