Inspiron 1520 Ordered - Some Tips and Thoughts that may help you.

I placed my order for an Inspiron 1520 morning over the phone using the EPP which I qualify for. I got hell of a deal - I think. The computer was nicely equipped at $2,288 less about $800 in discounts for a grand total of $1480 after tax and shipping. Do you guys think that this is a pretty good deal and setup?

Inspiron 1520, Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, 2.0GHz, 800Mhz, 4M Cache
Jet Black Color with Matte Finish
1GB, DDR2, 667MHz 2 Dimm
15.4 inch Wide Screen WSXGA+ TrueLife LCD for Inspiron 1520
256MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT
160G 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium Edition, English
DELL RESOURCE DVD,BACK-UP INSP 1520
Media Direct 3.3
Integrated 10/100 Network Cardand Modem, for Inspiron
Adobe Acrobat Reader 7.0, for Inspiron
8X DVD+/-RW Dual Layer Drive
Roxio Creator Basic
Integrated High Definition Audio 2.0
Intel 4965AGN Wireless-N Mini Card
Integrated 2.0M Pixel Webcam
Creative Earbud EP630
Chose the promotional security package with service
WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery, for Inspiron 1520
3 Year Consumer Complete Care
Network Associates McAfee 8.0 English, 3-Year Subscription
DataSafe Online 10GB for Dim/Ins/XPS
3 Year Limited Warranty with Next Day Support
Dell Wireless 355 Bluetooth Mod

Also after talking to the Rep for about an hour - I got a sense for somethings that I would like to share with you. This may make the purchase process a little easier.

1. Colors - I was torn between the Standard Black and the Midnight Blue. It was not a choice of color but rather the Micro Satin Finish on the premium colors that I wanted in the black and that was not avaialble. The Rep told me that he has seen all of them in person and felt that Standard Black had a more glossy and shiny look to it but was not as smooth to touch as the premium midnight blue. However the premium color did not have as glossy a look as the black did and was more muted and soft but has a silky touch to it. If anyone is in this predicament I would go with the black because it does have a Black Obsidian look similar to the Vaios - Atleast according to the Rep.

2. Switching Colors - Colors are built into the casing so you will not be able to change the color after the item ships (Read: No Express Snap Ons) unless you do a return exchange. You can change color uptill laptop ships. It may prolong ship date.

2. Premium Bundle Option - The Best bundle on the EPP site that gives you the most discounts does not have a Wireless N option. If you call your EPP sales desk; they will make an exception and swap the Inter b/g card with an Intel Next generation card with no upcharge.

3. Price Match - Price your laptop on the website with the EPP coupon and all discounts. Call them and give them the bottom figure (After Tax and Shipping) and they will beat it. My bottom figure was $1507. They beat it by $40 and upgraded me to the Wireless N card. Also you get protected for price changes for the next 30 days from when your Laptop ships as long as the price difference is more than $50. Thats why I ordered the laptop now vs. 4th ofJuly Sale or Back to School Sale - I will price my laptop out on these dates and if it is a btter deal, they will honor the lower price as long as it is more than a $50 differential.

4. Order Changes / Cancellation - I know I have been seeing some questions around this - People were wondering if they can cancel after the computer goes into production. The answer is YES - you can change or cancel the order till the item ships out. Changing the order may affect the ship dates though and any applicable price discounts / upcharge.

5. DPA - DPA only has 0 interest for 6 months promotion right now on the Inspiron- Not as good as the $100 gift card option they had before. Sales Rep was still trying to pressurize me to get DPA but I bought it through my credit card. This gives me the ability to accrue points which is more valuable than the DPA offer esp. considering I pay my credit card off in full every month.

6. Lack of HDMI / DVI - Yes it does suck that they dont have this output esp. for people that order Blu-Ray. For me personally, it was not a big deal. I don't want to switch to Blu-Ray or HD DVD for 2 years since the costs are prohibitive for both hardware and media. Most of my HD content (Via Slingbox) will be viewed on my laptop. On the occasion that I do want to connect to a projector or a HDTV - I can deal with the VGA connection or just burn my content to a DVD temporarily and watch it upconverted through my regular DVD player. I must admit though - DVI would have been nice.

