Latitude E6400 Owner's Lounge

I could live with a 14.1" screen since I had an Inspiron 1300 laptop for 2 years which came configured with a 14.1" screen. Why would the guy who ordered the Vostro say it's built better than an Inspiron 1525? He said the Inspiron 1525's case was flimsy. Is the Vostro 1510 better than an Inspiron 1525? I liked the looks of the Vostro 1500 when it was available, the case design on that unit looked more attractive than the Vostro 1510. The Vostro 1510 looks like it has too many sharp edges on it's corners, not smooth and rounded like other laptops I've seen. Thanks for your comments.

 

Here's the details of the order for the Vostro 1510 which an employee of my brother's ordered for me for Christmas. As you can see it's scheduled to be shipped out in January 2009. Is this a good configuration for web surfing and email? I saw that a Windows XP upgrade was available, I wish the guy had included that since I've never used Windows Vista and have also read so much bad press about Windows Vista.


Order Details


Order Number: XXXXXXXXX Estimated Ship Date: 01/02/2009


Item Number Quantity Item Description

223-8900 1 Vostro 1510, Intel Core 2 Duo T5670, 1.8GHz, 800MHz FSB, 2M L2 Cache
320-6437 1 15.4 inch Widescreen WXGA LCD for Vostro 1510
311-8551 1 2GB, DDR2, 667MHz 2 DIMM
320-6435 1 Intel Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator X3100
341-6597 1 160G 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
311-8593 1 No UPEK Fingerprint Reader
420-8708 1 Genuine Windows Vista Home Basic SP1
420-6581 1 Image Restore,Vista,Dell OptiPlex,Precision and Latitude
420-7293 1 Dell Icon Consolidation
420-7658 1 Dell Support Center 2.0 for Dell Vostro
313-6829 1 CyberLink PowerDVD 8.1 DVD Playback Vostro
310-8627 1 You have chosen a Windows Vista Basic System
410-1858 1 Adobe Reader 9.0 Multi Language,for Dell Vostro Notebooks and Desktops
313-6192 1 8X DVD+/-RW with double-layer DVD+/-R write capability, withRoxio
313-6191 1 Roxio Creator Dell Edition 9.0for Dell Vostro
313-4783 1 Integrated High Definition Audio 2.0
430-2886 1 Dell Wireless 1395 802.11g Mini Card
313-6184 1 No Built in Camera and DigitalMicrophone
313-6187 1 No Personalization LCD Back
410-1789 1 McAfee Total Protection 15- Month Subscription English forVostro Desktops and Notebooks
312-0685 1 6-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery, for Vostro 1510
420-7773 1 Microsoft Works Plus 2008 English, for Dell Vostro Desktops and Notebooks
983-3920 1 Warranty Support,Initial Year
988-1460 1 Basic Support: Next Business Day Parts and Labor Onsite Response Initial Year
987-7022 1 Basic Support: Next Business Day Parts and Labor Onsite Response 2 Year Extended
990-4067 1 Dell Hardware Limited WarrantyPlus Onsite Service Initial Y ear
982-9072 1 Warranty Support,2 Year Extended
990-4068 1 Dell Hardware Limited WarrantyPlus Onsite Service Extended Year(s)
991-2878 1 Dell ProSupport Service Offering Declined
900-9987 1 Standard On-Site Installation Declined
420-7179 1 Dell DataSafe 2.0 Online, No Install
330-0254 1 Intel Core 2 Duo Label
462-4506 1 Purchase is NOT intended for resell
310-8977 1 Info SKU-Software and Peripherals products and solutions catalog included in system boxes
* -DISCOUNT/COUPON APPLIED
Subtotal: $584.00
Shipping and Handling: $0.00

Sales Tax: $40.88
Total: $624.88

 

A netbook with an Intel Atom CPU has enough power for those tasks, so any full-size notebook with adual core CPU has plenty of power in reserve.

Yes, the 56k modem is an option for the E6400, but an alternative is to get a modem which plugs into the USB port. This has the advantage that it can be transferred to another computer.

