Dell Vostro 1500 User Review

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Dell Vostro 1500 Review

The Dell Vostro 1500 is the small business equivalent of the Inspiron 1520. This computer, starting at less than $600, can be configured with anywhere from a Celeron M540 processor to a much faster Core 2 Duo 7500. Unlike the Inspiron model, an AMD option is unavailable.

Configuration: (Total: $877)

• Intel Core 2 Duo T5470 (1.6Ghz)
• 1GB 677Mhz DDR2 SDRAM
• 120G 5400RPM Hard Drive
• nVidia GeForce 8600M GT, 256MB
• 8x DVD Burner with Double Layer capability
• 15.4” widescreen anti-glare screen (1280x800)
• Dell Wireless 355 Bluetooth Internal (2.0 + Enhanced Data Rate)
• Dell Wireless 1505 Mini-Card (Pre-802.11n)
• 85 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
• Microsoft Windows Vista Home Basic

Note: Since this machine was purchased, Dell has increased the price of this computer.

First Impressions

Dell Vostro 1500 (view large image)

Upon unpacking the Vostro 1500 and first handling it, I was rather impressed by the build. Upon picking up the system, it’s clear the computer is very sturdy and will hold up over time. Unfortunately, the side effect of this build quality is the heaviness and size. This machine is a beast. I make a note of handing it to people and watching their reaction. Everyone is shocked by the sheer weight of this machine.

Build/Design

The design of this system is rather spartan, but also very professional with the solid black styling. It’s not flashy like a high-end gaming laptop would be, but it doesn’t look bad to my eyes. The LEDs have a nice saturated blue color, though Dell was inconsistent in the styling. Several lights, including the battery level LEDs, the CD drive LED, and the “Wi-Fi Catcher” LED are green. In addition, the low battery light is an odd shade of hot pink, which fits with nothing else in the system. While this is by no means a major functional concern, I would have preferred the colors to be more consistent. I also dislike the hot pink color the battery light turns when the battery reaches a low level.

The build of this system, as noted above, is very good. The back of the screen and bottom of the case appear to be a fairly thick magnesium alloy, which is solid, but has the side effect of adding a lot of weight. My configuration, without the battery, is 6.2 pounds. The battery is 1.1 pounds, as is the charger. In total, the system carrying weight is 8.4 pounds. Clearly, this computer is not designed to move very far. When I pushed around the casing, the only places that gave were in the largest areas of the palm rest, and then only a little bit. The keyboard has no discernable give. I was disappointed, as I was with the Inspiron 1501, with the Express Card release button. In the out position, it’s extremely difficult to push back in for those of us with chubby fingers.

The build of the screen is a not quite as good as the rest of the notebook. Neither twisting nor pushing on the back of the screen yielded any rippling. However, the screen itself is relatively easy to twist, and squeaks when twisted. Pushing on the top of the screen yields only a small amount of wobbling, but not enough to be a problem in my opinion. As noted in reviews of the Inspiron 1520/1521, the screen latches leave a slight amount of room between the rubber pads on the screen and the palm rests, about the thickness of a dime. This is enough to wiggle a bit and make some noise if it’s closed and it gets jostled.

Right side

The right side of the case features the DVD burner, Firewire, two USB ports, the memory card reader, and Ethernet.

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Left Side

The left side of the case includes the wireless card switch, as well as the audio plugs and the ExpressCard slot.

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Back

The back of the case has the modem, the power plug, two USB ports, and an S-Video plug.

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Front

The buttons on the front are the media control buttons, which are mute, volume up, volume down, pause/play, skip backward, skip forward, and stop. Also on the front is the infrared window (receive only).

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Screen:

The screen on the Vostro 1500 is relatively ordinary. I opted for the anti-glare 1280x800, 15.4” resolution model. The vertical field of view on this screen can be described as poor at best, and I frequently find myself adjusting the tilt of the screen to match the way I’m sitting. The horizontal field of view is considerably better than the vertical, and I have no complaints. Even looking closely at the screen, I am unable to distinguish the “Dell noise” that some other reviewers have described. What does bother me, however, is this screen’s ability to attract dust. Cleaning the screen is an ordeal that has to be done frequently to remove the dust from the screen. I do not know if the glossy screen would improve this or not.

In the screen’s defense, it is rather bright when put on full brightness, and colors seem adequately saturated and accurate to my eye. The light leaks are relatively minor on this computer and are only noticeable on a completely black screen, and then only on the top and bottom.

