What extras/accessories should I get?

I'm ordering a Vostro 1400 sometime this week, and my mom is chipping in $200 so I can get some extra stuff from Newegg.

What are some must haves?

I was thinking an external mouse is a must if I use it for an extended period of time. An external HDD, flash drive, and some blank CD/DVDs.

Any other stuff you guys have bought that you would recommend? Or anything that I'm missing that you think I'll need?

Any and all feedback is appreciated.

 

External HDD if you want to backup stuff (highly recommended), definetly a Flash drive, mouse and keyboard, docking station (very convenient).

 

I'll take a look at some docking stations.

Thanks.

Anyone else?

 

1. Some type of Carrying Case (backpack, messegner, sleeve, etc)
2. External Mouse (Could be those $5 ones one 50)
3. External Hard Drive (size depends on your needs)
4. Flash drive (same as above)
5. Docking Station (if you do get one, make sure you also get a keyboard).

If you get a docking station, look into mouse+keyboard combo, not seperate

 

If you travel a lot: sleeve + backpack (or if you prefer a roller or shoulder bag) + 4GB (or more) USB flash drive + 3.5" eSATA external HD for home storage

If you use your laptop at a dedicated place (ie. work desk and home): docking station + kb/mouse combo + LCD (these 3 should be together, you might want to have one at each location you work at or just one set at your primary location) + backpack + 2.5" USB (or FW/eSATA but much rarer) external HD for portable storage

 

I say a nice mouse is a must. Using a trackpad for extended periods of time is not fun or comfortable.

 

I agree with all the comments. Trackpads suck for gaming, and after a while, your fingers get tired. Definately get an external drive, but wait for some really good at your local BB or CC.

 

External Mouse - I use a Logitech G7

Cooling Pad - I use Zalman NC1000 not so much for temp drops but gives the laptop a tilt thats easier to type on and also keeps the laptop off surfaces.

Some kind of bag - It may come with one but I found I needed to buy a bigger backpack to carry all the stuff I wanted.

Those 3 things are pretty much the core "starter pack"

I personally in my bag have.

Mouse, & mouse charger. Wacom Graphire 4 4x5 tablet, mini screw drivers, Adapte Game Bridge, Cooling Pad, Bluetooth headset, Wii Controller, A few blank DVD's, and my digital camera. It all goes together hand in hand.

 

If you didn't get a bag from dell then you will want to get something to carry your new lappy around with you.

You'll probably want some external speakers because most lappy speakers are lame. Or some good headphones if you prefer those.

 

I can't thank you guys enough for the replies!

I found at DIY External Drive thread, so I went to NewEgg and put this together. Cheap, I know, but I'm trying to keep the price at a minimum. Don't need anything huge, as this will be for backups. I couldn't find any reviews on the HDD though. I don't care if it's not super fast either. Anyway, will this work? Is it too cheap? ...

HDD + ENCLOSURE

Aside from one comment, the enclosure seems to be doing it's job, and with shipping it's <$50 (w/ the HDD of course).

Let me know!

 

Im afraid you made the one mistake I thought you maybe would have made when I just checked your purchase.

You got two different interfaces a SATA I HDD and a IDE enclosure.

 

I actually haven't ordered yet.

Just checking here first, and that's screw up is exactly why.

Part 2;

HDD + ENCLOSURE

What did I do wrong this time? And what do you think about the HDD? Too cheap?

 

well if you're willing to power your xternal drive with a power cord and not just USB then you could get a faster and bigger 3.5" drive for only a little more.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145162

 

I think I'll stick with 2.5", plus I don't think I really need the extra space anyway. Thanks though.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826105085

How is that mouse? How do you get your computer to recognize a bluetooth mouse?

^^^ Would also love feedback on that. Will it work?

 

Yeah that setup will work, its pretty nice too since it also has sata and not just usb.

 

Awesome. What is SATA though? Sorry for the noob questions, but what is that?

Also, I know the HDD isn't the best, and I don't really know much about HDD specs, but how will that one hold up you think?

 

SATA is the interface and connection type that is now used for hard drives. Its faster and better than IDE wich is the old connecton type.

In a desktop a SATA cord is nice and thin and very small while IDE were those ribbon cables.

So all you really need to know is IDE is old and SATA is new and they are not compatible with eachother.

SATA stands for serial ata connection, and SATA I was first generation and SATA II is the current gen. However they are compatible with each other so you do not have to worry about that part too much you just wont get SATA II speed/features if you mix and match SATA I devices in with it.

 

Thanks for the explanation.

http://xpad4laptop.com/

Is there anything similar to that on NewEgg? Something without fans, but will raise the notebook up for airflow like that and can sit on my lap?

 

A bluetooth basically uses bluetooth techonology to connect it. Basically, think of a wireless mouse, but the reciever built into your computer. Be sure you have bluetooth in your computer before you buy one though

 

There are passive coolers that just add tilt to your laptop, I think newegg has a few. My wireless is very slow tonight at work so I cant go newegg shopping for anybody

 

Another Q ...

With this optical drive ... "8X DVD Burner w/ double-layer DVD+R write capability"

CD-R (21)
CD-RW (1)
DVD+R (18)
DVD+R DL (14)
DVD+RW(3)
DVD-R(26)
DVD-R DL(4)

Which should I get? I want a pack of both blank CD's and DVD's I can burn stuff onto.

