Torn Between 1420 and the 1520

EDIT***********I decided on the vostro 1400. just still have some q's

I'm debating between inspiron 1420's or 1520's. I want the 8600gt but I also would like a smaller, lighter laptop. The thing is, the 8400gs is probably going to use less battery and even make my laptop last longer but I think the 8600gt would be a much better buy.

I'm buying this laptop for college, and plan to bring it to class though I don't want you guys to say 14in right away because of that. I play games too, but I'm sorta casual. The thing is, I'm sure getting a 8400gs wouldn't do much for dx10 games which I was planning to use it for.

how can I decide before the 8th because dell actually finally has coupons for the 1420

thanks guys

 

The 8600 doesn't texactly play DX10 games that well either. One pound isn't that much to tell you the truth. The 8600 is way better than the 8400 though. As you can see, im leaning towards the 1520. But that's my preference

 

I got this response from Gamefaqs:
I personally got the 1520 because I talked to a lot of people and the consensus is that most people don't bother bringing their laptops to class and of the ones that do, some of them use them to go on facebook, msn, games which is kinda counter-productive.

And there's also really no point in getting a nice laptop if you're going to gimp one of the more important components because if you just wanted a laptop to do work on, the cheapest one you can find in Best Buy would be more than enough
.

Makes sense. I just was wondering if I should worry too much about weight/bulkiness/battery.

 

It comes down to this:

IF you do bring your laptop to classes, and OFTEN at that, there is no doubt that you should purchase a 14 inch laptop because the 15inch along with all the books you carry with you are going to really give you a hard time to carry.

If you want to game, but are not going to carry your laptop to class, buy the 15 inch.

 

I guess there is no median.....I do plan to game, but I'm still unsure of whether or not I will be bringing the laptop to all classes. I'm not going to be a science major so I'm not going to be focused on labs or anything. I won't know yet how much I"ll need the laptop until I get into school which will be late september, but I plan to buy soon so I can make best use of these coupons atm.

what about the difference between the vostro's 15in?

 

I'm in a very similar situation. I like the 1420 because it's lighter weight, but I also game occasionally and would therefore benefit more from the 1520's 8600 card. I'm also going into college next year (but for engineering), so I'm not sure how often I'd be carrying my laptop to class. I would have a better idea of how often I need to take it with me on my daily commute in Sept/Oct, but I would like to order sooner rather than later because of the back to school deals! Argh!

 

awesome, lets worry together

 

i find bringing it to lectures is useless, unless you read slides/prepared lecture notes off your laptop or something. i find printing out the slides/notes is better because thats just what i prefer. also when i bring my laptop it just distracts me more than helping

 

ah this thread was helpful, 14" it is Work, you should do the same too!

 

glad this helped you ski.

yea I think I'm going to go w/ the 1420 now. or the vostro 1400; anyone know the differences besides color and bloatware

 

comparing both of them, your only difference will be...gaming

get the 1520 is you wanna game better than most 15.4" notebooks out there

or get the 1420 if you don't plan to game, (maybe a little counter strike)


you get the 1520 for the 8600gt

thats all

-jl

 

It's the same machine. They differ in name, color, pre-installed software, a few of the available configuration options (processor and OS options), pricing, sales channel, and support group. I don't believe there are any other differences.

 

In all honesty, I would go with the 15'', especially if the extra weight doesn't bother you. I had a 17'' widescreen HP that I occasionally took to class, and that was heavy, but for me, the longest walk to class I have is 8 minutes, so it wasn't bad. The lighter 15'' is going to be a welcome change for me. I just don't think I would be very productive with a 14'' laptop. I've tried to work with one, and I think my fingers are to fat for the keyboard.

My suggestion is go to your local best buy and play around with both a 14'' and 15'' and see what you like better. I think you might opt for the 15''.

Also, I agree with the above, it's not productive in class at all. Facebook, myspace, games, etc are just a few of the distractions. But, if you have a boring prof that takes attendance, then you should be good! :-D

~Fred

 

I'm going to have to say you should go for the 1520. Granted, I did return mine, but that's because my sensitive ears couldn't take the high pitched noise that came from it, but I think that noise is prevalent and most of the Santa Rose chip sets. For college, you want the best of both worlds. The 1520 is bigger, but you can still bring it around if you needed to. In college, you really don't need to bring it around with you to class. When you're back at the dorms, or home, whatever your case may be, you still want the ability to game and just have a machine that runs better.