Speakers:

As can be expected of most laptops in this price range, the speakers are nothing spectacular. There is an excess of sound in the 4K range, and not nearly enough in the lower-end range, causing very tinny sounding speakers. I would recommend using an equalizer if you intend to listen to music on this computer. As an example, the following screenshot shows my iTunes EQ settings. Fortunately, these speakers do get rather loud, and due to the position on the underside of the computer, they don’t get muffled by hands.

Processor, Performance, and Benchmarks:

The Core 2 Duo processor is, simply put, awesome. The T5470 that was configured in my system was the slowest processor available in the Core 2 Duo variety, but it still performs tasks with great ease. When multi-tasking, the dual-core functionality of the system really shows what it’s capable of. Having run single-core processors up until this computer, the difference is amazing. It’s possible to do CPU-intensive tasks and still have a perfectly responsive computer at the same time, which is a welcome relief.

Super Pi is an application that calculates Pi to 2 million digits of accuracy and reports the time it took to perform the calculation. The time on the T5470 was 1 minute 16 seconds with no applications running, and 1 minute 27 seconds while watching a DVD in Windows Media Player.

Notebook	Time
Dell Vostro 1500 (Intel T5470 1.60GHz)	1m 16s
ThinkPad X61s (1.6GHz Core 2 Duo L7500)	1m 08s
ThinkPad X61 (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7300)	1m 01s
Macbook Pro (2.4GHz Core 2 Duo T7700)	53s
HP 6515b (1.6GHz Turion64 X2 TL-52)	2m 05s
ThinkPad T42 (1.8GHz Pentium M 745)	1m 58s
Sony TX850p (1.2GHz Core Solo U1400)	1m 22s
ThinkPad R60 (1.66GHz Core Duo T2300e)	1m 26s
Lenovo C100 (1.5GHz Celeron M)	2m 19s
VAIO S380 (1.86 GHz Pentium M 740)	1m 45s

PCMark 2005 is a synthetic benchmark that tests all areas of system performance. The Vostro 1500 was, however, unable to complete this test. I am uncertain why, but it seemed worthy of note.

Unfortunately, the stock 5400RPM hard drive doesn’t always cut it. Since I now use this computer as my standard gaming computer, I’ve loaded games onto it. What I’ve discovered is that with some games, Battlefield 2 in particular, the hard drive loads everything slowly enough that by the time I have loaded the game, the match is half over. If you’re intending to use this computer for gaming and you have the money, spend the extra on the 7200RPM hard drive. If you intend to use it solely for less hard drive-intensive applications, the 5400RPM drive will be fine.

HD Tune is a basic hard drive benchmark that tests the transfer rate and access speed of the hard drive. As is evident, this hard drive sets no performance records, and the transfer rate is inconsistent.

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The graphics card, the 8600M GT, in this computer configuration has been no less than spectacular thus far. Among the games I own, I was unable to find one that I could not run at full graphical settings acceptably.

3DMark 2006 is a synthetic graphics benchmark that is designed to take advantage of the latest and greatest in graphics technology. The 8600M GT performs well for this price range, at 3319 3DMarks.

3DMark06 comparison results:

Notebook	3DMark06 Score
Dell Vostro 1500 (1.6GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5470, Nvidia Go 8600M GT)	3,319 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1720 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8600M GT)	2,930 3DMarks
Dell Inspiron 1420 (2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS 128MB)	1,329 3DMarks
Sony VAIO FZ (2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, Intel X3100)	532 3DMarks
Asus F3sv-A1 (Core 2 Duo T7300 2.0GHz, Nvidia 8600M GS 256MB)	2,344 3DMarks
Alienware Area 51 m5550 (2.33GHz Core 2 Duo, nVidia GeForce Go 7600 256MB	2,183 3DMarks
Samsung X60plus (2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T7200, ATI X1700 256MB)	1,831 3DMarks
HP dv6000t (2.16 GHz Intel T7400, NVIDA GeForce Go 7400)	827 3DMarks
Sony Vaio SZ-110B in Speed Mode (Using Nvidia GeForce Go 7400)	794 3DMarks
Samsung R20 (1.73GHz T2250 and ATI 1250M chipset / GPU)	476 3DMarks

Optical drive performance was not what I would consider spectacular. The DVD burner drive appears to be capable of reading and writing at a maximum of 24x for CDs, and is capable of burning DVDs at 8x. Nero InfoTool shows the drive’s capabilities:

Running Nero CD-DVD Speed on an audio CD reveals the drive’s lackluster speed:

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Heat and Noise:

The Dell Vostro 1500 produces an ungodly amount of heat if you run processor or video-card intensive programs. While the system manages to keep itself cool enough to continue operating, it can get almost uncomfortable to leave this computer on your lap while playing games or running processor-heavy applications. The areas I noted that get the hottest are noted below.

