e1405 - Docking Questions

I am considering a DELL 640m as my laptop desktop replacement (answers to the FAQ are here). My biggest concern is with what appears to be poor docking station alternatives. The ones with video haven't received very good reviews so an alternative suggested is to get a simple port replicator for the non-video devices which connects to the laptop via a single USB cable and attach a monitor to the VGA output on the laptop. I have some questions:

1. How "dynamic" is this arrangement. For example, can I remove the VGA connector and the USB cable to the port replicator and go mobile without any issues with the laptop not finding previously attached devices and have the laptop LCD functional?

2. Can I come back and plug in the VGA connector and the USB cable to the port replicator and close the lid on the laptop and pick right up where I left off?

3. In the above scenarios, what would people recommend for a keyboard and mouse. I would prefer wireless, should I go with the traditional wireless or add Bluetooth? In either case (or if I went with USB keyboard and mouse), how will the laptop react to the external keyboard and mouse being disconnected and reconnected as a leave the "dock" and return.

I suspect they answers may depend on the OS. At this point I'm strongly considering XP over Vista.

I tried looking in the e1405 manual online but I can't find anything at all addressing these issues. Thanks so much for any insight you may have.

 

I have a Inspiron 640m and use it constantly both on the road and at a desk. Depending upon your preferences, and if you really need a massive LCD you might like to consider something like the oysterdock ( www.oysterdock.com). They aren't particularly cheap but if you just want a decent display (the 640m with TrueLife is very decent) at the ergonomic height its definitely the way to go - it even comes with a built in 4 port USB hub (which I connect my wireless keyboard to). I have a MS Wireless Laser Desktop 6000 keyboard and mouse combo and it works a treat. To hotswap I simply pop the USB cable out the back and lift the 640m out of the oysterdock. No wires, no fuss.

Vista can hot swap changing keyboards and mice very nicely - although if the two screens are at different resolutions it will take it a second to autoadjust on the 640m.

Bluetooth keyboards work fine except I found the laptop struggles with bluetooth desktop + bluetooth phone + headset. Seems to get slow and confused.

Give Vista some more thought. All devices are supported on the 640m and with 2G of RAM it is very nice (and a lot more secure than XP).

Any more questions or if you'd like to see my setup in action - just PM me or reply to this post.

Matthew

 

Thanks Matthew, at this point I will be giving Vista more consideration.

Does anyone have any other comments, suggestions etc.?

 

You should get Vista, but not for any reasons related to plugging/unplugging peripherals. I plug and unplug USB and audio devices all the time on my 2.5-year-old XP laptop... it senses it automatically, just works, and has no problems at all. I don't use an external monitor, but plenty of people use external monitors with laptops; I don't think there's any problem there. There's a function key to toggle the display between built-in LCD and external monitor.

As mousematt said, Vista is much more secure than XP (mainly because you don't run as Administrator by default, but there are lots of other security improvements as well), and that's the real reason to get it... that and better future compatibility. Notebook RAM costs only $35 per gigabyte at newegg.com and takes 2 minutes to install.

The only reason I'd even think about XP is if you have old programs that don't work in Vista for some reason... and even then I'd think about replacing them.