I ended up deciding on the M1330. I need the small and light for work, but I can come home to my desktop to do everything else. I think the 1520 is best for you.

 

Thanks for the responses guys. I think I'm now set on the 1520 lol. I think the weight probably won't be an issue but I will take FredTT's advice and check out some laptops at best buy to just see how the size is.

BTW, Could you guys stop by my 'screen thread'
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=151740
, you guys could really help make that poll more accurate.

Also: the battery life between the 1520 and the 1420, how big are the differences? The screen size and graphics card make a difference right?

 

Everyone says the jump to the 8600 from the 8400 for the graphic card is the biggest reason to go for the 1520. I wish they have the 8600 in the M1330. I bet you next month they'll offer it, right when mine is delivered! I don't think the extra inch of screen is a huge deal though.

 

Yea, I really think I'm going to get the 1520 now.... now I'm thinking resolution/battery/weight... I don't like glossy though but thats from just from seeing a friend w/ a glossy hp and I thought it looked too vibrant. I like a screen like my lcd right now which is a syncmaster 203b; is that like the anti-glare?

btw: its alright man, w/ a 13 in screen, I think a lot of games would still look pretty sweet w/ a 8400 . I don't think I would mind a m1330 but the glossy screen and price are whats getting me.

 

What's funny is I do not game nearly as much as I use to and definitely not at the same level. The only game I know I'd play is Civilization 4. I don't need a powerhouse lappy to run that game! Although I saw some screenshots for Starcraft II, but even there I wouldn't need a crazy machine. It all changed once 2K Sports bought the rights to make all baseball games. I use to get MVP Baseball, Madden, NHL, FIFA, etc. for the PC every year. When 2K6 came out, I had no choice but to buy an Xbox 360, as they wouldn't make PC versions of their games.

 

I think an important question is, do you plan to write notes on paper or type them up in class? If you plan to write them on paper, you probably won't need to take your laptop to class very much.

From the laptops I saw at the store, HPs were the glossiest and most reflective of the glossy-screens. They make new cars look dull. You should check for glossy/anti-glare at the store, too. Ideally you'll see a glossy and anti-glare with the same background to compare.

I went with anti-glare and was concerned it wouldn't be bright enough with all the talk about glossy being more vibrant. It's more than bright enough on High Performance Battery or plugged-in mode (without increasing the default brightness on the Control Panel), and is adequate for typing on power-saver mode, which is about 40% brightness of the plugged-in mode.

The brightness on the 203b is 300 cd/m2. I'll leave the numerical comparison to someone who understands what that means better than I do.

Battery life: I'd recommend getting the highest-capacity battery you can. For less than a pound of weight you get 40 to 120 more minutes of life, depending on your power plan, which can be really nice to have.

And resolution is personal preference. But rather than comparing pure pixel numbers, compare dots per inch (DPI). Doing some quick calculations, your 203b is about 90 DPI. IIRC the 1280 resolution on the 1520 is 100 DPI, 1440 is 112.5, and 1680 is 131. You can see how these DPI look at a store,too.

 

@sirwells
i don't game that often but I have grown accustomed to really nice looking games after going from a x700 p4 2.4 ghz 512mb ram to a 7950gtko c2d 2.4 ghz 2gb ram. I think I'll be playing company of heroes, bf2142, and maybe some other games that I can't think of atm.

@appollo - btw: thanks for voting in my poll
I'm really used to writing them, since I have been since way back in elementary school but if thats the case I don't even think I need a new laptop. My friends always backing up his macbook pro purchase with the arguement that its necessary. I don't think I'll be bringing my desktop but if I have to, so be it. What is the primary use of a laptop in college then if its not for class use? I don't want to sound snobby or anything but I decided to buy a laptop since #1 my parents actually thought it would be helpful and #2 usage around campus.

I really should check out the dell kiosk about 15 min from my house....when I went there before, I held an inspiron 1520 that wasn't on and didn't have a battery in it so I wasn't really able to judge it well.

wow it seems like you do know your stuff though w/ the 203; even I don't know that lol.

