Dell Inspiron E1705 Setup Help

Hello!

I have two laptop setups for the Dell E1705, I can't decide which one to choose. This laptop will be used mainly for gaming but also for school work as well.

Setup #1
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Intel® Core™ Duo Processor T2500 (2GHz/667MHz FSB)
FREE!1GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz
256MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ Go 7900 GS
60GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive
17 inch UltraSharp™ Wide Screen UXGA Display with TrueLife™

Price: $1,382.00 w/ $750 off coupon

Questions for this setup:
Can upgrade the RAM? If so which brand/type do I purchase? Would I have to remove the current RAM? Would I be able to bring my laptop to a place like BestBuy and have them upgrade it for me?

Setup #2
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Intel® Core™ Duo Processor T2300E (1.66GHz/667MHz FSB)
2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz
256MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ Go 7900 GS
60GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive
17 inch UltraSharp™ Wide Screen UXGA Display with TrueLife™

Price: $1357.00 w/ $750 off coupon

Misc Questions: Is TrueLife worth the extra $149?

Thanks in advance.

Justin.

 

I would go with setup #1 and just buy another 1gb aftermarket if you decide that you need it.


And yeah I'd go with the Trulife screen.

 

Well, ha, I'm going to suggest something right in the middle. The T2500 isnt very cost effective, and the T2300 is pretty good, but I think your best bet would be to go with the T2400 (I find it to have the best bang/buck ratio). As far as he RAM goes, dell ram is expensive. Get the 512 that comes with it and buy some aftermarket RAM (I can't suggest what kind or what to do, I only have experience with RAM in PCs). A gig would be great, 2 would be better. Do that and it SHOULD even out to about the same price.

 

Thanks for the tips and pointers, I think I'll be going with Setup #1. I'll just purchase the RAM from NewEgg.com and have BestBuy or a friend install it. Thanks again.

 

If you go w/ setup #1, I believe it's for 2 512MB modules. So if you're planning to upgrade to 2GB, you'd have to switch out both sticks of RAM. If you can wait, it may be more cost effective to wait until Dell switches promotions. Then maybe you could get a free upgrade to dvd burner & only have to get rid of one 512 MB module.

 

well good luck with that since the 750 off code expired

 

It expired but they have another one. Dell releases coupons every Thursday, one of the ones released yesterday is a $750 off one, just like the one last week. Check for yourself.

http://www.notebookreview.com/dellCoupon.asp

 

<------ a newb in training

 

Go with Setup #1