My one week history with the E1705

I ordered an Inspiron on June 12th, 2006. It shipped on the 16th and I received it exactly 1 week later on the 19th. Shipping was fast.

My first impression with this laptop was not very good. The PC ships with McAfee Security Center. During installation MSC had to download off of the internet and reboot 6 times before I was able to actually use the computer. This was very annoying to me. MSC also would give error messages downloading Spamkiller and crash. I gave up on the Spamkiller updates.

After McAfee was done I tried using the computer (I ordered it with the T2500 Core Duo, GeForce 7900 GS, and a 100 gig 5400 RPM drive). My Inspiron 8200 with a P4 @ 2.4Ghz and a 60 Gig 7200 Hitachi drive I bought 3 years ago seemed faster.

I did the CTRL+F11 and restored the drive to original condition. I copied the drive image onto a Seagate 160 Gig USB drive.

I then installed a fresh copy of XP Pro with NOD32 antivirus( www.eset.com) I installed all the drivers on Dells website. They don't have drivers on the website for the Express Card 54 slot.

Anyway...notebook is much faster with all the bloatware off of the computer.

A few moments later I noticed that the word INSPIRON on the front of the computer was missing half of the letter S. I knew the computer had only been carried around very carefully by me....so what was up? I LIGHTLY rubbed the letter P with my finger and found that the paint was still wet. I now have a IN IRON laptop.

I also have a line that pops up in the LCD...intermittently.

I called Dell and I'm sending this thing back for a full refund.

Other dissappointments with this laptop...

No built in MIC, no built in camera, no CF card reader, no PCMCIA slot, no GIGABIT ethernet, mediocre LCD screen(1440x900 model), can't use 2 batteries like I could in my Inspiron 8200.....and the stupid Restore partitions on the harddrive eat up too much space(give me a DVD with my restore software and let me have full use of my drive).

I'm looking for a Clevo laptop now.

 

wow that sucks, good luck on getting a new notebook.
~Arman

 

That's too bad. I really like my e1705. Hope you find a good lappy.

 

That is horrible..... paint doesn't usually take that long to dry?

 

I feel bad about your bad experience with the LCD, but why in the world didn't you look at the detailed specs before buying this? No offense but besides the partition and LCD, it's pretty much your fault...
Also it shouldn't be too much hassle to remove those partitions...

 

Hate to suggest it but maybe he's just a troll intending to dell-bash?

 

my thoughts exactly.

 

Yeah, they don't use "paint" for the Inspiron logo. And it surely wouldn't be wet after having beenat the warehouse as a "case" before becoming his laptop .. and then being shipped from overseas here and then to his house. I actually laughed when I read his "review" most of complaints were about things he would have/should have known before he bought it.

I for one would LOVE to see the paint smeared "IN IRON" ...

 

It is paint. Call Dell for yourself. It smudged off with my thumb...very easily.

 

HERE is the link that I saw when ordering.

The card reader says 5 in 1. I assumed CF would be there since it is probably the most common.

Mic isn't listed...but why would they remove it? Every Dell I've owned prior to this one had a mic built in. What's really annoying is the Memo recording program that loads itself into the taskbar with the Audigy sound card. Why would they want that program to load automatically if there is NO onboard mic.

GigaLan is not new. It should be included at this price point. By the way....no mention of LAN on this list........

I think Dell knows what the weak spots are on this system and they like to hide them as much as possible.

By the way....if I wanted to dig around there website I could probably find this information. The point I was trying to make is that for the money they charge for this notebook these things should be included.

If you'd read the post in it's entirety you'd know that I DID remove the partitions. I won't restate the obvious. Go back and read the post.

 

The CF not being supported isn't Dells problem, its yours. If you had looked at what formats the card reader supported instead of assuming what it supporte d it wouldn't have been an issue.

 

Pot calling the kettle black don't you think.

If you really hated to suggest anything than I guess you wouldn't have.

I guess your feelings are hurt because you paid too much for your Dell and it has so many shortcomings.

 

Go to the link I provided you before you comment.

You tell me what cards it supports based on the information they provide.

Also....that was just one of several shortcomings with this notebook....let's don't single it out.

And since the Express slot isn't listed anywhere...I guess it must have fallen off some other computer and got magically installed in mine. So much for Dell's detailed specs huh?

 

If you look at the pic of the E1705 with the card reader just by looking at it you can tell that it isn't big enough to support a CF card.

 

I guess if you knew the scale of the laptop(dimensions...no pun intended)...you could break out the old calipers and figure it out.....but wouldn't it be easier if they listed it in the description.

