How durable is m1530?

Have been using mine for over half a year now and my only hardware problem is that the battery wont recharge anymore but I've been wondering about the overall durability of the system.

It's because I hit my laptop quite hard, throw it, punch it, slam it. Mostly when something crashes (mainly IE 7), and usually my old notebooks started showing weakness signs within firsts months already, but this XPS doesn't seem to care at all.

And now my friend is looking for a really *strong* but sleep laptop and I recommended him this system, he asked if I can find some proof or something then he'll get one aswell.

Anyone know anyone who'se XPS M1530 falls apart or anything? Or are these machines really strong? :]

 

get a toughbook then

i'd say the xps series is quite durable

 

I routinely put mine through the washer/dryer, and occasionally go mountain climbing with the M1530 dangling from my leg without a case. Not even a scratch.

OK, not really. I think the XPS is pretty much the same as most notebooks in this class. No better. No worse. If I was someone who was really concerned about toughness, I'd probably choose one of the better built business class machines. But there's no reason to think that the XPS will fare poorly under normal use.

 

Othen than the small dent on my palmrest (just below the unused fingerprint scanner), I don't think I've seen a single scratch on my M1530 at all. I like knocking on the "brushed" aluminium palmrest once in a while though

 

If you want build quality, stay away from Dell. Go Lenovo instead, you will not regret the decision. I've owned a Dell and the thing was trash (M1330). Never again.

 

Well there you have it. I have a 1330 and a 1530 in my family... both great and durable. Everyone has a different take and every laptop is assembled differently. I just got the studio xps, it seems more sturdy than the 1330 though.

 

Ok..I've I had my 1530 since 1/08...and my family and friends call me *Grace* alot... *cough* slightly clumsy...And, my 1530 has held up extremely well.

I feel the 1530 is built extemely well, and darn it looks very sleek


McCin'

 

My wife had an Inspiron 6000 and I'd say the quality on that notebook is clearly inferior to the xps 1530. She's dropped that poor 6000 several times and after 2 years, it's hard-drive finally took a dive.

The XPS is a much better machine. I slammed it shut the other day by accident and was afraid to open it back up, but it didn't even phase it. Also, the 1530 is much more robust than the generation 1 xps laptop.

All that being said, if you are really going to treat the notebook as you described, get a toughbook. That or insurance!

 

Anger management classes might be a better long term investment than a durable laptop...

 

I do this sometimes....helps release some anger. Also one of the reasons I purchased CompleteCare with my laptop lol

Nobody ever wants to believe me but giving electronics a good whack usually seems to work for me. (applies to everything...tv's, laptops, desktops, phones, ipods, cable boxes....the list goes on)

Either way, my M1530 has stood up to the abuse

 

I echo what has been said above - my XPS M1530 goes everywhere with me, and although I try and treat it well, it has a small dent on the aluminium palm rest - apart from that its completely fine.

 

Ah, thanks alot for your input people! Now I got the confirmation that it really is a very durable machine.

My friend here says thanks too! ^^
He'll be buying his laptop next week now.

 

perhaps it would also help to get firefox...

 

Yep, firefox hasn't crashed on me once. IE would crash...hmm..well, everyday.

Plus firefox is alot faster, trust me.

 

I have all the browsers and use them daily, but mostly I use IE because of the CTRL+O shortcut. Not to mention when I've used IE's since 1996 it's kinda hard to just forget about it.

And no, Firefox is not faster. It may get higher scores in Acid tests or load flash banners seconds smoother, but as much as I've used it - it's clunky, feels unfinished and is slow. Opera on the otherhand is fast, but ugly. Chrome has ridiculous EULA and Safari feels like a PDA browser of somekind.

 

I would not say it is that durable, probably a little less than the average 'clunky' laptop. Just on account of the thinness of it, and the fact that the chassis doesnt offer the same impact protection that a chunky laptop (with some plastic casing) will.

I have one over a year with no damage caused to it, but that said, I don't abuse my laptops the way you talk about in the first post. I think if you hit your laptop every time IE crashes, it is probably going to be broken sooner or later..

 

I have to disagree. These are definitely stronger than a laptop with lots of plastic casing. While you may feel like its stronger, it isn't. The M1530 has a magnesium frame that helps to support it a lot. If it has lots of plastic casing, chances are the frame is made of cheap metal and plastic as well.

 

I didn't say it wasn't stronger. I said it would offer less impact protection.

The M1530 has a thin and rigid case, any shocks or bumps will be transferred to the internals much more so than a thick plastic case, which has a certain amount of 'give' and absorbs more energy.

If I was giving a laptop to a child, or to someone who occasionally banged his fist on it, I wouldn't consider a M1530 a good choice.

 

my m1530 has taken an unfair beating ever since i bought it, i too like to throw stuff around and punch stuff when i get mad, so my xps has suffered GREATLY, my last palmrest had 3 marks because of constant hits when something came out wrong hehehe, i have also thrown it from about a meter down to the desk, i have closed the lid with A LOT of force many times when i get very angry, but its still going strong!!

i have to agree though, no hardware got damaged, but the aluminum palmrest is its weak point, and can get scratched very easily, or even twisted and bumped, and for those who havent seen what is underneath the very thin layer of aluminum, is a plastic frame, holding it together is good old SUPER GLUE, so in my opinion, its an elegant, but delicate design!

 

I'm still not convinced. I've dropped my m1530 off the desk, bed, and tripped over the power cord pulling it on the floor off the kitchen table. And when it fell in the kitchen on the hardwood, it took a direct hit on the corner. No problems, no dents, no damage.

You WANT a rigid case as you don't want the internals to bend or flex at all. Its better they stay stiff and take a bump then flex. Once you flex the motherboard enough to cause a very small hairline crack then its only downhill from there.

 

Could probably bludgeon someone to death with the 1530, and check your e-mail afterwards. The lid covering is a bit on the soft side, but nothing says concussion like a solid whack from the rigid metal underside.

 

I'd say it's pretty solid because of the brushed alumium. Although there are a few portions that tend to get loose sometimes (such as the small portion near the Power Supply and 2 USB's, and the plastic surrounding the webcam.

However, mine's been pretty durable for half a year.

If not, get a Panasonic Toughbook.

Seriously, those things could take a good beating any day. You can pretty much toss it down your stairs, drown it, jump on it, and even run it over with your car.

 

I've got an idea...
Step 1: Win lottery.
Step 2: Buy a Toughbook, Thinkpad, Latitude, XPS, and a hammer.
Step 3: Smash away.
Step 4: Keep whichever one survived. (Survival of the fittest)

Okay, really bored here in Biology class...