Vostro 1500 or HP dv6000z?

Hello, I've been scouring these forums for days trying to figure out whether to buy the Dell Vostro 1500 or HP dv6000z (or neither). Customized with the options I want (2 gigs of ram, 120 gig hard drive, cd/dvd burner), they both come out around $750. I want to format with my own copy of Window XP Pro SP2 as soon as I get my machine, and I'm already aware that I'll have to slipstream the SATA drivers to do this. This is what I've gathered:

Reasons to buy Vostro 1500 over dv6000z
- Core 2 Duo T5470 seems to be "better" than AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core from what I gather (not a big deal either way)
- I've found some really good guides for installing XP on a Dell Machine, and numerous threads where people have confirmed that they successfully installed XP without too much trouble on their Vostro 1500, not to mention Vostro 1400 and Inspiron 1520. There seem to be a lot of helpful and knowledgable people on here if I had any trouble. I haven't found nearly as much on the dv6000z, and what I have found makes installing XP on those machines seem more convoluted and risky.

Reasons Not to buy Vostro over dv6000z
- It seems that if I order a Vostro 1500, I have about a 50/50 chance that my headphone jack will make annoying beeping and static noises. I haven't found any confirmation that this problem has been resolved in newer builds of the 1500, and Dell does not seem to be very helpful in resolving these issues. I'm not necessarily opposed to buying an external usb card or something for $30-$60, but I feel like Dell should make the laptop work the way it's supposed to ("High Definition 2.0"?), and don't really want to encourage their slacking/dishonesty.
- It seems like I have a decent chance of getting a nasty looking, grainy monitor. Unlike the sound issue, I don't think there's a (relatively) cheap fix for this problem, and I don't want to deal with sending my machine back over and over.
- Unlike the Vostro 1500, which has threads dedicated to these two seperate faulty hardware problems and many horror stories related to them, the dv6000z's hardware seems to be more sound.

Basically, I'm not convinced that XP will work on the HP machine, and I'm not confident that the hardware will work on the Dell machine. What do you guys think?

 

I have an HP (second hand) 17'' with a AMD X2 TL-50 (1.6Ghz), and it runs Vista fine, if that's what you're worried about. So whatever Dual-core your HP notebook will come with will perform fine for everyday tasks (and even gaming); since I believe even the lowest end HP notebooks uses at least TL-56 now.

But, I wouldn't dare installing XP on this machine simply because of the lack of information... Your worries are well placed here.

As for a Vostro 1500, there's really no reason you'd want to get it unless you'd like a relatively cheap mobile gaming platform (or for 3D modelling/CAD work) with a GF8600M GT or GF8400M GS as all HP notebooks only come with a GF6150 IGP (as far as I'm aware). I ordered a Vostro 1500 because, personally, it gave me the most bang for the buck, and I needed a mobile platform that can handle 3D Applications such as Maya and 3DS Max; something my second hand HP wasn't able to provide.

One thing to note, though, the optical drive in my HP notebook is INSANELY loud; it's simply not normal. My old 15.4'' Compaq notebook created a fraction of the amount of noise this beast does.

As for your hardware worries, I think they're well placed, as well. Since I have yet to have received my Vostro (DELLays--expect them), I cannot confirm any of your suspicions, but if reviews are to be trusted, hardware faults could be a problem.

 

Thanks for the info Triple_Dude. It is good to know the HP would run Vista fine-- I figured it would. I wanted to make sure I had the specs to run Vista when/if I decide to use it, but I have no interest in using it at this point. I did forget to mention that the dv6000z processor would be a TK-53.

Maybe I shouldn't have brought up the processor comparison though since I'd gladly take either one if I knew I was getting a machine that was both reasonably easy to format with XP and unlikely to have faulty hardware...

 

You didn't mention if you were a gamer, or how concerned you were with the video card. You can get a much better GPU in the Dell for roughly the same price--if not a little extra..