Oh....and I forgot about the PCMCIA slot....which is really an Express slot....which isn't listed either. I guess YOU could tell that it's an Express slot in the picture.....with your Steve Austin Bionic eye:





By the way....why don't you build one on the Dell website and then check the details once you add it to your cart.

My point exactly!

THIS IS THE RIGHT WAY TO LIST SPECS. It's also my next laptop....WOOHOO! (now the Inspiron lover starts to cringe.....and shows a face full of regret..... )

This is the type laptop I USED to expect from Dell.

Funny thing is that it's faster, better looking, has great features and it costs less.

The biggest mistake I made was falling in love with the old Dell and giving them my trust. I should have done more research on other brands before giving my heart and soul to Dell and then letting them trample on both.

PS...I forgot to mention the fact that my shopping cart totalled about 2800 bucks when I purchased the E1705 before I applied the 30% discount that I found on edeals.com. The Hypersonic costs about the same as the Dell....AFTER the Dell coupon is applied. Looks like Dell is really sticking it to people...and they almost got me.

 

I paid to much for my Dell and it has to many shortcomings.... but my feelings still aren't hurt.

 

You're right I haven't seen E1705's tech specs page for a while.
That page definitely doesn't have enough information.
I was thinking that the tech specs page has enough information like this; http://www.dell.com/content/product...cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~page=5&~tab=specstab#tabtop

Gigabit ethernet is not a standard feature for low-mid level consumer notebooks though. Look at hp, sony, toshiba, Lenovo and you will understand what I mean.

Edit; By the way how much did you pay for E1705? I personally will never pay anymore than $1500 so if you paid more than 1500 I guess it's not really a low-mid notebook...

 

paid too much yeah right...under $1400 for my config, so value-wise its about what i expect....i'm hardly one to say dell is great, all you have to do is read the rest of my posts...i hope you're happy with your perfect machine, please go post how excited you are in that forum...and oh yeah, one can find out all the tech specs before ordering a dell, i guess that's not a buyer's responsibility...you're entitled to have it handed to you w/o doing the least bit of work...its what makes our society great...

 

I think it's funny how you keep talking about paying too much for the Dell when your beloved Hypersonic starts at nearly $1000 more than what most people pay for their complete E1705. But maybe you payed too much cause Dell didn't show their coupons before you ordered...

I personally have great experiences with Dells, though I've never owned an Inspiron. My last computer was a Dell, my current computer is a Dell, and I'm sure my next computer will be too. Have fun with your pretty blue comptuer. Make sure to check the specs this time.

 

most of the point of buying a dell online is because you can customize it the way YOU want it

 

Hey did you recieve your Precision already?

 

Yes, I did. I am very satisfied with it. I have also written a short review here in the Dell section, and plan on submitting a full review in the Reviews section this weekend if possible, complete with pictures and hopefully some more specs.

 

I can attest the paint part to a large degree given how some of the keyboard letters on my Inspiron 4150 rubbed off in the 1st week as well and got progressively worse and almost 9 letters were in serious state of disappearance by the 4th month (N, K, J, S, C, H, M, D, L) - I tried to get it replaced but they said keyboard lettering is not covered. WTF?!?

 

Yep...you're right....another thing that makes our society great are people that can READ. You find the details on Dell's website....and do a little research yourself BEFORE you put your little fingers in gear.

I think I clarified the problem with Dell's LACK of detailed information in my previous posts. Unfortunately....you either can't read or your too ignorant to do so before you make stupid comments.

 

How is that different from 90% of the other computer manufacturers?

Heck...Hypersonic has probably double the configuration options that the Dell website has....you can even order it without RAM and the Harddrive.

 

My Dell was right at 2800. That's with a 3 year warranty and a 3 year ADP. I used a 30% off coupon which brought it down to about 2000. If you travel a lot like I do then you had better pay for the extra insurance.

I have had pretty good experience with Dell computers. I've been buying them for SEVERAL years. I just think the new ones are a let down. I put a new motherboard in my old Inspiron 8200 last night and a gig of ram. I like it better then the E1705.

This is something I found on Dell's website.....


Dell's factory in China. Look at the grass real close and you can see it's a really bad touch up someone did. I can't believe Dell would put this on their website. Look at all the trash around the front of the fence. That's what that area REALLY looks like. Nice to see that we are all helping to support slavery in China.

 

Hey Dell does NOT support "slavery in China"
.
.
.
.
It's "extremely cheap slave labor in Malaysia".


And that picture is ridiculous - nice job cut n' pasting on the grass - ha!

 

The paint thing is really here. Gee, I'm actually glad my Dell isn't infront of my I might of tested mine. Almost sounds like someone took a gray sharpy to it. Good luck returning and finding something else.

 

I stand corrected....he he he :dell: