R.I.P Inspiron 9400

Well, today's finally the day my laptop decided to finally die. Seems like the GPU's memory got corrupted in some way, being unable to run Windows itself unless it's in Safe Mode. I started realizing this was the case when the Windows loading bar showed green dots all over the screen, plus giving a lot of BSODs about PAGE FAULT IN NONPAGED AREA and finally, when I just logged into regular Windows, started having extreme graphics problems. It's also well beyond the warranty period offered by Dell, so there's no saving it this time.

Ah well, it was reliable all the way until the end. It was top of the line back when I first got it, allowing me to play FEAR, Dawn of War, Company of Heroes and Source Engine games extremely well. And it was able to play all games released up until now, including Crysis, Fallout 3, Far Cry 2 and Left 4 Dead. It certainly managed to live up to its price tag of $1800 CDN back in 2006...

But, it's time to start looking for a replacement.

 

Well, it certainly was good while it lasted, right???

2006 - 2009...thats some good longevity!

Do you have any ideas, as to what brand/model you want your lappy to be??


Cin

 

I'm looking at getting the Gateway P-7805u as the next laptop. Core 2 Duo P8400 2.3GHz, 4GB RAM and 1GB 9800M GTS means I can play today's games with absolutely no problem.

 

Well thats cool! I'm sure whatever choice you make..it will be a great one!

(Searching for a new lappy is so much fun)


Cin

 

You can actually replace the GPU on the 9400 if you are so inclined to resurrect it. The higher-end video cards are somewhat overpriced though, but you still may be able make a few bucks repairing and selling it instead of dumping it somewhere.