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While it does get hot, this computer never gets noisy. The whir of the hard drive and fans remains whisper-quiet even when the fan is on full blast. I often keep the system on overnight because I can hear no difference between having it on and having it off.

Keyboard and Touchpad:

The keyboard and touchpad of the Vostro 1500 are both very sturdy and without flex. The keyboard, as with all laptop keyboards, takes some adjustment to learn the unique positioning of the keys. I am a huge fan of the way Dell laid out this machine’s keyboard. The function key, as seen in pictures, is placed just to the right of the control key, and is the same size as the Windows key (I have on occasion pressed the Windows key instead of the function key). The delete key is positioned in the upper right corner, and it’s probably the most natural spot it can go. It’s out of the way enough not to be accidental, and it’s easy to find. Function keys are fairly standard, and include F1 for sleep/hibernate, F3 for battery status (Which requires installed Dell software to operate), F8 to switch monitors, and the up/down arrow keys for monitor brightness. One gripe I have is that the numpad not only requires numlock to be on, but the function key must also be held down while using it. I also had a key stop working properly for a while. I will explain in the customer support section.

The touchpad is not as good as the keyboard. Dell chose to move down the keyboard in this line of computers, which, while it makes it more attractive and better laid out, shrinks the touchpad significantly vertically. By my own measurements, it’s 3” wide by 1.5” tall -- certainly usable, but far too short for my tastes. The scroll zones at the top and bottom are also difficult to adjust properly using software, and I frequently have trouble getting them to activate regardless of their setting. Large-handed users beware: I often find the edge of my palm rests or taps the touchpad on occasion, causing clicks where they weren’t intended. The large buttons placed below the touch pad are suitably sized, though they are mushy as with the older Inspiron computers. There’s no satisfying click as there is with some touchpad buttons.

Input and Output Ports:

This computer features a host of ports, though surprisingly it lacks a DVI-out port as may be expected. The VGA port is located on the right hand side of the system. Dell designed this system to have 4 USB 2.0 ports, two on the back next to the power plug, and two on the side next to the Ethernet port. Also featured are an IEEE 1394 (Firewire) port on the same side as the VGA plug, 10/100 Ethernet port, and the CD drive. The system also has an 8-in-1 memory card reader, which can read: SD, xD, MMC, SDIO, Memory Stick, Memory Stick PRO, Hi Speed-SD, and Hi Density-SD. In contrast to the heavily utilized right side, the left side of the case features few ports. There is a microphone jack, a headphone/speaker jack, and an Express Card slot. The back is also fairly unused, with nothing but the power input, an S-Video output (notably also supporting several adapters Dell will sell you for component video and the like), and the two USB ports I noted earlier.

Wireless:

I opted for my computer to use the Dell Wireless 1505, which features pre-N functionality. The wireless range on this card is fairly average, and it connects to most networks with ease. However, it’s important to note that this card does not communicate with all wireless routers without a fight. My recommendation, for compatibility, is the Intel Wireless card instead of the Dell wireless. It seems to be more compatible according to what I have read (the lower-end Dell cards also seem to have the same connection problems). I do, however, like the wireless switch on the left-hand side of the notebook. This switch allows control (configurable via the Dell software in Windows or through the BIOS) of the system’s internal wireless cards, including, if installed, Bluetooth, 802.11X, and any WWAN cards. This switch has three options: On, off, and a third, momentary switch, dubbed “Wi-fi Catcher.” This technology, if used while the system is off, will turn a small LED green if a wireless network is detected in range of the system within around five seconds. If used from within Windows when the Dell software is installed, a window will instantly pop up with all the wireless networks in range. While it sounds pointless, considering a similar feature is available through Windows, the Wi-Fi Catcher is considerably faster.