I believe that Vostros have thicker plastic than Inspirons. If you are going to be carrying the computer around a lot then the Vostro should survive better. If it will spend most of its life in one place then the Inspiron should be fine.

Look at the E6400s in Dell Outlet.

John

 

It will be used almost 100% of the time in house, would only take it with me on short trips or to visit with relatives who live in areas with only dial-up service. So if a previously ordered new Latitude E6400 was available at Dell's Outlet would that be just as good as a newly ordered Vostro 1510? Does Dell have Dell stores in malls in certain parts of the USA? A Dell store where you could go in and see their merchandise and buy something and leave with it the same day if you liked it? Thanks for your comments.

 

Most, but not all, people have had good experience with Dell Outlet. Also see this thread about someone who just ordered an E6400 from the Outlet.

The E6400's build quality is in a different (and higher) class to either the Vostro or Inspiron. it might be overkill for your needs but is also far less likely to fall apart in 3 years time. so you'll either get more life from it or it will have a bit more resale value.

John

 

Has anyone docked an E6400 to the E-Port Plus and achieved higher external monitor resolution than 1280x800?

My setup: Latitude E6400, Quadro NVS 160M, E-Port Plus, (2) Dell 3007WFP-HC 30" Monitors using Dual-Link DVI cables.

My native LCD resolution is 1440x900, I am trying to drive the external monitors at 2560x1600 which the NVIDIA specs say is possible using Dual-Link DVI.

Tech support in the Latitude and Precision departments cannot offer any suggestion other than to return my system.

If I connect a VGA cable directly to the laptop my maximum resolution is still 1280x800.

Has anyone used an e-series docking station at a resolution higher than 1280x800?

 

I have just read through a lot of pages in this thread and it seems that some people have problem with heat on their E6400s and some have very cool running laptops so I wonder if there might be some difference in cooling systems used on different builds?

What temperatures for CPU, GPU, memory, chipset and what fan RPM do you get on your E6400 and E6500 laptops, as measured by I8kfanGUI?

When using my E6400 for web surfing and listening to MP3s in Winamp at approximately 5%-15% CPU usage I get temperatures in these ranges in I8kfanGUI when temperatures stabilizes after an hour or so:

CPU Core 1/2: 28-33C
GPU/Memory/Chipset: all in the 44-45 C range
Fan speed: ~3000 RPM

I get these values when the room temperature is 21-22C. I have noticed that an increase in room temperature with one degree translates almost exactly into one degree higher temperatures. I am not sure that the GPU/Memory/Chipset temperatures are mapped correctly to respective sensor but it should be possible to compare numbers anyway.

Örjan

My laptop specs: Intel P8600, Intel Graphics, 160 GB 7200 RPM drive, Windows XP.
I8kfanGUI download site: http://www.diefer.de/i8kfan/index.html

 

Would an E6400 monitor survive a drop to the floor? I dropped a 2 year old Inspiron 1300 back in January 2008 onto my hardwood living room floors and crashed the monitor for good. The guy who ordered that Vostro 1510 for me said it had a stronger case than any Inspiron and could take a drop, I didn't say anything but I would probably have to disagree with him on that.

 

P8600 + Intel graphics 4GB RAM and running my TV tuner so the CPU load is around 30%.

CPU Core 1/2: 28-32C
GPU/Memory/Chipset: I get no values for these.
Fan speed: ~3000 RPM

If the E6400 is closed then I would be more worried about the damage to the floor. The chassis, base and display back of the E6400 are all metal. I'm not saying that it would survive the drop without damage but it is designed to survive better than most notebooks.

John

 

Well then for my basic computing needs which laptop by Dell offers the strongest case design? The Inspiron 1525? The Vostro 1510? Or any of the Latitude E series models? The guy who ordered a Vostro 1510 for me claimed it had a stronger case than the Inspiron 1525 but NBR's own review of the Vostro 1510 didn't make any comments about the case on it being that strong. In fact on many of the tests performed by NBR with the results listed in the review the Inspiron 1525 seemed to do better in all of the tests than the Vostro 1510. Thanks for your comments.