Alright, makes sense....do you have it? does it sticking out become an annoyance?

so are you saying that 1280x800 has a higher contrast than my 203b?

btw, thanks again to everyone for helping me out.

 

I just went to the kiosk to check them out, and I really like the size/weight of the 1420 but I really don't like how it doens't have the 8600gt.........

The size seems soo perfect...

 

Checking out a laptop in a kiosk or store like Best Buy for sizing is helpful, however they will not let you take the laptop, shove it in a bag, and walk around with it a bunch. The one pound difference is no so much by itself, however when you can get something that if a pound lighter AND smaller (by total volume), now you can carry it easier, have more room in your bag, more space on your desk, and more easily manuver the thing through whatever you come across.

Follow the basic formula... The more places you take the laptop, the more you will want a smaller one

 

I was in your situation recently, and settled on the Vostro 1400, my thought process went like this, maybe it will help:

• I can play Halo and WoW on my Crappy Acer 14" with a Intel GMA 900. The resolution isn't so hot (But I can do medium-high detail) so The Nvidia 8400m will be gaming nirvana for me. (Plus I have an Xbox 360)
• The Vostro 1400 let me get a Matte screeen and Vista Ultimate.
• The 1400 with a 6-cell battery is only 100g heavier than my current Acer (Which I still consider light at 2.38 kg)
• I really liked the design of the 1400/1420's over the 1500/1520. Not a fan of the 15XX's media keys. Like the little blue lights at the front of the 14XX series, and love the overall profile.
• The little mini-review about the solid build quality of the Vostro 1400's really helped. The fact that I've read 3 reviews that dare to compare it to Thinkpads is good enough for me.
• I don't want to buy the bulkier laptop now, just for a better Graphics card. In one-and-a-half to two years time, when both cards are equally out of date, I'd still be left with the bulkier computer, and I can see myself wishing I got the smaller one.
• Maybe if I have a crappier computer I will either start playing more cerebral, strategy games, or just not game as much? .... Yay STUDY!

And that was the winding road that made me settle on a Vostro 1400.

The bulkier laptop thing was the one that really sold me, as a few years ago my friend and I bought laptops. I got an Apple Ibook 12" and he went flat tack and bought a Dell (Inspiron??) 6400 because of the 3d graphics hardware. It was all fun and games (And I was pretty jealous for the first 6 months) But as time passed and his Graphics solution became as crippled as mine, he started to resent having a Big, ugly 15" laptop that no longer had 'game'.

 

I think the last two posts convinced me to get the 14 in. Thanks CW for the bullets of persuasive info, makes a bunchload of sense

 

Thanks for the helpful thread.
I was having second thoughts myself about getting a 15in instead of a 14in. But this has laid my fears to rest about getting the 14in

 

This thread is amusing obviously, you are torn ! Flip a coin, maybe? Maybe you can go back to a kiosk or BB and try to type on the keyboard for a few mins to see how your fingers like the smaller keyboard? Also, maybe see if they will let you put in a movie? You might appreciate the bigger screen

 

I'm glad it helped you PhoenixAG

I played around w/ both laptops to a point where I was embarrased lol, I kept opening and closing them, typing random stuff and lifting them up. I think I will go w/ the 14in for school purposes, if I just got a laptop for a desktop replacement I would def. go with the 15. Thanks though kimnicho

 

I had the same dilemma Workinprogress. And I ended up going with the 14 inch. And I'm happy with my choice. I think it's the perfect size for me.

I do have one question for you, though, Workinprogress: when you were playing around with the 1420, were you concerned at all by the fact that it does not have a latch, and instead stays closed using spring tension?

 

It's as simple as...

1520
+Little better for gaming and overall performance

1420
+Little better for portability

For me it's a no brainer, as the size and weight of the 1520 is plenty portable for me to be carrying around everywhere I go in college in my backpack. But everyone has different needs, and you ultimately have to make the decision yourself, you can tell how portable they are just by looking at similar laptops in stores, and for performance, google up some reviews of each card.

 

I think the spring tension issue has been addressed in various threads and I have read about it being described like a flip phone. You don't worry about it opening up on its own, do you?

I would also like to add a little to this thread. I wholeheartedly agree with the statement made by WorkInProgress that if you are looking for a desktop replacement, go with the 15in.