Battery:

I opted for the 9-cell extended life battery on the notebook. This battery extends about three-fourths of an inch past the edge of the computer, and spans nearly the entire back. On the underside of the battery are 5 LEDs and a button which, if pushed, illuminates the LEDs to indicate battery charge remaining (20% per LED). I tested the battery life by instructing the computer to standby when the battery got to 2% and to not shut down anything on inactivity. On full brightness, while connected to a wireless access point and watching a DVD, I managed to squeeze 3 hours and 20 minutes out of the battery before it abruptly went into standby. This seems adequate for most purposes, and it is likely that with lower power consumption (Word processing on low screen brightness with no wireless, for example) would yield above four hours, a reasonable amount of time for a desktop replacement machine. Don’t expect it to be a road warrior.

Operating System and Software:

The Dell Vostro 1500 comes with only two CDs: One to reinstall the Dell MediaDirect feature and the other is a driver CD, including both XP and Vista drivers. No operating system reinstall disk is included, much to my dismay. The Dell MediaDirect install disk appears to be only for Vista, if Vista was the chosen operating system. More on this in a moment.

My system came preconfigured with Windows Vista Home Basic. After a day with Vista, I decided I preferred Windows XP, and promptly began to install the older operating system. This process, which in the past has taken around an hour, took 10 hours to do. My attempts were plagued by the Dell MediaDirect software. MediaDirect, for those not familiar, is a quick-booting Linux operating system accessed using a small ‘home’ button near the power button. It allows one to watch movies, read documents, listen to music, look at pictures, and a few other things. According to the instructions packaged with the disk, the MediaDirect disk is to be installed first, then the operating system is to be installed in the empty partition MediaDirect leaves. I did this. Several times. As it turns out, Dell did not intend to leave a downgrade path. When I tried invoking MediaDirect, the first few times it didn’t install properly. When it finally did, it set itself up then told me it couldn’t access the information on the hard drive. Upon restarting the system, it became apparent that MediaDirect was going to be a problem. It went through its “unable to access the hard drive” routine again- I was stuck out of Windows. Eventually, my solution was to install Windows without MediaDirect and simply not press the MediaDirect button.

The software on the Vostro is surprisingly free of bloatware, as is advertised on the Dell website. I requested my system without security software, and it came exactly as I wanted it: A clean slate. This was a very welcome relief after some systems I’ve worked with that take hours to uninstall the bundled software.

The Dell configuration software is relatively spartan and pales in comparison to the configuration software available in systems manufactured by some other companies, particularly Toshiba. There are a few power setting options, a configuration tool for the Wi-Fi Catcher, some basic screen settings, and that’s all that’s included. There is no option to slow down the CPU to improve battery life that was visible to me.

Customer Support:

Several weeks after receiving the laptop, the ‘a’ key on the keyboard began dropping keypresses seemingly randomly. I contacted Dell technical support on a Sunday evening with my problem. They asked for an address and by Tuesday morning, the new keyboard was at my doorstep. It was a self-install keyboard, which was easy due to the instructions in the substantial manual. When I was done, I put the old keyboard back in the box that was shipped to me and used the included return label to ship the old keyboard to Dell. (If you don’t do this, they invoice you for the replacement keyboard).

On the note of the manual, it is impressive by today’s standards. It’s 222 pages long and covers everything that a basic user could likely need. In the second half of the book is the shortened service manual, which includes how to remove and install the hard drive, memory, keyboard, and wireless cards. For me, having the printed copy was a nice touch.

Conclusion:

The Dell Vostro 1500 is a moderately powerful and relatively inexpensive system for businesses and home users alike. Its good build quality and good configuration options allow it to be an excellent and versatile machine for many different applications. Despite some design flaws, the Vostro 1500 is still an excellent machine.

Pros:

• Tough construction
• Many configuration options
• XP available preinstalled
• Good keyboard
• Quiet
• Comprehensive manual
• Fast support

Cons:

• Heavy!
• Mediocre screen
• Tinny speakers
• Slow hard drive
• Picky wireless card

 

Good review! Although the wireless card and hard drive can be upgraded so I wouldn't necessarily consider them as cons.

 

I would recommend that if you bought that laptop now that you get 2gb of ram, and if anyone has that on a dell vostro 1500 could they post a 3dmark06 score please.

 

It should have come with an OS reinstall disk... You can request one if you want and they should send it to you for free. But, seeing as you installed XP that won't be necessary, I guess

Great review!

