Dell Precision M4600, $450 Blu-ray option?!

Since the M4600 seems to fit the bill of what I am looking for in my next premium laptop I was severely disappointed with the cost of the Blu-ray option ($450). I know this is not in a consumer line of products and I would expect to pay more than the typical $70-$125 for a blu-ray reading drive, not write. But even considering it is a write afaik and includes software (which is included with the regular DVD drive options) that is a little ridiculous.

So question is, what after-market blu-ray options would fit this laptop? Thoughts or ideas?

 

Do you really need Blu-Ray? I rarely touch optical media...

You would probably be better off buying an external Blu-Ray drive. That way, you can use it with other systems as well and don't have to worry about compatibility.

 

I _think_ the drivebays on the Precision is a universal standard, so that any aftermarket unit will fit, but reserve your judgement until someone who knows 100% sure answers

 

I wanted blu-ray on mine as well, but not for $450. Hopefully an after-purchase solution is available.

 

The drive bay is standard, however, the plastic molding isn't. Aftermarket drives could be too long or too short.

 

Ya, I want to have the ability to view blu-rays on my next laptop. Redbox blu-rays cheap cheap. Also I do see myself watching movies equally on my laptop and tv. Reason I was considering the M4600 is due to feel, build quality, and keyboard. I'm don't type a lot but when I interact with the laptop I just want it to feel like a quality product.

I have been in the market for a premium laptop for over a year now, mainly due to waiting for the HP Envy 14 refresh. What a mess that is. But now with huge uncertainty of no high res screen option, I have been configuring an Asus N53SV off of xoticpc.com (full hd matte screen option ftw!). But when I messed with it in person the keyboard and the shortcut buttons felt low budget but everything else was great. So that got me thinking about business oriented laptops due to the quality feel and matte screens.

 

If you watch in a stationary place (ie. at home, not on the go), then an external BD-RE solution is much cheaper and has write capabilities (as opposed to BD-ROM). You can also remove the ODD and replace it with a large HDD and made a virtual BD ISO file and read it on the go with an ISO reader (such as Daemon Tools).

 

Not on the M4600, no one makes a caddy for it...yet

 

You just need to call in and get a sales rep and work him down on price. Don't worry about individual option prices, configure it to what you want, then configure a as near as identical comparable model in the home/small biz side (generally Studio line) not forgetting to include the discount coupons/codes you have for it. Get the info to your rep and ask hi what he can do. Note if you get certain things like and extra battery or the extended warranties with accident protection they have a lot of markup and give the reps more flexibility to match price (these warranties are available in both Biz and Home/Sm Biz sides. I also do highly recommend the accident protection extended warranties anyway, personally they are a great deal and almost always pay for themselves over 4 years.

I did this process with multiple systems and got almost identical price parity, maybe even better. In more than a couple ways buying from the Biz side has advantages over the consumer side. The support is better (and usually based in the US), the warranty service seems to be better, the sales people are easier to deal with, and you can often get some things configured that don't list in the online configurator (if there's something you don't see that you think should be there just ask them about it).

The ONE caveat I will give you is to read the configuration quotes VERY VERY carefully line by line. It's really easy for a line item to get changed or left off by accident (or sometimes their system will change things on them as certain items aren't technically available) and if you don't notice it until later it can make the process a pain in the .

In the end I ended up with an E6510 that I am more than satisfied with, probably more so than the StudioXPS 16 I was shooting for. I think the build quality is better, I like having a pointing stick in addition to a track pad (even though it pales in comparison to a true IBM TrackPoint one), I like the matte screen (was worried about that one), I can use a docking station, I can swap out my drive bay, I have easy access by removing the bottom cover, great battery life, good looks, and more. The biggest disappointment was I couldn't get the RGB screen as I had just missed it being pulled from offering by about 2 weeks but I am extremely happy with the FHD 1920x1080 LED, it's insanely bright and has decent color though I'm sure the RGB would have been stunning. Also the fingerprint reader is a waste of money, as little as it is, as the software for it is crap and you cannot use other software for it.