Inspiron 1520 at discount or wait for Inspiron 1525?

Just wondering what people thought on this. I'm hearing that the 1525 is coming out sometime next month so I wasn't sure if I should just wait for that or go with the 1520 now. Are they going to go down much more in price over the next couple weeks? Here is a customized one I have right now. Do I pull the trigger or wait for the 1525?

Here is the 1520 I've customized:

Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T5250 (1.5GHz/667Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz
High Resolution, glossy widescreen 15.4 inch display (1680x1050)
128MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8400M GS
Size: 320GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
CD / DVD writer (DVD+/-RW Drive)
ExpressCard Sound Blaster X-Fi® Xtreme Audio Sound Card
85Whr Lithium Ion Battery (9 cell)
Built-in Bluetooth capability (2.0 EDR)
Intel Centrino Core Duo Processor

Before Tax: $1264

 

If this is of any consequence, here is some info about my projected computer usage:

Web Browsing
Movies
Light Gaming

My goal is to have a quick computer that will last. I've added the NVidia card because it seems that having the video card will make the computer's overall performance better.

 

I don't think there will be 1525, any time soon at least

 

Well for argument's sake, assume it is.

 

Well for argument's sake dont pay over $1200 for what you configured, you can get something with wayyyyyy more power than that for about that price or even far less with a good coupon.

 

Really? Can you elaborate? That was on dell.com with a coupon of $345

 

Hitman - your price doesn't look too bad - I paid $1330 for mine with the 8600GT/1-Gb/160-Gb 7200 and 1440x900. But, I ordered a spare six-cell battery and a spare travel charger (which is only rated at 65-watts - another story). From what I have seen, you're only going to add an HDMI video out with the new series. And, as many, many others have posted - if you constantly wait for the latest and greatest - you will be forever waiting. I have had my 1520 for around 10 days and I continue to be thrilled with it...

 

If you want to watch your movies on a better screen, then just wait for the 1525. I'm sure the HDMI will be worth the wait.

 

I'm not sure why people think mine is overpriced.

Some upgrades which raise the price are:

2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz
High Resolution, glossy widescreen 15.4 inch display (1680x1050)
128MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8400M GS
Size: 320GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)

I also have a few $25 here and there like bluetooth, travel mouse, webcam, etc.

Quick question about the video card. Since my gaming is minimal to none, is getting the video card worth it? Will there be reasonable improvements in viewing and overall speed by adding this 128 MB card?

 

doesnt look expensive? i paid 699 for mine...

sure add 50 for the screen and another 50 for the hard drive but still...

and overall you should notice a little improvement with the gpu, and gaming will be about 3x as powerful

 

Well how'd you pay just $699? Any special deal I missed out on?

But it really adds up more than just $50 here and $50 there.

2 GB of ram is $125
Upgrading the monitor is $100
Video Card is $100
320 GB HD is $225

Then after that, $50 here, $25 there probably adding to another $200 or so.

That total is another $750 or so on top of the base amount...

 

By having a dedicated card, you are going to cut a sizable chunk of battery life off the thing... I would suggest you look at whats games you are going to play, and make the decision if you need a 8600GT(dont even bother with the 8400gs...)

The X3100 is good enough to run games older then HL2 decently.

Like others have said, unless you NEED the thing before the end of dec., hold off on the order in case the 1525 is launched.

As for price... I think you made some odd decisions. You are willing to pay a premium for the biggest 2.5" hard drive, but cheap out on the processor. You add in 2 gigs of ram, an after market sound card and the biggest screen they offer, but go with the 8400GS.
-Forget about the 320gig drive(the sweet spot for value, at least on dell.ca, is the 160 5400rpm drive)
-Drop the ram to the minimum(add the ram yourself. As it is you are prob. paying an additional $150 for 2 gigs. You can order the ram sept. from newegg for under $100 and install it yourself)
-unless you are getting a deal on the express card sound card forget about it(maybe order this from newegg along with the ram, prob. cheaper there... or maybe forget about it all together, and use the slot to store a remote control)
-I personally would lower the res. to WXGA+
-Decide on what games you want to play. Are they demanding? Use the money you are saving from those other downgrades to get a 8600GT and at least a T7250. Not too demanding? Switch it down to a X3100 and keep the processor as-is.

 

Web Browsing=pIII 500mhz
Movies=PIII 800mhz
Light Gaming= x3100 Intel to Nvidia7400/ATI 2400
This should not cost anywhere near $1200. EVER!

A system like that you can get for $599 at your local big box store Bestbuy, Futureshop, whatever and you'll have $600 to boot for things like a 22inch LCD wide so you can watch movies in style and with surround speakers and a usb tv tuner HDcompatable. You don't need a dell.

BAMM!

 

Well here's the thing. A lot of those options I didn't choose. They came preset with the special holiday coupon ($325).

The 320GB HD is the only option.

As for the video card, I choose the 8400 because I was under the impression that getting a video card was important to the computer running smooth. The reason I didn't go with the best was because I don't really plan on gaming much, so I didn't see a reason to spend so much to improve the com pouter in an area that doesn't need much improvement. I do the gaming on consoles, not the computer. I use the notebook for pretty basic stuff like web browsing, word processing, and then movies.

 

forget the gay holiday coupon...wait till new COUPON CODES come out on the 29th then u can customize ur onw

 

The sound card wouldn't be necessary with the 1525 since Dell moved the Headphone outputs to the front.