Inspiron 8600 stuff. Help me!!

I've got a couple of questions about my Dell Inspiron 8600. I need a good wireless mouse, a nice looking laptop backpack which won't cost above $200, and some security accessories so that my laptop will not get stolen at school. I have no idea where to look, and when I look online I find myself going in circles. I know I need a kensington lock, but I heard when you put it in to the 8600 the lock lifts the laptop up and tilts it at an angle. Are there different sizes for it? I've also heard that wireless mouses on laptops drain the battery. Is that true? Finally, what's so special about laptop backpacks that make them so expensive. I never knew that all this stuff would run up that high in price. I wanna look for a stylish backpack that is big enough for my 8600 but not too... dare I say "dorky" looking. If you guys got any ideas, I'd really apreciate it. I'm running thin on time. School starts in a couple of weeks and its driving my crazy. Thanks again.

Inspiron 8600 1.8GHZ wsxga
512MB ram
128mb ATI radeon 9600
40gb hard disk

 

Have you tried any search engines and just typed in what you are looking for. I usually use Google or Altavista for all my shopping needs

1.8GHz......$135 upgrade
512MB.....$75 upgrade
128 MB DDR ATI MOBILITY RADEON 9600.....$123 upgrade
40 GB ULTRA HARD drive
WIRELESS 1450 card...$27 upgrade

Having your Notebook catch fire b/c of an overheating video card.....priceless

 

I have been checking on search engines. But I figured you guys know best. If you guys had any advice or have prior experiance or have any partiality to any brand, I'd love to know. I wanna get the most bang for the buck. Any lots of the stuff looks all the same to me. What brand of mouse is best, or what brand of bag?

 

I have found that Logitech is the best all around mouse. I perfer the wireless type. Just my personal perference. But they have top notch quality products ranging from $100-39 dollars.

1.8GHz......$135 upgrade
512MB.....$75 upgrade
128 MB DDR ATI MOBILITY RADEON 9600.....$123 upgrade
40 GB ULTRA HARD drive
WIRELESS 1450 card...$27 upgrade

Having your Dell Inspiron 8600 Notebook catch fire because of an overheating video card.....priceless

 

How about the backpacks? Is there any brand that you prefer? And what kind of lock should I get?

 

I have a brenthaven backpack that cost $80, and a $40 laptop sleeve. I was a little disappointed that I had to cram the sleeve in there. Get one dedicated for laptop use. I heard the Jansport Optimisor was really good, there is a review on the site.

GPU cooling (100°C->75°C)* Inspiron 8600 * 1.8ghz Pentium M * 128 MB Radeon 9600 Pro Turbo (337/242 -> 400/300) * 2x256 MB DDR2700 SDRAM * Aquamark 3: 24058 * 3DMark'03: 3404 * 3DMark'01 SE: 13120

 

I picked up one (Targus) at Compusa for about $30 bucks. I just used my arm to messure it. Has lots of extra pockets and works great. [ ]

 

Thanks guys. I actually went to Circuit city and bought the Kensington saddlebag pro. It wa around 40-50 bucks and i love it. I can put all my junk in it and it doesn't look too bulky at all. I'm all into the fashion scene. And I don't want my laptop backpack to be a dead give-away. This backpack is sleek cheep and carries all my stuff and then some. However, if your a college tudent like myself, I reccomend buying another backpack for your books and only when you need to carry this backpack with your laptop use it. Like i said before, it carries all my laptop stuff, but will only accomodate one book and and a bunch of small stuff. Then again, it wouldn't be such a smart idea carrying textbook and a laptop in one bag. It gets to be unbearabely heavy. Overall its a great backpack, but only for the laptop and accessories and a few other things.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by BigJunior

 

http://www.turboball.net/html/3208.html
That's one of the sites that carry my backpack. The actual name of the bag is Kensington Saddlebag sport. Its a great backpack. Its well padded and holds all my laptop supplies. I am getting a kensington notebook mouse also. The pocketman pro i think. Its a wireless optical mouse and its very good. Anyway. In the big main compartment on the backpack, theres a sleeve that fits the 8600 perfectly. Like I mean this bag was made to cover those dimensions. also in the main compartment, there are a bunch of elastic pouches. These pouches hold a bunch of stuff. Lets say the ac adapter, mouse cds and much more. I know you can put a lunch in there. Then kensington thorws in a few smaller compartments to put other junk like pens and othe rsmall stuff. At the end of both straps on the sides of the backpack, there are small open pouches where you can have easy access to your cell or whatever you can put in there. I like that alot. Most importanly, I like this backpack because it not dorky or bulky looking. I'm a prefectionist to a certain extent, so I've been looking for an ideal backpack for about a month or two. I've been in NYC for a week and I've shopped in a lot of stores. This Kensington saddlebag sport looks the best and is built well also. An important thing to consider is if the backpack is a laptop case giveaway. You want to make sure the backpack doesn't scream STEAL ME!!! This one does not. One thing to make sure is to not buy this buy this bag for more than $55. I got it at circuit city for 49.99. I hope this helps. And I hope i wasn't redundant. If you have another questions about your laptop just post it. I'm a pretty new owner myself. So just ask and we could figure it out.

 

Hi BigJunior,
Did you get kensington lock or did you find a better option[?] I also need a lock for Inspiron 8600 and can not find one.[8)]
Will appreciate advice!
js04

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by BigJunior