7. Competition - the 1520's competitors are the HP dv6500 and Asus G1. Similarly speced HP less the 8600GT card works out to about $200 more than Dell and the G1 does not give you a complete care option and is about $400 more. To me personally, neither are worth the premium over the Inspiron esp. with the attractive warranty package that Dell offers.

8. Complete Care - Get the complete care package if you can afford the additional $119. It is worth it 10 fold. I have always had Complete Care on my Dell laptops and its great for 2 reasons - 1) Accidents do happen esp. if you always on the Go and freaky things can happen. Eg. my Latitude C600 caught fire on its own (Back in 2003) - I called Dell and no questions / arguments; I was sent a new one. My Latitude D600's Ram stopped being recognized at one point about 2 years into its life - Called Dell and since I had CC, no questions asked - got a tech to replace my motherboard and the rest of componenets. Complete Care takes a lot of stress off owning an expensive portable machine.

9. RAM - Do yourself a favor and buy the RAM seperatley from Newegg - You'll save atleast $60 bucks off Dell's best price

10. International Services Program - With the 3 year CC warranty, you get enrolled in the Intl Service Plan where you will get service anywhere that Dell has operations. This was very critical for me since I will be working out of India for the next year or so. The only thing is before you leave on a trip, you must inform them that you are going out of the country to get the service overeas.


Thanks!

 

Actually, if you use DPA and ask about a discount...you get an additional 4% off of your order

 

I did - but apparently for the Inspiron line they dont have the 4% discount when you choose the premium bundle.

 

Excellent post.

+ rep

 

Well I got practically the same thing with 1 year warranty instead of 3 year, but I only paid $1000 including taxes

 

Wow - That is a fanatastic Deal DoubleBlack - I'd love to know how you managed that? I understand that the premium bundle would be about a $300 premium over what you got. But my base Hardware price was $1176.

 

I second this. But also, what is the 1yr warranty? The very base one or 1yr In-Home, or maybe also Complete Care?

 

Estimated Ship Date: 07/16/2007

Item Number Quantity Item Description
222-9482 1 Inspiron 1420, Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, 2.0GHz, 800Mhz 4M L2 Cache
466-8095 1 Basic Black Matte LCD back color
311-7253 1 1GB, DDR2, 667MHz 2 Dimm
320-5498 1 14.1 inch Wide Screen WXGA TL LCD for Inspiron 1420
320-5496 1 NVIDIA (R) GeForce TM Go 8400M GS with 128MB dedicated graphic memory
341-4864 1 120G 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
420-6556 1 Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium Edition, English
310-9171 1 DELL RESOURCE DVD,BACK-UP INSP,1420
420-5769 1 Internet Search and Portal
420-5924 1 Icon Consolidation Application
420-6436 1 Vista, PC-Restore, Dim/Insp
420-6481 1 Dell Support, Vista, Dim/Insp
463-2282 1 Dell Owners Manual installed on your system,click on icon after system set-up to access
420-7076 1 Media Direct 3.3, Insp 1420
430-0493 1 Integrated 10/100 Network Cardand Modem, for Inspiron
412-0917 1 Adobe Acrobat Reader 7.0, for Inspiron
420-6464 1 Roxio Creator Basic
313-5277 1 8X DVD+/-RW Dual Layer Drive for Inspiron
313-4783 1 Integrated High Definition Audio 2.0
430-2337 1 Intel 4965AGN Wireless-N Mini Card
466-8097 1 No Camera
412-0940 1 Security 30-day trial
312-0539 1 56 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery, for Inspiron 1420
312-0542 1 85 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Additional Battery, for Inspiron 1420
412-0933 1 AOL for Broadband
412-0934 1 Earthlink
412-0935 1 NETZERO ISP
412-0915 1 MS WORKS 8.5
950-3337 1 1 Year Limited Warranty
960-2780 1 Warranty Support,Initial Year
987-5397 1 Dell Hardware Warranty Plus Return To Depot, Initial Year
983-3180 1 Type 12- Mail-InService, 24x7 TechnicalSupport, Initial Year
987-8139 1 No Warranty, Year 2 and 3
430-2348 1 Dell Wirless 355 Bluetooth Mod
310-8628 1 You have chosen a Windows Vista Premium System
310-9348 1 Intel Centrino Core Duo Processor
466-7696 1 Thank you for choosing Dell
420-7091 1 DataSafe Online Dim/Ins/XPS
420-7092 1 DataSafe Online Dim/Ins/XPS 1YR-FREE
987-4817 1 Insp Datasafe 3GB,1YR(Incl in price),DHS
412-0943 1 Basic digital Music,Photo and Game experience

