So confused!

Hello all.

I have just been surfing the Dell UK website and customising a few laptops. I spec'd up identical Vostro 1500 and Inspiron 1520 laptops however the spec difference was HUGE at £388! (VAT and delivery charges included for both).

My question is ... Why is there £350+ price difference for what is basically the same laptop but in a different colour? All of what I have read basically says the I1520 and the V1500 are identicle it is just the V1500 does not have custom colour options. Is this true? If so why are people buying the I1520 for so much more??

 

1520 has coupons that still dont make up for the price difference. Also people like being able to pick a color.

 

Thanks for the quick reply eL_eRiC. I cannot believe people would be willing to pay almost £400 more to pick the colour. That is crazy to me. There HAS to be something that the Inspiron 1520 has over the Vostro 1500 to make the price difference so dramatic??

 

well i customized a Vostro the same as an Inspiron but used the coupon for the inspiron. The price difference was only about 100$. (£50 I think but I really dont know)

 

Are those coupons valid in the UK?

I think I am gonna give Dell a call tomorrow and ask them directly what the differences is. For £681 that Vostro deal is amazing.

 

Don't forget that the Vostro also has a spillproof keyboard, shock protection for the hard drive and a more rugged case than the home/home office Inspiron... The Vostro is a better build quality, just like how the Latitude is better than both of them in terms of build quality/durability.

-Tzale

 

Very interesting Tzale. This confuses me even more as to why it would be cheaper!

One question regarding the HDD protection. Is this something built into the HDD or a seperate module which controls the HDD? I ask as I would want to change the battery for a 7200RPM model as soon as I get it. Would this disable the HDD shock protection?

 

people would pay $1000 for colored keys, if it meant they get something that makes their laptop supposidly "unique" from the rest

the same reason people were paying $2000 for xbox's around christmas time..........they just havvvvvvvvvveeee to have it

 

ROFLMFAO!!!!!!! Dell should start to think a little

 

Well that Vostro is a steal at the price so I will call Dell tomorrow and see what I can haggle

As the I1520 got such a great review here and on loads of other sites I figure the V1500 is just as good (if not better) so I am comfortable getting it without seeing it in person.

Cheers for all the info. Much appreciated

 

Hi ditoa.

I have the same exact question. Could you please post what dell tell you tomorrow when you call. I would really appreciate it. I actually wanted to buy the Inspiron 1520, but I cannot wait that long for their delivery time. Thanks.

 

No problem tantrums. I probably won't be calling them today, more likely tomorrow but I will make a note to post back here when I get some more info. Cheers.

 

Hey tantrums. I called Dell just now and spoke with a nice guy who basically said the Vostro 1500 and the Inspiron 1520 are identical in everything except colour options. He said the price difference fluctuated between £100 and £300 between the models with the Vostro always being cheaper depending on what deals are available.

As the guy was so helpful I asked him to get me a quote. We then had a little chat and knocked the quote down a little, then I added some extra bits on and knocked it down a little more

I had a quick chat with my wife and I went ahead and purchased the Vostro for a total of £847 including VAT and Delivery (by Sept 21st according to my quote). The final spec was as follows -

* 2.2Ghz Core 2 Duo (T7500)
* 2GB 667 Mhz RAM
* 160GB 7200RPM (it is an option if you phone)
* 15.4" 1440x900 Screen (with TrueLife, this isn't an option sadly, oh well if I hate it I will return it)
* Nvidia 8600M GT 256MB Graphics Card
* Bluetooth Module
* Wireless N Card
* 9 Cell Battery
* 8x DVD+/-DVDRW
* 4 years (!) on site hardware support (I double checked it includes time and materials, etc.). No weekend/national holiday callouts. Business Hours only (8am-5pm)
* Nylon Carry Case
* Dell 926 All in one printer + Leads + Ink (you can tell he was trying hard to make the sale, will give that to the mother in law)
* Vista Business which I plan to call them up and return when I get it as I already own Vista Ultimate via MSDN so that is £30 or so refund.

All in all very happy for £847. The 4 year warrenty is nice as I have had problems with previous Dell laptops in the past at the 2-2½ year mark although that was an Inpsiron 8500 bought back in 2003. I am hoping this "business line" Vostro will be better (read: tougher) build quality.