I, on the other hand, have a Core 2 Duo 2.4ghz desktop with 2gb ram and a good, albeit DX9, graphics card. So there lies the reason why I chose the 14in. Although I expect to be using the 14in almost solely for all tasks, anything that can't be run by it (which will be rare I think), can be run on my desktop which I am very sure will be catching dust by the end of the year.

Plus, a smaller and lighter notebook just makes me feel good. Makes me feel like doing work on it, rather than a big huge notebook which you have to lug around.

What also contributed to my decision was this:

I loaded up Excel and put in the weight and dimensions of 4 notebooks. A previously owned IBM R52, an HP nx6120, the 1420 and 1520.

I found out that the HP is pretty sleek and has a good weight. The R52 is a monster and is thick and huge. The 1420, is slightly smaller than the HP (which is 15in), both in depth and height. But its width is more.
Now comes the kicker: The 1520 is 1 inch wider than the R52, while maintaining the R52's depth, height and weight. Man, the R52 used to be a pain to carry around. Having an extra inch on it is crazy.

After I saw these dimensions, I switched my mind off. Even if they put an 8700M GT in the 1520, I will not be buying it.
Oh, and the 1420 is lighter than all of these notebooks.

 

PhoenixAG, can you post up the dimensions and volumes of the notebooks you just mentioned?

 

No...In fact, I'm not sure what I'm worried about with it...

 

Here they are. I lost the text file I had copied them to so I just copied the information from my Excel file.

Hope it helps. Btw, the HP and IBM are really old laptops so don't judge me I just used them to sort of have an idea of the size of the Dells.

IBM Thinkpad R52

Width: 13 inches (332 mm)
Depth: 10.6 in (269 mm)
Height: 1.46-1.58mm (37 - 40 mm)
Weight: 3.2 kg (7.1 lb)

HP nx6120

Width: 12.9 inches (328.6mm)
Depth: 10.5 inches (267mm)
Height: 1.2 inches (30.3mm)
Weight: 2.75kg

Dell 1420

Width: 13.13" (33.3cm)
Depth: 9.61" (24.4cm)
Height: 1.26" (3.2cm) front - 1.53" (3.9cm) back
Weight: Starting at 5.39 lbs (2.45kg)

Dell 1520

Width: 14.12" (35.8cm)
Depth: 10.59" (26.9cm)
Height: 1.47" (3.7cm) front - 1.65" (4.5cm) back
Weight: Starting at 6.40 lbs (2.90 kg)


Btw, I am used to an antiglare screen, as I have a 22" LCD and also on both my notebooks, its antiglare. I am not too big a fan of the glossy screens plus they have glare.
I am more worried about the brightness. Do you think the antiglare screens are bright enough or do I simply NEED the glossy? Thx.

 

Never buy a notebook to bring to classes. If your a businessman, yes. If your a marketing director yes. But having attended college for 3 years, I would ONLY bring my laptop to do presentations (once a semester... maybe).

 

I'm sure the anti-glare screen will be fine, but not as nice as the glossy.

 

Thanks for this as well as posting your comparisons. It does make sense, and now I'm positive I'm going to be getting a 14in when I do. The thing is, my mom, i'm not sure if I posted that in this thread or not; the other thing is that my dads like go ahead and buy it. So..... I mean, I know I would get the 1420, I was almost sure once I just simply saw it at the kiosk although I should never judge based on looks, it seems perfect for me. I don't even game that much to be honest, I only do so if friends are over or if I'm bored.

Thanks a lot for your contribution guys; now to see if I can get some convincing on part of having a laptop in college.

 

sorry for double post, but i haven't been on this thread to catch up on all your posts.

so how did your laptop benefit you in your years in college? Did you get one freshmen year? do you still have that same laptop?

 

Thanks.

Gunner: So do you think I should go for the glossy? What are you guys using personally?

WorkInProgress: Glad to be of help. I have also almost stopped playing games and the few games that I do play, the 1420 will be able to handle them quite well. I am also tired of upgrading every 3-6 months to play games. And the laptop is not going to be getting any lighter, but it will get obsolete. So the 1520 might not be able to play games after a year, but at least with the 1420, you'll have a slim laptop.

