How is this buy?

Hi guys, I built this notebook on dell.com and i was wondering if you guys can give me some heads up to yay or nay.

Total cost: $1,574 USD

- Tuxedo Black
- Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7500 (2.2GHz/800Mhz FSB, 4MB Cache)
- Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition
- High Resolution glossy widescreen 15.4 inch LCD(1680x1050) & 2MP Camera
- 1GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz (2 Dimms)
- Speed: 120GB 7200rpm SATA Hard Drive Free Fall Sensor
- Slot Load DVD+/-RW (DVD/CD read/write)
- 256MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8600M GT
- Intel Next-Gen Wireless-N Mini-card
- 85 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
- High Definition Audio 2.0

Some questions if someone can help answer them

1) How is the 1680x1050 resolution? Is it clean or is it a bad idea?

2) I started off with 1GB of RAM because I plan on buying my own from newegg or something... bad idea or would it be better to get the 2 GB ram now?

3) is the 7200RPM a loud HD on the 1530?

4) How is the regular High Definition Audio 2.0 audio? Should I update the audio or keep it same?

5) Can someone vouch for a 3hr and 30min lating battery with : 85 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery?

 

that sounds like a good deal. you may get the 2GB ram and then buy another 2 GB ram this way you get 4 instead of 3 ..

 

That setup cost me $999 in a 1520 (with coupon code). Not bragging, just saying that I probably would not buy that for $1500.

Consider the 250GB HDD. It will match the 120GB 7200RPM drive in reads and writes and you will double your storage. The difference will be slightly faster seek times, more heat and noise from the 7200RPM drive.

If you game, I'd advise against 1680x1050 as the 8600M GT is going to seriously struggle with anything made in the last year or two at that resolution unless you like playing with low graphics settings.

Battery life - sure. I get 3.5-4.0 hours of web surfing with that battery.

 

i actually want the xps series. the hard drive i want it to be small since i already do have an external 7200RPM HD.
not a big gamer, but would play some in a bit.
does the 9 cell battery really last that long though? and is 1,500 Way too much?

 

I would say $1,500 is way too much if one takes into consideration that with coupons similar systems have gone for about $500 less over a month ago. On the other hand, of course, if you need or want it now, why wait?

 

Were m1530's even for sale a month ago? The high rez screen certainly wasn't, and I don't recall seeing anything like this for $500 less. To the OP: you may get a better deal using the $699 off config which comes with more RAM and a three year warranty for about the same price as you have there.

 

First, I'll answer the screen question: I like more real estate and can handle to DPI. I got a great deal on my laptop so I bought it when the buying was good, but I'm disappointed I didn't get higher than 1280x800. I'll live, though. It's enough.

Gotta be honest: that's not a good buy.

Consider mine compared to yours:

Same processor: $0
Crimson Red vs. Tuxedo Black: $25
Same Screen: $0
Same Memory: $0
Same Graphics Card: $0
Same Wireless Card: $0
6-cell and 9-cell vs. 9-cell: $30
Bluetooth vs. None: $20

Total: $75

This means that mine should cost $75 more than yours - but mine cost $1,201. Add that $75 to yours and subtract $1,201 - $448. Don't buy it at that price. Bad deal. That's the differential. Compound this with the fact that I am getting a $200 gift card - $1,001 vs. $1,649. That's $648 difference. You can probably do as good as me. Do you have a warranty? Even if you have the 4-year with accidental damage in that price, you're still paying too much for it.

I configured a similar laptop using the current deal they have on their high end system:

Tuxedo Black
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7500 (2.2GHz/800Mhz FSB, 4MB Cache)
Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition
Glossy, widescreen 15.4 inch LCD (1680x1050) & 2.0 MP Camera
3GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz (2 Dimms)
Size: 250GB 5400rpm SATA Hard Drive
Slot Load DVD+/-RW (DVD/CD read/write)
256MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8600M GT
Intel Next-Gen Wireless-N Mini-card
Dell Wireless 355 Bluetooth Internal (2.0+Enhanced Data Rate)
56 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
Integrated Sound Blaster Audigy HD Software Edition
Get $70 Gift Card with 4 Yr Ltd Warranty and At-Home Service
Add Accidental Damage and LoJack Theft Protection to 4Yr Warr.

Final price: $1,477

If you have a Costco membership or your school or your employer does the EPP (employer purchase program), you can get this deal.

You can get that deal with the lower resolution screen and without the 4 year complete warranty (3 year limited) for $1,399 by simply clicking on their most expensive one.

If you've already ordered that, cancel it immediately. It's a terrible buy.


EDIT: For my own sanity, I'm doing the differential calculation on my own buy:

Hmm taking d/dx Kx^(k-1) . . .

Oops. Scratch that. Starting over:

Same Processor: $0
Same OS: $0
WSXGA+ vs. WXGA: $100
3GB vs. 1GB: $250
250GB vs. 160GB: $100
Same Optical Drive: $0
Same Graphics Card: $0
Same Wireless Card: $0
Same Bluetooth: $0
6-cell vs. 6-cell and 9-cell: $-80
HD Audio 2.0 vs. Sound Blaster Audigy: $25
1 year limited vs. 4 year complete care: $478
$70 Gift card vs. $200 Gift card: $-170

Total difference: $703

This one should cost $703 more than mine, so mine is $1,804 to $1,477. Differential is $327. Of course, I would have had to have spent $276 more to save that additional money - $51. I guess I don't have to feel too bad about that.

 

Hey Zahn, how did you manage to get the high res (1680X1050) screen using EPP? This was the problem that I ran into w/EPP (that I would save a bit of extra cash but I couldn't get the highest resolution lcd screen, only the default, lowest res option)... Thanks.

 

I calculated the price myself. Call in and you can strong-arm them into it.

 

You are right. I was thinking of something else completely...must sleep more!

 

How would you recommend doing this:

(1) Calling Dell directly and ordering over the phone or

(2) Placing the order online via the EPP site (with the lower res screen) and then calling them and asking them if I can pay to upgrade the screen?

Thanks.

 

sorry guys, what is this EPP that you guys are talking about?

 

EPP is a purchase program that one can access if you work/go to school at a place that has that sort of arrangement with Dell. It allows for an extra 8-12% off.

 

You could probably find a better deal through a reseller. Check out ebay too.