help/advice with M1330 specs

Hi all,

I need some help deciding what specs to get for an XPS M1330.

This is what I'm thinking of getting (for a little over $1800 US before tax):
SYSTEM COLOR Tuxedo Black
PROCESSOR Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7250 (2.0GHz/800Mhz FSB, 2MB Cache)
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows Vista™ Business
LCD AND CAMERA Slim and Light LED Display with VGA Webcam
MEMORY 3GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz
HARD DRIVE Size: 160GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
VIDEO CARD 128MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ 8400M GS
WIRELESS CARDS Intel Next-Gen Wireless-N Mini-card
BATTERY OPTIONS 6 cell Primary Battery and 9 cell additional Lithium Ion Battery
SOUND OPTIONS High Definition Audio 2.0
FINGERPRINT SCANNER Biometric Fingerprint Reader
WARRANTY AND SERVICE 2Yr In-Home Service, Parts + Labor,24x7 Phone Support

Is the LED screen worth the additional $300? The difference it makes in weight and thickness seems minimal, so the main question for me is: does it really make a difference with battery life?

For the processor: is the additional 4MB cache worth upgrading from the T7250 to T7500 (+$75)? I would be using the computer mainly for statistical analyses and data manipulation, and microsoft office applications.

Is the 8400GS enough for casual gaming? From the M1330 reviews, it seems to be able to handle even some of the current games. I don’t play the more demanding FPS or RPG games. Probably the most demanding game I have now is Civ IV. Maybe Spore when it comes out next year. I just don’t want to go with the bigger and heavier M1530 just for the 8600GT when the M1330 has the same screen resolution, has better battery life, and is smaller and lighter. WSXGA+ would be nice on the 1530 but it seems it will be at least a month until that’s released. Plus they have some great deals on the M1330 now.

Is it worth getting the draft-N card or should I stick to the intel 3945?

Thanks in advance.

 

I don't think the LCD is worth $300. A $100 maybe, but not $300.

 

id say the processor upgrade isnt worth it.amd the 8400gs will play current games at the lowest of settings so old ones <2006 before> will run perfectly

 

Stick with the the intel 3945 if you don't plan on getting a wireless n router, the actual N will come out soon, so get a usb adapter when it comes out, im sure it will be better than the draft-N.

 

You'll have a USB adapter sticking out the side which you'll have to carry around though. Even a PCMCIA wireless card is annoying as hell. Maybe an express card would be fully enclosed, however?

 

What are you using this for? Don't see much point personally in paying extra for Vista Business, it's not much extra but would be better spent on the hardware.