 

I chose the glossy when ordering my 1420. And yes, I think you should go for the glossy unless you know that you'll constantly be in 'heavy' light. Then go with the anti-glare. But I've seen the glossy on my grandpa's laptop (Inspiron E1405) and it looks just fine to me, even in the light.

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=2311683#post2311683

This is my other thread now about the actually purchase if you guys would want to stop by.

@ Gunner, I think I'll be getting antiglare.
@ Phoenix: what games can the 8400gs run really smoothly? how can it handle company of heroes

 

Yes a notebook has been invaluable as a transportable. But I will tell you now you will not want to plugin/plugout every time you take it to class. If you're walking more than 5 minutes, you will not like the weight. And after about 1 week of classes in college, you'll realize the classes are not designed for you to bring your laptop to class. The only people who DO bring them to class are those who:
1. Fool around in class, play games, listen to music, AIM
2. Electrical engineer, computer science, graphics design majors

And thats it. For the rest of us (I majored in Biochemistry & Physics), it's not going to happen. Dragging yourself TO class is a task on your back in itself, and your just not going to be lugging your laptop to it except in very few cases where you might need it (PP presentation, group project etc).

Get the 15.4 for the graphics power, don't go for the 14.1 if the only reason you want it is to be portable in college. If you *don't* care about the graphics power, get the 14.1 because a smaller form factor is more useful in general (except for gaming, I find 17 to be ideal for laptop gaming).

 

That's a really valid point CP. A laptop is only vital if you're doing a computer science major or something. (For testing example code mid-lecture etc.)

A laptop can be handy if you spend the entire day on campus. Having your own PC to use on the free Wifi networks (While Sitting on a comfy couch in the student commons and nursing a latte) sure beats having to find a PC to use MATLAB on or something like that.

Even though it can be tempting to use your laptop in class with all your lecturers powerpoint slides, I'd definitely recommend forgoing that in favour of a pen and paper. At least by doing that you 'engage' with the class instead of sitting passively.

 

Yes your right, I forgot about the off campus students. I know some people who commute to school and stay until the end of the day like to carry their laptops with them. But at that point, I would suggest a 13.3 or 12.1 inch laptop instead.

 

Read the full content of this Article: http://www.dev.notebookreview.com/news/microsoft-antivirus-fights-back/

 

Absolutely not! After having owned a notebook (My first one was a Dell 700M), I will never again even consider owning a desktop. The point of a laptop often is not having it on the go all day long, but rather to have the option to close the lid, pack it up, move it around, and have a fully functional computer that packs easily into a backpack or messenger bag. I own an XPS M2010, which is more of a desktop than a laptop, but you can tell that the "all in oneness" of a laptop is something I will never get away from (hence, no matter how powerful desktops get or are ahead of notebooks in general, they are too constrictive in their form factor for me to consider them).

To answer your question of which one to get, you said you will NOT be taking it to classes: definitely go for the 1520 or Vostro 1500. The extra graphics performance is great for any games you might want to play, and even overall Aero performance. A 15.4 is still baggable in most backpacks and messenger bags. I would have suggested a 17 inch, but coming from an XPS M170, they don't fit into most backpacks at all and even fewer messenger bags, which is very annoying when you need to go home for the weekend or the occasional need for the laptop in class.

 

Thanks for your feedback, especially about the awesome-ness of laptops . but I still think I would prefer the 14in. despite the power of the 15in. I just like the form factor better, and I think i would enjoy a smaller laptop no offense. I did consider the 15in. for the longest time until I actually went to a kiosk and played around w/ both laptops.

 

Yes, if your not stoked about the 8600m GT, then the 14 inch would be great. I would personally go with a 14.1 myself as well if it had an 8600m GT.

 

alright, well do you know how well the 8400 runs some games?

 

bump;
do you guys think prices will go down if I wait it out until q2 next year when the new chipsets come out?

 

i think it's more likely they'll just bump up the specs and leave the price about the same. i think that's kinda how it works with laptops, because there are certain desireable pricepoints. the companies just outfit it accordingly to appeal to as many people as possible while still making a profit. so they bump up the specs over time to stay competitive in the market.

um yeah, i don't think prices will go down, you'll just get more for your money (like with desktops).