The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.

    Custom Build (Optimus II from PSC) vs. Dell XPS15

    Discussion in 'Notebook Cosmetic Modifications and Custom Builds' started by Elise, Oct 4, 2011.

  1. Elise

    Elise Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    1
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hi all, I'm looking into replacing my Samsung R560 as I've just started my degree in graphic design.

    A brief history - After about 20 minutes of research I thought my only HD option was the Sony Vaio F series. Surprising amount of negative feedback online about it, so did a bit more digging. Found LOTS more options, but settled on the Dell XPS 15 with HD screen upgrade option and then Enigma III from PCS. However their Optimus II seems more suitable. I have a budget of roughly £800 but cheaper is always good. My most important part is the display for graphic design on CS4.

    Both of the laptops have very similar specs and it's little things like after sales care, price and build quality that are going to make the difference.

    Here are the specs of the models I'm considering:

    Optimus II 15.6" Custom Build - £794
    Full HD Glossy LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
    [Ideal for photo editing and graphic design - although I've heard conflicting views about matte screens - are they worth it? An extra £79 on this model!]
    Intel i7 2630QM 2.00ghz and 6mb cache
    2x 4gb RAM
    500gb 7,200rpm hard drive
    Nvidia GeForce 555M 2gb graphics card

    Dell XPS 15 - £849
    Full HD B+RGLED TL (1920x1080)     [Not 100% sure what those extra letters mean... Dell do not give a matte screen option.]
    Intel i7 2630QM 2.00ghz and 6mb cache (the same as above)
    1x 4gb + 1x 2gb RAM (2gb less than above)
    750GB 7,200rpm hard drive (250gb more than above but I use a dataserver anyway)
    NVIDIA GeForce 540M 2gb graphics card (slower than above)

    The reason I'm considering the dell is that I've read negative things about the cheap chassis on the Optimus II and that it gets uncomfortably hot - and the speakers are apparantly very quiet.
    Both laptops come with one year collect & return warranty (well the PCS silver warranty is £5 - definately worth it).

    I'm just confused and stuck between a custom build and a big company with a reasonably good reputation - although it's more expensive.

    If you have any other suggestions of laptops or edits to my build - please let me know. I'd also like to hear from anyone who owns an Optimus II of any description - there are hardly any reviews online!
     
    Elise, Oct 4, 2011
    #1