Latitude D610 First Day Impressions

I received my Latitude D610 today and thought I'd take a few minutes to post some first impressions.

Just to give a bit of background I purchased this laptop to mainly use for Web Development and database design. I plan to travel with it a fair amount as well. Multimedia and games are a second concern, mostly as something to keep me entertained on a flight or cross country drive.

1. Packaging - Very spartan and straight forward. In the box I found the AC adapter, Software Application discs, Windows XP disc, User Guide, and the laptop itself. I appreciate this because I'm not the type who likes to have a bunch of useless AOL and Microsoft Plus discs lying about. All I need is the essentials.

2. Notebook - I love the SXGA+ screen. Before I purchased this unit I spent a good amount of time debating if I should get the SXGA+ or just a normal XGA. I'm very pleased I decided to go with the SXGA+. It really makes a difference. I'm also very pleased with the casing which is a mixture of magnesium, aluminium, and plastic. The feel is very sturdy. Sound is decent quality for a laptop and I did run a DVD which looked nice. So far my major gripes with the unit are the touchpad buttons, which can be a bit fickle and the open and exposed ports (Parallel, S-Video, 10/100/1000, etc) on the back of the unit and the bottom (Dock port). Covers for these ports would have been a nice addition.

The other thing I've found very nice is the minimal Windows XP Pro load on the unit. Only the essential software was loaded (Drivers, CD Recording, etc.) leaving a nice streamlined windows install.

The battery came fully charged and ran itself empty after about 2.5hrs of use. During this time I was transferring files to the unit as well as installing programs (CD-ROM use).

I also purchased the laptop with the Bluetooth option and after about 5 minutes of configuration and head scratching was able to connect it to my office PC via bluetooth and tranfer files. A very nice feature.

In the future I'll post more on this unit as I get to know it better. The specs are below.

Pentium M 1.86GHz (Sonoma) w/ 533MHz FSB
512MB DDR2
60GB 5400RPM Hard Drive
ATI x300 w/ 64MB RAM
Intel Wireless
14.1 SXGA+ Screen
Windows XP Pro OS

-Shannon

 

Shannon,
Congratulations on your new purchase. I use my notebook for the same reasons, and looking for a new one. Good to know the actual stuff about the notebook from your review.

Have a few questions - would appreciate if you could let me know:
1. Does the HDD make any clicking sound
2. Is the CD drive quiet or loud
3. Is there any flex on the LCD screen
4. Is it really 1.4" thick throughout or does it taper?
5. Do the keys feel solid (v/s slight shakyness)
6. Is the keyboard noisy (making clicking sounds) or smooth
7. Does the area where palms rest, or any area on the underside get warm after a few hours of use?

Thanks in advance!!

IBM T41 1GB/40GB 1.5GHz 32MBVid
Compaq 2710US 512MB/20GB/1.2GHz(P3)/8MBVid
Dell 600sc(server) 2 GB/160GB/ 2.4GHz/2x128MBVid
Next one TBD

 

Ankurg,

1. The hard drive thus far has been very silent. I opted for the 5400rpm option and I can definitely notice the quicker response time and snappier load times.

2. The CD Drive makes a fair amount of noise. The most noise comes just after inserting a disc when the disc is loading. I loaded MS Office from a CD and noticed that once the install got going and the files began to copy the drive seemed to quite down. Also when running a DVD it seemed that the drive wasn't very loud either once it got going after a few minutes.

3. When you ask about flex on the LCD, do you mean at the hinges or the entire screen overall? The hinges are very tight and once you set the screen in a position it stays there with no movement. I'm sure the hinges will loosen over time with repeated use. The screen overall seems fairly sturdy. It seems that it would take quite a bit of pressure to flex it.

4. As far as I can tell it does in fact measure 1.4" thick. I measured it with a tape measure, with the lid down, at what looks to be it's thickest point. It does taper some at the front but it's very minimal. Also the notebook is very light. Some others at my job recently purchased the desktop replacement type notebooks and you can really tell the difference in how much lighter this notebook is.

5. In my opinon the keys fell very solid. I'm not the type that bangs away at a keyboard. There is some give to the keys if I press them hard enough but no shakyness. The placement of the Del, Home, End, PgUp, PgDn, etc., keys in the upper right are a bit awkward and annoy me some, but this I think I will be able to adjust to.

6. The keyboard produces small clicking sounds when typing. The action from the keys feels solid but the clicky noise is definitly present.

7. The area where the plams rest stays very cool throught usage. The heat build up on the bottom right side toward the front but it's not much heat at all. This is by far the coolest notebook I've ever used. The fan is very silent as well.

Hope this helps. Over the next few days I plan to test out the video card some and maybe watch a DVD in it's entirety.

-Shannon

 

Hi Shannon,
Thanks a lot for taking the time and providing feedback! Hope you have a smooth sailing with your PC. I will wait for a few more days till 9300 comes out and then see.

(BTW, just as a complete aside, on dell.ca (canadian site) one can configure a Dell Precision M70 1.86/60GB/512x2/DVD-RW/WSXGA/3 yr/CompleteCoverage/Wireless2915 for Canadian $ 3100 (approx USD2500).. in US it costs USD $3100. Am trying to see how to get it into US)

IBM T41 1GB/40GB 1.5GHz 32MBVid
Compaq 2710US 512MB/20GB/1.2GHz(P3)/8MBVid
Dell 600sc(server) 2 GB/160GB/ 2.4GHz/2x128MBVid
Next one TBD

 

Sweeeeet! Congrats n Enjoy!

Dell Inspiron 8600:
* 1.6 Ghz Pentium M * 1024 MB DDR SDRAM * 100 Gb Seagate Momentus 5400 Rpm HD * 15.4" WSXGA+ * Internal Bluetooth * Intel Pro/Wireless 2200 * 4x CD/DVD Burner (DVD+/-RW) * ATI Mobility Radeon 9600 Pro Turbo 128 MB * Win XP Pro SP2 *

* Apple 17" PowerBook G4 * 14" Toshiba Tecra 8000 * Apple 14" iBook G4 *