 

Nice review. I guess some things are relative. For e.g. I found the Wireless draft N to be a breeze with great connectivity over distances. I can understand the mediocrity of Dell screens however I have a beautiful WSXGA+ and also about 5MB/s better throughput in hdtune over your posted results with the 160gb drive. With the 6 cell its not heavy.

Definitely would add the headphone jack buzzing as a major con (if you have that issue).

 

At $800, this is an insane computer, fantastic specs for the price. Unfortunately, its somewhat bland looking and heavy, plus its a Dell.

Nice review.

 

Were there routers you had trouble connecting to? Were you ever able to get the issues resolved and connect?

 

WHat drivers do you have installed? I have an T7300 2.0ghx processor with the same graphics card, and only get 3188 with default drivers, and 3287 with 163.44 BIOSHOCK drivers...

 

Nice review! For the price, the notebook offers amazing value.

 

Nice informative review. Thanks.

 

what drivers??

 

Swarmer: I have had no luck connecting to Westell Versalink routers provided by Verizon Wireless for their DSL customers. I also attempted connecting using an older Inpsiron 1501 with the Dell Wireless G card with no success.

Jaypak: I'll be happy to help you if you specify what you're referring to.

 

for ur 8600 gt

 

I'm using the 162.18 drivers from nVidia. I did notice once I looked at the comparison that my 3dMarks seemed really high, but that is what it came up as, so I don't know why it performed that well.

 

off nvidia or laptopvideo2go?

 

jaypak: Those were the nVidia drivers.

 

Nice informative Review.Thanks - 2 ditto

 

It looks like the T5470 CPU has still a very good 3dmark score from here. I was wondering whether paying extra $115 for T7100 worth it. They both have 2M L2 cache so after all isn't it just 0.2Ghz clock speed difference? I heard T5470 lacking something called "vertical synthesizer" or whatever but then again also heard that feature is only useful for servers...

If i'm going to be using my laptop mainly for gaming and no server/video editing at all, would you recommend T7100 or even T7300 with 4MB cache? if yes, why?

 

Hopefully my Vostro will come today

When I get it, I'll try to do some gaming performance tests with 3dMark06/games such as stalker/HL2/CSS/Lost Coast/Guild Wars/Quake 4/WoW and post them here

My specs are T7100/8600GT 256MB/2GB RAM which seems to be the default setup, so hopefully it will help alot of people...

 

Thanks for a good review which will help people with their purchasing decisions.

I was interested to see that you have marked the air vents on the bottom as hot spots. These are normally air intakes and should therefore be relatively cool unless you put the computer on something soft (like your thighs) which interferes with the air circulation. A lap tray might be a good investment.

John

 

Technonerd: Appreciate the review, I've been waiting for a review of the Vostro 1500 & 1700. Suprised you didn't go for the built-in webcam option as it's only a $20 upgrade..

May I ask you to further compare the budget Inspiron 1501 to the Vostro 1500, with particular respect to screen & sound & overall build? {When the Vostro line came out 6 weeks after I got the 1501 I was kinda peeved I didn't know more about Dell's product pipeline-release dates}

Clearly the GPU & CPU blow it away (& I prefer all black color) but when I bought the 1501 I just wanted a new XP notebook & I figured for $499 I couldn't go wrong (My first 2 notebooks cost over $4000) & I found it to be a remarkable value as noted by reviewers (quite satisfied with anti-glare-flawless screen, good forward projecting sound for notebook, few LEDs, dual coreAMDCPU-256IGPU could of course be better but fine for non-gaming tasks) .

Thanks,

http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=3359&review=Dell+Inspiron+1501

 

I just received my Vostro 1500 today and couldn't be more satisfied. I got the 1280x800 WXGA screen and it is gorgeous - Very bright, clear, and sharp, with decent viewing angles (as good as, if not better than most laptops I've seen in retail stores). I was a little worried that I opted for the basic Dell wireless card, but it seems to work like a charm with the Linksys WRT54G router I just picked up today. I also went with the 5470 processor, which is all I need with 2GB of ram and a dedicated graphics card.

 

Great review!

 

My experience with the Inspiron 1501 is limited to working with my father's notebook, which he got a few months prior to the purchase of this one.

The Inspiron 1501 is designed to be cheaper for both the consumer and producer, and it does show. In some configurations, I discovered it was actually cheaper to buy the better-constructed 1500 than the Inspiron 1501.