Subtotal: $956.63
Shipping & Handling: $0.00
Tax: $71.75
Total: $1028.38

Yes, I know I got a 1420 and not a 1520, but the 1420 has a *small* price increase, and then you got the 8600GT...but I also got an extra battery, so I guess all of that evens out in the end. I got EPP $70 off, Students $200 off, EPP 4% off, DPA 4% off, free shipping, free upgrade to Home Premium, and free upgrade to 120GB HDD.

 

Actually, I believe the base 1520 starts a bit higher than a base 1420. That and I'm not so sure it's a fair comparison to say an additional 9 cell battery on the 1420 balances out the 8600M GT GPU on the 1520. Also your config is the basic WXGA screen. So it's a bit hard to compare. However, still a very good deal.

 

All the various bundles and built-in warranties on the EPP site are far too confusing. I do think I know which yields the best price/performance/warranty combination, but I'm a bit dissatisfed by the lack of give-and-take on some of these configurations. For instance, ideally one would think that I could take vcash's setup and downgrade the warranty to 1 or maybe 2 year At-Home, subtract the Mcafee Security 15 month which typically costs $75 at Dell, and downgrade the hard drive and screen to 120GB and WXGA+ respectively. And ideally, this should shave off at least $300 from the total. I have yet to figure out how to accomplish such a feat though. Doing so on the EPP site right now sometimes brings up a higher price for these lesser setups. WTH?!

 

nice lil guide

 

I got this set up for a grand total of $1511. This includes the $200 student discount, $292 base Inspiron discount, 7% DellCare Plus discount, and the 12% discount for notebooks over $1600.

However, I did not have the free shipping offer when I made my order and was not aware of the 4% discount for using Dell's card. Does this mean I can get both of those knocked off my total if I call?

Flamingo Pink
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7300 (2.0GHz/800Mhz FSB/4MB cache)
Genuine Windows ® Vista Home Premium Edition
High Resolution, glossy widescreen 15.4 inch display (1440x900)
256MB NVIDIA® GeForce® Go 8600M GT
2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz
Size: 160GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
CD / DVD writer (DVD+/-RW Drive)
Dell Wireless 1390 802.11g Mini-Card
Integrated 2.0M Pixel Webcam
85Whr Lithium Ion Battery (9 cell)
High Definition Audio 2.0

 

It's definitely worth a try. Dell always offers Free 3-5 shipping. Quite frankly, you should never pay for shipping from Dell.

PS
Is the girl in your avatar picture possibly Chiaki Kuriyama of Kill Bill and Battle Royale fame?

 

On second thought, maybe not. The nose isn't the same - or is it? Maybe it's just a pic of you?

 

Kinda cool how the Cdn site offers 2gb ram while the US starts of at 1gb

 

Thats IS indeed Chiaki Kuriyama in my avatar.

 

Well, by jolly! Rep to me for calling that, right? ....right?

Points for using the word jolly? Rep to you for using her picture. haha

Ok, in all seriousness though - did you get them to add free shipping? They may also be able to transfer your charges to a DPA account if you ask.

 

Your order would have to be cancelled, and a new one would have to be created...

 

No, the 1420's base price is slightly higher than the 1520's because of the small screen, but I know about the screen. I don't think it's basic, it's a very nice screen...just when you are at the higher resolutions, things are too small. I like 1280x1024 on my desktops, and 1280x800 is fine on a laptop. Anything smaller on a 14" screen is too small!