 

RW means re-writable you can burn a disk and then later go and burn to it again, but I find that this feature can lead to problems if you do not know what your doing and honestly who needs it?

So I just stick with the R's because they are cheaper.

Based on that for a pack of CD's just get some CD-R or CD+R's

the DL for the DVD's is Dual Layer, your optical drive supports this, a dual layer DVD holds pretty much double the data a normal DVD does but again cost much more and not every device is really compatible with it. For the sake of simplicity and compatability unless you only plan to use the DVD's with your computer and find you need more space than a normal DVD holds I would stick with the non DL DVD's.

So just get a pack of DVD-R or DVD+R's

More important than the type is the quality of the media, make sure you get a quality brand name, and burn at a lower speed.

 

I don't think anyone has suggested it yet, but it would do you well to invest in a set of good speakers/headphones. Notebooks always lack in the sound department!

 

ViciousXUSMC, you've been a tremendous help to me. I gave you some rep for you efforts. Thank you so much!

About the DVD/CD+R and DVD/CD-R thing though, I have a question about that. I did a Google search about it yesterday, can't seem to find it again though. Anyway, he said the difference between + and - was just the technology. One was older, each had their own pro's and con's, and basically they are the same thing but just competing with each other.

Which do you get? And what are some top notch brands? Also, what type of write speeds would you suggest ViciousXUSMC?

THESE and THESE look like good options.

Woah. Sorry for all the questions

And thanks neaL_, I'll look into a good set of headphones (which I believe was mentioned already, but that's OK) because I do plan do watch a few movies!

 

What do you think about this Flash Drive? http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.11242 Kingston 4 GB 21$ (13€ . Or maybe this one, for a similar price? http://cgi.ebay.es/real-4GB-USB-2-0...ameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem#ebayphotohosting

ALso, what External Hard Drive do you recommend? (250/500GB)

 

Yeah back in the day each brand was pushing its own tech I forget what brands were trying to push what format (wikipedia probably has this) but back then it was possible to get a dvd player or something that would only read one or the other. The whole +/- thing was never too big a deal for PC's it was mostly dvd players and things. These days they are pretty much 100% interchangeable tho, you may find a comment or two about certian burners "preferring" one type over the other but it will work with ether so dont sweat it.

What speed? the slower the better if you are gonna not be waiting for it may as well go the slowest speed or close to it, if your in a hurry just cut it down from max maybe like 3/4 or 1/2 speed of your max. If you do max you can possibly end up with drink coasters or make it harder to read for poor quality equipment.

 

OK, that's what I thought.

Do you know any free programs to get the music/video from my PC to the disc?

Again, your help is very much appreciated!

 

Err I use Nero, it was included with my PC software package, its just my favorite one but there are probably a ton of free alternatives.

Most burners come with software unless you get OEM.

If you laptop came with a burner it should have burning software included aswell.

 

Awesome.

So I've got a list going ...

1) External Mouse - I really like the looks of THIS. Maybe a bit on the expensive side, but I don't really see any cheap bluetooth mouses anyway. So maybe it is fairly inexpensive for a bluetooth mouse? I don't know, anyway ...
2) USB Flash Drive - THIS one has been getting pretty good reviews.
3) External Hard Drive - HDD + ENCLOSURE. Will get the job done for me.
4) Blank Discs - DVD-R and CD-R

Now to find some nice inexpensive headphones ... Any recommendations?

 

depends on what you want and what you wanna use them for, I kinda want to get a new pair of plantronics dsp 500's they used to be 60$ but now that they are discontinued they were less than 20$ in the plantronics store. They had great SQ and I used them for gaming, but best of all was the quality of the MIC I need a new set just for recording if anything.

I also have some bluetooth plantronics pulsars for music and stuff and my wired Audio Technica A700s for when I want Hi Fi listening.

 

Just for watching movies on my soon to be notebook. No gaming or anything like that. Don't need the latest and greatest obviously. There are so many there on Newegg (trying to keep all my purchases at one place) and I get lost looking at all them.

There are good reviews on the super cheap $2-3 pairs, but then I think I'm cheaping out. Then there are some nice looking $15-20 ones but the reviews say they're good for gaming but would be overkill for much else...

 

GOOD headphones cost about 80-100$ honestly, something decent enough to use is usually 50$ the DSP 500's are 60$ like I said they just happen to be on sale because they are old now.

They don't sell the DSP 500's anymore they must have sold them all. still the Audio 90's are there http://www.plantronics.com/north_am...e;jsessionid=1H35XAEJA0ERGCQBGNUSFFAKAEZWQIV0

You wont find anything better for that price.

It will be worth getting it outside newegg.

 

Eh, $50 seems pretty high for what I want. How about these?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826106306

Or these

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826106455

 

Its up to you, Senns are good but when the Senn guys jump in here they will tell you to get a more expensive pair

The Audio 90's are like 10$ but usually 50$ so its a better value, and you get the microphone for game chat and skype ect.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826106306

Those look good and out of every pair on NewEgg only one pair is rated higher in any price range. My only concern is that the cord is 9ft?

Never mind, I was stupid not to think you could bundle it up to get rid of all the slack They seems like the best bang for the buck on NewEgg though.