Questions about XPS M1210

I've finally decided to get myself a M1210 after months of reading these forums.
I just have some questions regarding the configuration:
1) Is it worth getting 2gb 667Mhz ram over 2gb 533Mhz?
2) Will 7200RPM HD make a difference compared to 5400?
3) Is is possible to get the TV Tuner, and connect the laptop up to a 24" monitor to watch tv?
4) recommendations for slip sleves?
5) does the integrated webcam come in handy? i fear that it may unneccesarily use up battery and add a bit to weight.. i have an external webcam but want other people opinions.
6) Is it possible to hook up to a 40"+ LCD TV?
7) Will any of these cables be come in useful?
TV-out cable w/ SPDIF
Composite SPDIF Cable
A/V Cable Kit

thanks

 

7200 will make a difference when you actually start storing things, as for the ram, it wont make much difference unless you are playing games or something like that, the battery life on the xps1210 is 5+ hours, for the high end one

 

couple more qs,
8) Is there a point in me getting the 2.33ghz core2 processor over the 2.16ghz?
9) Is there any point in getting a 6v and spare 9v battery? or should i just opt for 2 9v?

 

Most people say the 2ghz is not really different than the 2.16ghz. The difference between the 2 and the 2.33 may be slight but the price difference is huge. Not worth it IMO. The 9 cell battery will have a longer battery life but it sticks out the back of the computer... I bought one of each.

 

The 9v battery will last about 1 1/2 hour longer when not plugged in. If you travel alot with your Laptop I would get the 9v

 

I have the 6 cell, and while it's nice and flush with the computer, I wish I had the larger one, since I use mine at school and such.

The sleeve I use is a Incase neoprene for a Macbook. It fits rather well, even though it is made for the 13.3. And was only like 30 bucks retail, might be cheaper online...

I thought the webcam was cool, but I used it once... I think it looks cleaner without, but it may come in handy to record a lecture or something? The mic seems to be very nice for the couple times I have used...

I have the 2.0 C2D, and have no issues with it, I don't think I'd be able to tell a huge diff if I were to get the 2.16 or 2.33. Not worth the money in my opinion.

 

I read in some articles that performance increase of 7200 is not good enough to compensate its drawbacks. Basically they have mentioned that higher rpm motors may have lesser lifespan ..also some issues with static!!...

I found this article while googling for the same thing... check it out!!

also regarding the processors do check out the cache size...if there is an increase in cache size then it makes sense to buy the better one...

 

thanks for the responses

 

I agree with the majority of responses, so instead of rehashing the same info I guess I can jump in on the TV stuff

Refer to my HDTV thread for some useful info


If you LCD accepts component video (Red,Green,Blue RCA connections)

Buy this cable from Dell

S-Video to TV-Component Cable with SPDIF Adapter

 

ive read that t7600 has better power consumption, and better battery life than t7400. Will this be the case with m1210, and if so, how much?
also, will the Composite SPDIF Cable have the stuff required in the above post?
thanks

 

It's not possible to put a 7600 in the m1210 for the 7400, so it's not even an option.

 

Hes said T7600 and T7400, those are core2 duo cpus, not the nvidia gpus. The T7200 will be all you need, as far as I know the power usage should be about the same, the higher clocks would lead me to believe they would consume a little more. The very small jump in MHZ with the 7400 and 7600 arent worth the pretty big chunk of change thats asked for them, I'm quite content with my 5600. I'd stick with a max T7200 and spread the love around to other components suchs as vid card,(the GF7400 is well worth it) ram,HD etc.

 

Ah, my mistake.

 

1) 667 over 533 is not worth. Because 667MHz ram has higher latency than 533; which means they are not as fast as you would expect. More info : New Low-Latency DDR2

2) Yes, you can notice the difference in performance between a 7200 and a 5400 RPM disk. It will reduce program load times and will also make things run smoother. However they consume slightly more power. Don't pay too much for a 7200RPM disk because it wont make a huge difference. For example if a 80G 7.2k and a 120G 5.4k are similarly priced then getting the 80G is ok, but if it is more expensive than even a 160G 5.4k, then RPM gain is not worth the amount of space you loose.

3) Yes it is possible

4) Hmm…. Not sure….

5) Quality of the camera under moderate light is good, maybe slightly poor under low light conditions. But still better than most cheap web cams. I personally prefer it for the compactness and neatness.

6) You can connect it to TV of any size, but don't expect it to be as sharp as your notebook screen.

7) PCModifiers 's post has some good tips.

8) Not unless the price difference is less than $50. Even the 2.0GHz T7200 is more than good enough. IMO T7200 has the best value.

9) If you are getting the Go 7400 VGA and a 7200RPM disk then take the 9 Cell battery, cos with a 6 cell it wont last more than a couple of hours (3 at most).