 

I meant basic as in the base configuration before an upgrade to a higher resolution. And as per the prices of the Home/Home Office site, the 1520 starts at $869, whereas the 1420 starts at $819. As for the EPP portion of Dell, the 1520 starts at $834 and the 1420 at $815 with a standard 1Yr In-Home Warranty.

Regarding adding free shipping to an order, people have posted on the forums here numerous times about successful call-backs in which they were able to add or delete things.

 

That's strange, because when I look at EPP and Home/Home Office the 1420 is showing more. On Home/Home Office the 1420 is showing as starting at $819 while the 1520 is showing as starting at $769 while EPP is displaying 1420 starting at $786 and the 1520 starting at $754...

 

DoubleBlack, are you looking at the 1520 or the 1521?

 

Yeah, he is definitely looking at the 1521 (AMD version).

Speaking of which, no one has really said much of anything about the 1521. It has the ATI X1270 which I believe is an integrated equivalent of the older X700 GPU. How does this perform?

 

I'm thinking of ordering the 1520 as well. How do you use a student discount? I am going into college and my brothers already are.

 

www.delluniversity.com

 

what other discounts can I get for the 1520 I am ordering?
I already entered in a $350 off coupon, but that is it. 1 year warranty.
The only thing wrong here [i think] is the hdd. Its to little and slow.


Inspiron 1520 Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7100 (1.8GHz/800Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
Operating System (Office software not included) Genuine Windows ® Vista Home Premium Edition
System Color Ruby Red
Memory 1.5GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz
LCD Panel High Resolution, glossy widescreen 15.4 inch display (1680x1050)
Video Card 256MB NVIDIA® GeForce® Go 8600M GT
Hard Drive 80GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
Network Card and Modem Integrated 10/100 Network Card and Modem
Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 7.08
Combo or DVD+RW Drive CD / DVD writer (DVD+/-RW Drive)
Sound Card High Definition Audio 2.0
Wireless Networking Cards Dell Wireless 1390 802.11g Mini-Card
Camera Integrated 2.0M Pixel Webcam
Office Productivity Software (Pre-Installed) Microsoft Works 8. DOES NOT INCLUDE MS WORD
Anti-Virus/Security Suite (Pre-installed) No Security Subscription (Norton 30-day)
Battery Options 56Whr Lithium Ion Battery (6 cell)
Limited Warranty, Services and Support Options 1Yr Ltd Warranty and Mail-In Service
Dell On Call No Dell On Call
Dial-Up Internet Access No ISP requested
Miscellaneous Inspiron 1520
Dell Recycling Recycling Kit and Plant a Tree for Me
Dell Digital Entertainment Yahoo! Music Jukebox - Music Player
Datasafe Free 3 GB Online Backup for 1Yr
Doms Camera Module Ruby Red color w/ 2.0M pixel Camera
Processor Branding Intel® Core™2 Duo Label
Labels Windows Vista™ Premium


For $1189 shipped with tax.

I would like to get a better hdd, but its a bit out of my budget already.

EDIT: Also, the Ram I will be buying a 2gb stick later on, to make 3GB for now, then even later, probably buy another 2gb stick to make 4gb and sell the 1gb that came stock.

 

Don't get the 1.5GB of ram, go for 1gig and buy 2gigs from newegg

 

If I was to call Dell and just ask them to add the IntelABGN card to my laptop order I placed already, do you think they would upcharge me on that or let it go as it was suggested in the first post?

 

Looks like some pretty good deals can be had by calling Dell instead of just using Dell.com. What is the best way to get the free upgrades, etc? Is it better to put together a system online and then send them your saved cart and try to get them to make it a sweeter deal? I did that today, but all they did was suggest a 1501. I even asked for the HDD/memory upgrade, but no luck.

What is the best phone number, time of day, accent to look for, etc?

Thanks!

 

What does everyone mean by EPP? I will be buying a 1520 and the only discount i know of is the $350 one. They said my school discount couldn't be added to the $350 one. How can i get a better deal by calling?