In regards to build quality, screen, and speakers: The Insprion 1501 is a full-plastic case which is considerably less rigid than the magnesium alloy case on the Vostro 1500. I actually prefer the way Dell did the battery on the 1501, which is mounted more in the middle of the case instead of at the back, where it juts out. (Though it makes sense why the change occurred.) The Truelife screen on the 1501 that I know is about the same brightness as the Vostro 1500, but the field of view is better, from what I remember (I don't have both to compare). The speakers are fairly similar: Both are rather tinny, though the positioning on the Insprion 1501 is superior because it doesn't require the laptop to be on a solid surface to be audible. (Something I didn't note in the review is that the speakers are a bit hard to hear if they're not over something solid, like a desk, due to the downward-facing design.)

I can attempt to compare them further if you would like, but I don't have access to the 1501 frequently.

 

That 3D Mark '06 score is impossible.... a similarly configured Dell Inspiron 1520 with a faster processor and the same nVidia 8600M GT 256MB scores less..... is it the drivers??? could you post the 3D Mark '06 screen?

 

The score is correct. I have a Vostro 1500 with a T7100, 8600GT, and 1GB RAM, and I got a score around 3375 with default drivers (about 3420 with 163.44's). The Inspiron scores do look pretty low though....?

However, I'm going to return my Vostro. Unfortunately, the size/weight don't really lend themselves to a university laptop, which is what I need. Trying to balance this thing on one of the half-desks we have at school is torture. I think I'm going to skip on gaming for my laptop (seriously, I can game at home), and go for something smaller/lighter (13.3"?).

Nice review though!

 

Thanks yeah at this point it's hard to justify the Inspiron 1501 over the Vostro 1500 unless one is on a strict $500 budget.

Mg alloy case is quite preferable though it would be nice if it all weighed less. Otherwise 15.4" seems like an overall versatile notebook size when weight is reasonable (you could always use a smaller battery if one's continuous unplugged needs are less & it wouldn't jut out the case dimensions). Hopefully battery technology-energy management will continue to improve & XP will remain a Dell pre-installed option.

While the silver paint frame of the 1501 adds luster against a matte LCD, in the sun-bright areas I find it annoying & prefer a high contrast matte black frame-body against a bright, matte screen for use in sun-bright areas.

I was a little disappointed with the speaker placement of the Vostro 1500, & it seems the V1700 lost the subwoofer..at least it finally gained a webcam-mic option.

I wouldn't mind reading more on heat issues when used on a flat surface vs. laptop use..Thanks again for the review!

 

Did you switch the resolution to 1200x800 from the standard set 3DMark res?

I am not getting a similar score with it (x1024)

 

i don't like your review. i have the vostro and i prefer to see the positives in it, you seem to be looking for negatives to be there. try and enjoy your purchase.

 

m0b1liz3: I used the resolution that it gave me when it started, without changing any options.

mellortron: I'm sorry to hear that. I felt it was important to point out the negatives, because they are definitely there, and other reviews failed to note some of the problems. I do enjoy my purchase, but to aid in the purchasing decisions of others, I feel it necessary to be rather critical.

 

well just remember that when you do that, it makes people who have already put their money where their mouths are feel slightly down about their purchase because you have made a mockery of it. well i for one will not be dragged down by your criticism. Vostro 1500 FTW!

 

Every review at this site lists the Pros & Cons. I think it's totally appropriate to critically review the user experience, that's why I read and value the in-depth user reviews here to assist prospective buyers & interested parties alike (which tend to be more detailed & have less potential for bias than industry review publications).

His review was in no way a mockery & should not detract from your purchase. Enjoy your Vostro 1500. I think Dell is back on track with their latest lines-offerings as they are harder to beat in terms of customizing that price : performance ratio than ever but I rely on indepedent reviews such as those found at this site for personal experiences-insight.

Thanks again Technonerd (& notebookreview.com) for the review and replies, keep us updated as you see fit...

 

I would be very disappointed in any reviewer who did not candidly offer the positives and the negatives of the laptop. Generally, people read reviews to decide whether or not to purchase something, not to feel better about something they have already purchased .

 

To begin with, thanks for the very thorough evaluation. As an owner of a Vostro 1500 (with almost identical specs to the one discussed here), I was looking forward to someone posting a review. On the plus side, I believe the comments about the sturdy construction, good keyboard and the quiet operation are quite accurate. Also, I can verify the somewhat limited vertical viewing angle on the LCD, as well as its excellent brightness.

