Turn my non-ATG D620, into an ATG D620?

Now that I'm starting my Agriculture courses, I'm going to be relying on my notebook for a lot more, and working outdoors in god knows what conditions with a notebook that isn't made for that can turn out nasty... Seems as though I cannot afford a new notebook (just received the bill for Tafe! ) I thought I could transport my current notebooks guts, into an ATG case.

Is this possible? I can buy ATG stuff off eBay no worries, just wondering if it's possible!

Cheers,
Joel.

 

Yeah? Nah?

I found some parts on eBay:

Dell Latitude ATG D630 D620 Complete LCD Screen WXGA
Dell Latitude ATG D620 Laptop Motherboard intel XD299

I'm not familiar with CPU removal/transport/how it is installed, so could I take out my current CPU and put it into that motherboard above? Or should I just swap the motherboards out?

Cheers.

 

You should be able to find the service manuals for both models on Dell's support site. The illustrations in the manuals should show the differences.

John

 

For the price you're going to spend, why don't you look around for a Panasonic toughbook?

 

Oh yeah! Never thought of that! Thanks

I don't really like the look of the TB's. Plus, I can't pick a decently powered one up for under 300 bucks... Here is a TB I could get for under 300 bucks:
Panasonic Toughbook CF-M34 Laptop with Touchscreen - eBay, Laptops, Notebooks, Computers. (end time 12-Oct-10 22:10:48 AEDST)

 

To be honest, the differences are mostly cosmetic. If you want to turn the D620 into an ATG, you'll need the LCD assembly and the hinge cover. Your current LCD should work, but I can't say for sure.

Overall, I would say it's not worth it. The D620 is pretty durable as-is, and I wouldn't worry too much about it.

 

Yeah, that's true. I'm actually looking at getting an ATG E6400, but I don't know. Maybe mh D620 is fine? Who knows!

 

Question: What is everyone else going to do? Do all your classmates have rugged laptops?

 

I'm not sure, I haven't started yet. I start in a few weeks.

 

You're definately better off than the guys using laptops with plastic cases, and the D620/D630 is pretty durable (check out how thick the base is). My D630's had its fair share of rolling off of my carry-on at the airport (though the E6400 looks a bit more fragile, especially the thinner LCD assembly).