 

My apologies, the new Dell site is really messed up..and it says 1520 starting at blah blah, but when you click it, it presents 1520 AND 1521 options...

 

did anyone else get the problem that their school discount could not be added to the $350 off one?

 

Yeah, you can't stack it. I tried many times.

 

what seems like the best deal to get, looking at the specs i want below, the coupon or the student site thing? and how are people getting these sweet deals by calling them?

 

Your signature implies you've already made the purchase for a final $1250. Not a bad deal as is. As to your first question above, people seem to leaning towards the EPP/Student site and it's respective coupons and percentages off as the best deals on Dell currently. My experience is that it all depends on what sort of configuration you want, including a warranty. It appears the EPP site offers the best combination of warranty + specification for the price. In fact, if you don't click through to the right combos, you may end up with two similarly spec'd systems for the same price but one has a much better warranty. It's a very confusing site.

As for calling in for better deals, it doesn't seem to be happening with the relative ease many people here have insinuated.

 

its because people are buying through the EPP program where there are instant savings up to $400 in addition to other EPP discounts and the $200 student discount

(don't go to home and business - go to higher education/government)

 

It's not that you can't stack, just two different divisions. The $350 coupon is Home/Home Office and the Student $200 is EPP/University...

 

I haven't purchased it yet, that is just what it would all come to. That is with the 350 discount, not the student site.

I just filled out a thing for a student account, i had to use my own email address, (not one that ends with .edu) how long should i expect to wait for a reply? a day?

 

I believe it gives you an error message on that Dell Unleashed page if you enter anything but a .edu address.

 

it gives you the option to put in one without, but i had to send them a message from my uni that i was accepted.

 

Nice guide, vcash. Thanks. A question: can you lay out what the $800 discount comprises of?

 

Thanks for the Wireless N tip....I went through 4 peeps, and hour+ on the phone...but finally got it on my EPP purchase. Cancelled old order, made up new one with N, and it was 48 cents cheaper! LOL!

Saddly they didn't go for my offer of $80 for another GB of DDR2....LOL

 

lmfao?!?!?! When did people start to bargain with the Dell rep's on the phone?!?!

 

after ive gone through the student discount and the 200 dollar off coupon, its still not as good as the single 350 off coupon, is it the same for anyone else?

 

Hey guys, just wondering if this configuration for Dell Inspiron 1520 and price is a good deal:

Inspiron 1520
Jet Black color w/ 2.0M pixel Camera
Creative Earbud EP630
Core 2 Duo T7500 2.2Ghz w/ 4MB L2 Cache
2GB DDR2 667 MHZ
15.4 inch Wide Screen WSXGA+ (1680 by 1050 pixels) TrueLife LCD
256MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT
160GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive
8X DVD+/-RW Dual Layer Drive
Intel 4965AGN Wireless-N Mini Card
Built In Bluetooth
85 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery, for Inspiron 1520
Dell Premium Care Bundle (3 Year Warranty, Accidental Damage Protection, 3 Year Lo-Jack Theft Protection, Online Backup, etc.)
Vista Home Premium

Subtotal Before ANY Discounts: $2633.00
Subtotal After ALL Discounts: $1,624.83
Environmental Disposal Fee: $8.00
Sales Tax: $118.58
Total: $1,751.41

 

wow, you got $1000 off that machine, nice!
The system I am ordering has everything yours has except for that hdd, and the warranty, and its $1100 shipped with tax.

 

How do you get $1000 off?

 

I had to bargain to get the Wireless N on there at no cost! Figured it would'nt hurt to try get the Ram at a better deal. LOL!

I had $695 worth of discounts ($292+7% Care Kit+EPP 16% Discount)....I don't believe the $1000 discount above. Give us a breakdown please....

 

Yeah, having a hard time believing these $1000 off deals too (sometimes weird stuff happens though, rarely). Best I could do with my work employee discount is what JETninja posted above, about $700 worth of discounts.

 

i have to say that wireless N thing is a godsend. I called today and I just kept arguing that it was done on message boards and they said yes.