However, I do believe some of the negative comments are overstated. Yes, the 1500 is somewhat large and heavy and I would definitely notice the weight if I had to carry it around on my back on a daily basis. However, it is not a beast. I believe it’s roughly average for its screen size. Everything is relative… for example it is somewhat heavier and larger than the T60 I use at work, but comparatively light and small when put up against the Satellite P10 I have at home. That machine is truly a beast and still offers only a 15.4” screen! I’ve also used business class notebooks from HP (nc8000, nc8430) and none of them were significantly lighter and/or smaller.

With respect to the hard drive, 5400 RPM is also pretty standard for this class and price. As a matter of fact, I was pleasantly surprised by the speed. Not only is it faster than the T60’s HD, which feels quite slow by comparison, but it also trumps the aforementioned Satellite P10, which has had the speediest HD I’ve ever used on a notebook. Though the 1500 doesn’t fare so well against my desktop’s 7200 RPM HD, it’s not as far off as I would have imagined.

In terms of the wireless, I also bought the Dell card and have had no issues whatsoever connecting to my wi-fi router. As a matter of fact so far it’s been among the most reliable wi-fi connections I have experienced in a notebook.

With respect to heat, the 1500 is one of the coolest running laptops I have ever used. Under normal usage, it barely registers any warmth on the bottom and the air blowing out the side is lukewarm at best. Yes, it does get a fair amount warmer when playing games, but the 8600GT is a serious graphics chip. Overall though, even when playing games, the heat is not so unbearable that I can’t hold it on my lap. Its thermal envelope is comparable to the T60 and much cooler than the P10, an admittedly old laptop using a P4 processor which can easily server as a space heater in a pinch.

One last word regarding quality. Though I haven’t owned the 1500 for very long, I am carefully comparing it the industry leader T60 for quality. Much to my surprise, the 1500 comes out quite a bit ahead. Aside from a bit of a wobbly battery and static in the headphones, the 1500 has no other observable flaws. On the other hand, the T60 suffers from stuck pixels on the LCD, an intermittent clicking noise from the fan and flaky wireless which sometimes inexplicably turns off.

That’s been my experience so far with the 1500. Hope it helps.

 

hey, I read that you can swap out the dvd drive on the vostro 1500 and put it a secondary battery. Is this true? I see it on this review but cannot find any info on it on the Dell site or anywhere online.

 

I apologize, you are correct. I will modify the statement in the review to reflect this. I believe I was thinking of the Inspiron 1501 when I wrote that statement.

Thank you for the correction.

 

Dell has a pretty good deal on the Vostro 1500 now, and I'm considering biting. Is there a big difference between the different wi-fi options available? I understand that two are wireless-N but is the connection/range pretty much similar? Also I'm not a big fan of the battery sticking out the back, so the 6 cell battery is going to be 2/3 the life of the 9 cell battery I'm assuming?

 

Go with the standard Dell 1390 one. I have been on WiFi networks for 5 years now, and I have yet to come across an 802.11a network, which makes the 1490 upgrade useless. AFAIK, the Broadcom (Dell) cards are reputed to have better range and such than the Intel cards, and regardless, going with the Intel card isn't worth $29. That money is better spent on Bluetooth. The draft-N cards are way too expensive, wait for N to be standardized and start becoming popular before getting an N card.

 

what's the max resolution of the VGA port on this and does it matter what video card option I pick? and can I use a monitor via VGA port and make it a dual display?

 

This laptop is great but there is no HDMI or even a DVI! Im pretty sure that the next models will correct this. Or they need to correct this. Do you think its still a laptop thats worth to get? Theres a great deal on this model right now and im thinking about getting it but the no HDMI or DVI factor is making me thing twice.

 

if you really need the dvi/hdmi then probably not. most people do not these ports. I haven't seen many laptops with dvi, esp at this price point. I ordered this laptop on Monday and should be getting it nxt week sometime. The lack of dvi was a bit disappointing, but I paid 800 for it so I can't really complain. I think the only Dell laptops with dvi are the XPS line and Precision which cost significantly more.

 

Squeeg: I haven't tested the maximum resolution output.

Misteralay: Definately. Having no DVI out is a tad inconvenient, but at this price, it's still a screaming deal.

