Buying a Latitude for a student

I'm going to be buying a laptop for my niece who is heading off to college this fall, and one of the models I'm considering is a Latitude D620.

But her school is not listed on Dell's education site, and if the school isn't part of Dell's program they boot you over to Dell Home, which doesn't sell Latitudes.

I could pose as Acme Widget Co. and buy from the Small Business site, but they have different warranty/support options (I wanted to get the CompleteCare plan). Plus, they make you agree that the laptop is not for resale, so if I bought it and she called for support, would they give her grief? I don't want her to have to deal with something like that.

Anyone know a good way around this? Or should I just consider something like an Inspiron E1405 instead?

 

l know people that just put their names when it asks for what company your from and they haven't had any issues with ordering.

 

E1405 is nicer I think.. for general purpose.

E1505 would be more ideal if you want your student to have fun on a larger screen and be able to have 3d game options if you do the ATI gfx.

 

You don't have to be part of a 'business' to buy it. For someone carrying a notebook every day, I recommend the D620. It has a more durable case, the standard warranty is 3 years, and it is thinner/lighter than the 1405.

 

Thanks, I understand I wouldn't have any problems buying it; I guess my main concern is whether she would have any trouble using the business support plan that would come with it -- especially if it's bought in my name.

 

you shouldn't have a problem with warranty.

however, i would suggest you look at the sister inspiron model as it's a little more student friendly. the notebook you're looking at only has 1 speaker and some other drawbacks.

also, i don't know if you have already, but there is a "What Should I Buy?" forum at the top of the forum page where a FAQ has been created helping to get you to answer the important questions when considering a notebook purchase. i suggest filling it out and posting your answers. you will get some good feedback.

 

I just received my D620 and I'm about to be a law student. I LOVE it!! It's built like a tank, has the best LCD I've ever seen, and offers a dedicated graphics card. It gets a little hot, but short of that I think it's the best notebook a student could wish for. Just my $.02

 

Thanks, I will do that. What is it about the Inspirons that is more student-friendly than the Latitudes?

 

well, there's give and take.

the latitude does not have stereo sound (only one speaker), but the audio out jack is stereo so headphones or external speakers will be stereo. the latitude also doesn't have an s-video out. the latitude offers the option of a dedicated video card which the inspiron doesn't have. a dedicated card is good for 3d stuff like games and animation software but comes at the expense of more heat and less battery life.

the tradeoff is that the latitude is sturdier than the inspiron but that doesn't mean the inspiron is made out of paper either.

i believe there are a thread or two about the differences between the machines if you do a search.