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    help me decide Insperon 1720 or Vostro 1700

    Discussion in 'Dell' started by crazynakedguy, Jun 4, 2008.

  1. crazynakedguy

    crazynakedguy Notebook Enthusiast

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    Ok so I am looking at getting a new laptop I have decided between the Insperon 1720 and the Vostro 1700. I am trying to keep my price as low as possible so I am going with the minimum ram as I can always upgrade that.

    so here are the two configs

    Inspiron 1720 Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T5550 (1.83GHz/667Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
    Operating System Genuine Windows® Vista Home Premium Edition SP1
    System Color Jet Black BLK [313-5473]
    MEMORY 2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz 2G2D
    LCD Panel Anti-glare, widescreen 17.0 inch display (1440 x 900)
    Video Card 256MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8600M GT
    Hard Drive Size: 160GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)

    price after coupon $801

    Vostro 1700

    PROCESSOR Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T5670 (1.8GHz/800MHz FSB/2MB cache) edit
    OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows® XP Home Edition, SP2
    WARRANTY & SERVICE 1 Year Basic Limited Warranty plus 1 Year Mail-in Service edit
    LCD PANEL 17.0 inch Wide Screen XGA+ LCD Display with TrueLife™
    MEMORY 1GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz, 2 DIMM
    OPTICAL DRIVE 24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive
    VIDEO CARD 256MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ 8600M GT
    HARD DRIVE 160GB Free Fall Sensor Hard Drive, 7200RPM,
    Price $940

    So here are some questions I have about the laptops. Is it possible to add a 7200 rpm drive to the Insperon? I figure it might since you can get it with two 5400 hard drives.

    How bad is a 5400 hard drive for playing games?

    How difficult is it to install Windows XP and remove Vista?

    Thats all the questions I can think of at the moment Thanks for your help.
     
    crazynakedguy, Jun 4, 2008
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  2. only

    only Notebook Evangelist

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    While it wasn't an option on the website when I spoke to someone in person over the phone and configured a 1720 w/ them to get an idea of what I wanted, a 7200 rpm drive was offered as an option.
     
    only, Jun 4, 2008
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  3. crazynakedguy

    crazynakedguy Notebook Enthusiast

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    hmm after doing some searching on the net I found some good info on adding a second hard drive to the Inspiron and a nifty little kit that will let you replace your main hard drive. Right now I am leaning toward the Inspiron due to the price. Now if I could only find an easy way to get rid of Vista.
     
    crazynakedguy, Jun 4, 2008
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  4. mattocs

    mattocs Notebook Deity

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    Any reason you don't want to use Vista? Have you ever used it?
     
    mattocs, Jun 4, 2008
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  5. tianxia

    tianxia kitty!!!

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    the inspiron! You can change the drive later.
     
    tianxia, Jun 4, 2008
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  6. crazynakedguy

    crazynakedguy Notebook Enthusiast

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    couple reasons I do play a lot of games, I have used it and I am just so use to XP I find it hard to navigate, and I also do video editing and I find that Avid and Afteraffects run better on XP.
     
    crazynakedguy, Jun 4, 2008
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  7. mattocs

    mattocs Notebook Deity

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    Ok, at least you have some reasons. A lot of people who never have used it have some strong opinions on it.

    I thought I would hate Vista, but I like it. I don't game, so that isn't a problem for me.

    Good luck.
     
    mattocs, Jun 4, 2008
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  8. crazynakedguy

    crazynakedguy Notebook Enthusiast

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    yup thanks for your help guys I just ordered mine today. I went with the Inspiron 1720 I looked around and found some handy little things so I should be able to swap out hard drives pretty easy.
     
    crazynakedguy, Jun 5, 2008
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  9. only

    only Notebook Evangelist

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    congrats, they dropped the price another $100 or so today too, depending how you configured it on the website
     
    only, Jun 5, 2008
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  10. Thaenatos

    Thaenatos Zero Cool

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    Lol yeah they added a $500 rebate on the vostro a week after ordering it. Including the discount I got with my order I would have gotten $200 back and after realizing everything was working perfectly I didnt want to send it back and risk getting a bad egg for 200 beans.
     
    Thaenatos, Jun 5, 2008
    #10