I see there is no Vostro 1500 review on the site, only a Inspiron 1520. I will write up a review when I get it although I expect it to be near identical to the Inspiron 1520.

Cheers again to all those who replied yesterday

 

Thank you so much for your reply- really appreciate it.

You got a great deal- definately better to call then use their website. I will go ahead and buy the vostro.

 

good deal ^^ good job ditao

 

Whoever said about that spillproof keyboard and whatnot...Inspiron = Vostro in every way under the hood. Nothing is different. Just color and configuration abilities.

 

ditoa looks like you got a good deal and lucky you ordered when you did, i gotta order tomorrow or well today other wise its goes up by £70 :S and im working from early to half 8 and they cloase at 9 i think :S gonna be tight.

 

they are different because vostros have light leakage and graininess(not saying the 1520 doesnt)and the 1520 doesnt have much light leakage, as i have heard.also, you can pick a color!

 

Thought I would post again to let you know I have cancelled the Vostro order.

By chance today somebody in a coffee shop had a Vostro 1500. I started to chat to him about it and he let me have a quick test drive as such. I couldn't stand the keyboard on it. It was too "squishy" for me. I would have just sent it straight back the day I got it. Is a shame as it was pretty nice otherwise. Although chunkier than I thought it would be which also put me off.

 

Then you shouldn't get the Inspiron either.

...they're the same thing. I've tinkered with both, they are in fact the same. The graininess is from the screen and Vostros/Inspirons...are the same And the color sure you can get a color but guess what, I got my Vostro in about...3 weeks versus people who have been waiting months for their Inspirons because of delays

 

You just have to watch the coupons and the deals.. my setup was delivered for $1170, which aint too shabby! (Specs are in the sig)

 

Hello again all. Interesting turn of events these past two days. Firstly I had the opportunity to play with 6 Vostro's (1400 and 1500) yesterday. Now when I played on that Vostro in Costa coffee last week it was a 1400 not a 1500 but I figured they were all the same. I found out yesterday they are not! The 1400 has a very "squishy" keyboard whereas the 1500 is much more acceptable. While still a bit squishy it is not horrible to use and I instantly felt awful regret for jumping the gun and cancelling my order last week. I had a talk with my wife (who was always playing with the laptops) and she suggested I just give Dell a call back tomorrow (Monday 3rd) and ask for the same deal. While I felt a little stupid I decided to do it anyway as I did really like the 1500 after playing with it for an hour and 6 minutes Two things I would just like to mention are ... the laptop is pretty heavy. The 1400 was heavy as well but the 1500 is quite a bit heavier still which is kind of surprising for its size. I think the black finish makes you think it might be lighter or something. Secondly I found the screen to be of very good quality. It is very bright, even and with good viewing angles both horizontally and vertically. I was using a 1280x800 res matte finish whereas I would be ordering a 1440x900 glossy (truelife) finish on my own. I am still a little nervous about truelife though, I hope it is ok. I just wanted to mention the screen bit as the review of the Vostro 1500 on this site mentions that the screen isn't all that great whereas I found it to be of very good (dare I say excellent?) quality.

Right now back to my eventful day! So today I was at Tesco getting some last minute bits my mother in law forgot for her 60th birthday party today when I get a phone call from the Dell sales guy. At first I thought he didn't know I had cancelled the order but he said that was why he was calling. He then said would I still be interested in it for £800 inc. VAT and Shipping! I was pretty shocked. From worrying about ringing them back and sounding like an idiot Dell were knocking off another £47 to make the sale. I asked if he could send me the quote and call me back tomorrow as I was trying to tlak to him and pay for some bread rolls and bottles of Coke at the same time. So I get home tonight and there is the quote in my inbox for £799.66 inc. VAT and delivery for the exact spec I ordered (with printer, case and all the other bits he threw in the first time). I am over the moon and going to confirm the order with him tomorrow.

Anyway just thought I would share my eventful time with you all. Hope you enjoyed my little weekend laptop adventure!

Cheers.

d

 

Jammy, nice one