Buying an M4600

Hey all,

I just wanted to talk about what you all think about this build. I'm buying the m4600 to replace my m4400 as the heat generated near the palm rest with the m4400 is simply too much:

i7-2720M Quad Core 2.20GHz

2.0GB, DDR3-1333 SDRAM (will upgrade from newegg)

Non backlit kbd (I read that the backlit one has flexing problems)

Quadro 2000M (Is this a waste of money over the 1000M, I want Nvidia optimus)

250GB Hard Drive, 7200RPM (Already have a Crucial M4)

15.6 Full HD (1920x1080)

1 year warranty

Price: $1593 after tax

Questions:
1. How much does it cost to re activate the warranty after 1 year?

2. I've read the lid is fragile, is this true?

3. People who have upgraded from the m4400, how hot is the palm rest on the m4600 in comparison (nvidia users).

4. I'm debating simply getting a cheap net book and using my desktop (built with and i7 at 4ghz) for any serious computing.

5. Anything else I should know about the m4600 (problems or serious issues?)

6. Any thoughts would be great

Thanks

 

I got the 1000M, saving me 150 bucks - that made the expense a little more bearable. What kind of stuff will you do that can use CUDA architecture or is graphic-card intensive? I gotta admit tho that occasionally I believe that I should have gotten the 2000M.... But that's just for bragging rights.

2. I got the backlit keyboard and I can't complain about flex.
3. Not a M4400 user, but the palmrest doesn't get hot IMHO
4. uh-huh. Then why get a laptop for 1.5k?
5. No, I don't even find the keyboard trim to be fragile. I like it. It's expensive. The M4600 is great with the RGB-Led IPS panel - it's a sin to not get it. Battery lifetime sucks tho, compared to competitors. The laptop is heavy(ish) and thicker than netbooks. Some IPS-panel users complain of color casts in the edges.

6. get the IPS panel if you can afford it. If not, I'm not sure why to get the M4600?

 

2000M is a nice little card. Good upgrade in my opinion.

The backlit keyboard having more flex is a myth. I wish it was a myth that would die.

The backlit keyboard has the same metal frame as the non backlit one, but has another layer of material on it. It flexes LESS than the non backlit version.

I posted pictures of the two keyboards on my M6600 review. You can see the extra layer of white plastic on the backlit one. When I get some spare time I will make a video to explain it all in visual detail.

 

totally agree, no keyboard flex on my backlit keyboard.

if you're not that much into graphics intensive stuff and want optimal battery performance consider the 1000M over the 2000M. I get around 3 hours of battery runtime (max runtime energy setting) with the 1000M AND the IPS panel. So no optimus for me whatsoever.
If you're not getting the IPS panel I do believe optimus should work....

 

Wait how do you get an M4600 with only a 1 year warranty? Thought all Dell's mainstream Latitudes and Precision with a 3 year depot warranty?