 

I don't game much anymore, and I have a desktop with a decent graphics card, so gaming isn't really a concern for me on this machine. As long as I can run Vista if I choose to use it later then that's all I really need, and it seems like either the 128MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS that comes with the Vostro or the GeForce Go 6150 should do the trick, especially since I will be getting 2 gigs of RAM. For the foreseeable furture I'll just be running XP and using software that doesn't demand an especially powerful machine or graphics card (Visual Basic, IE/Firefox, AIM, Adobe Photoshop, etc), so my biggest concern is getting a laptop that I know I will be able to install XP Pro SP2 on and that won't have faulty hardware.

 

Have you considered HP 6715b, from HP's business line? It has XP support... at least some versions of it are sold with XP:

http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/us/en/sm/WF25b/321957-321957-64295-321838-89315-3368540.html

It's nicer than the Pavilions, but you do sacrifice some multimedia features like a built-in webcam.

I think the Vostro offers a great value in terms of price/performance, but I don't blame you for balking at it because of the widespread quality issues... I hope Dell gets these problems sorted out over the next few months.

 

Thanks for the tip, I hadn't seen that model before. The two reservations I have about that:

- In my price range ($750-$800 give or take) you can only get 1 gig of RAM
- I can't find any guides for reformatting with my own version of XP Pro or anyone to confirm that they were able to do it on this model (I want to be able to use my own XP disk as opposed to the copy of XP that comes with the machine). It does seem like it should work fine though since it comes with XP, and therefore all the drivers must be available...

Edit: Looking at the XP drivers HP has online for the 6715b ( here) -- I don't see the necessary SATA drivers... am I missing it?

 

Beware of the plastic body in HP even it has a metal top now. My DV4000 is so flexible that it has been showing all kind of problem after 1 year. Initially I have to press at certain place to turn it on and I lost the USB ports. It looks great but definitely not seriously design for carrying it on a daily base. The Vostro 1500 has a magnesium alloy case. I can feel the quality difference just from the cover of memory slots on the bottom. The plastic cover on HP fits in like toy.

 

I don't know anything about the SATA drivers issue... sorry.

As for RAM, you can buy extra RAM at newegg.com for about $40 per 1 gb module and install it yourself. Although, for most purposes, XP runs fine with 1 gb. (I'm running it with 512 mb right now.)

EDIT: You might try asking in the HP forum about the XP drivers issue.

 

I've decided that I want to order the Vostro 1500. If it arrives with any hardware defects, I will return it immediately.

The only problem at this point is this: I have now talked to SIX different dell representatives today, online and on the phone, and so far I have failed to get confirmation in writing that if I get a defective Vostro I will be able to return it full refund, INCLUDING shipping and handling, taxes, with no restocking fee. The sixth person I talked to (Customer Care Dept) confirmed on the phone to me, but the e-mail he sent me failed to confirm it IN WRITING as he said it would. It bothers me that it is so difficult to get this simple guarantee from them...

 

I have a vostro 1500 and I love it! The only con is its on the heavy side

 

I was just reading the return policy on Dell's site. It says:

"you may return to Dell, within the applicable return policy period, products that you purchased directly from Dell for a credit or a refund of the purchase price paid, less shipping and handling and applicable restocking fees. "

"Upon receipt of the complete returned purchase, Dell will issue a credit or a refund of the purchase price paid, less shipping and handling and applicable restocking fees. "

As far as I can see, I will be responsible for shipping and handling and possibly restocking fees if they send me a defective laptop, no? Seems ridiculous.

 

Update (for anyone who cares). I got them to spell it out explicitly for me, so I am going to order the Vostro 1500.

6:02:47 PM Dell: you can return the system within 21 days from the date of invoice.
6:03:07 PM Me: will the full cost be refunded, including shipping and handling and taxes?
6:03:36 PM Dell: The full amount including taxes, shipping and handling will be refunded to the original mode of payment.
6:04:14 PM Me: Would I have to pay for the return shipping and handling?
6:04:41 PM Dell: You need not pay return the shipping charges.
6:04:46 PM Dell: I am sorry for typing error.
6:04:56 PM Me: Good, thank you. One more question: Would there be any restocking fee?
6:05:46 PM Dell: There will be no restocking fees.

 

The Vostro line of notebooks are not subject to restocking and return shipping and handling fees--but I originally thought that offer was good for a whole 30 days... Hmm, odd that you only got them to confirm 21 days for you. No matter, I doubt it'd take you 21 days to notice a hardware fault .