 

Thanx for the pictures and info

 

Good review for sure. Wish I could upgrade my video card to something substantially better than what is available for my machine. This is a real plus for Vostro.

 

I just got mine a couple days ago. I got the SXGA+ screen and it's pretty awesome I have to say. My last laptop was a cheapo Toshiba satellite and it has had nothing but problems..past 3 AC adapters died, so this was pretty exciting. My only gripe is that it's a bit bulky/thick, but I don't really mind. I got the 6 cell battery because I didn't want it to stick out the back and I have gotten ~3 hrs and still had life left in it. I didn't really test it out fully, and I was just using it to net surf.

 

I just got mine (Dell Vostro 1500) today, ordered on the internet. With Vista pre-installed. But because i'm still in school, i wanted to install windows xp on it. But when i boot from the windows xp disc. It almost instantly (when the setup want's to start and you need too make your first choice) crashes to a blue screen. How am i able to install windows xp on this pc.
I found on the internet that MediaDirect was causing the problem. Because it is installed on a different partion. How am i able to install windows xp on this pc. I don't need Media Direct.

Edit:
I just tried booting from another windows xp disc. (The first one is about 3 years old and i got it at school, it's just the basic windows xp pro). The one I used now is windows xp home with sp2 included. And now i didn't get the error.

I can't install the home edition cause it is installed on my desktop.

So just my question... How can I install windows xp pro on my notebook, without having problems with the dell media direct.

 

Read this thoroughly. http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=88032

Get all your stuff together before starting and it will go well. Update your Bios to the compatable version of windows your going to before you start the process at all. When you start the installation you will be asked which partition(s) you would like to remove. On my Inspiron origonally with Vista there were 4 seperate components/3 partitions. 1 was a diagnostic section. Vey small. 2 was a 10Gig back-up for Vista. 3rd was my c drive and 4th was Media direct. I got rid of em all as my pc came with discs with the vista operating systems and other discs with programs and drivers so I did not need to retain the 10Gig back-up. If I ever wanna go back it would be easy. You say you don't need media direct so you can wipe that partiton out too. Be sure thats what you want before formatting the hard drive cuz if you want media direct you must start the whole process from the very beginning with an XP compatable media direct cd.

 

I recently bought a 1500 off the Dell Outlet and I am elated with it!

2 quick questions:
I am not familiar with the drivers on laptopvideo2go.com, what are the potential advantages/disadvantages of using the drivers from the site. (I have the 8600M GT, running XP Pro). Will I see a performance increase or not?

The reason I asked the previous question is that when playing CounterStrike (not source), every once in a while my system hiccups, which is odd. I haven't totally isolated the problem. I'm pretty sure it's not my connection, b/c I was playing it flawlessly with a LAtitude D620 (2 Ghz Core Duo, 128 MB Quadro 110). I thought I would get a considerable performance increase with my Vostro (T7300, 8600M GT) but it's about the same. Is this b/c Halflife 1: CounterStrike is an older game and performance plateaus? Do I need to tweak some settings? New drivers?
(I understand that I can't get increased FPS unless my refresh rate is higher than my previous laptop, unless I want to turn off VSync and deal with tearing).

Thanks for any help/info/suggestions!

 

Thanks for this review! I am a grad student looking to buy a more powerful computer than my 2yr old Inspiron 600m and the Vostro 1500 is looking good to me. I need lots of power to run analytic programs, but am less concerned with graphics etc. I need a laptop because of a semi-nomadic lifestyle.

I can upgrade the processor and RAM on the Vostro 1500 much more affordably than on other Dell models. I'm also very keen to get an XP pre-load because the analytic programs I run aren't yet guaranteed to be compatible with Vista. But I am wondering if there is an upper limit to the benefit of RAM upgrades. There are some caveats on upgrading to 4GB of RAM on the Dell site (ie that I won't truly experience 4G).

Assuming I upgrade to the max processor (dual core 2.2 GHZ), is it worthwile to drop the cash to max out the RAM? Do you think I will notice any appreciable difference?

Thanks in advance!

 

You will do just fine with 2GB RAM. 4GB is not worth the cost that Dell charges for it, since you can get 2 sticks of 2GB RAM for around $200, so you can upgrade it yourself for much cheaper. Thats what I would have done, if I wasn't going to return my Vostro.

I am doing that since its just too big and too heavy for me. Also, its kinda ugly, the screen sucks, and there are some quirks that bug me about it.