Ok, for people who know me, well they know kind of geek I am. I push the hardware to its absolute limits and burn it when necessary.

Lately I've been trying to get a laptop for months now and been evaluating different vendors. I spend couple months comparing their price/performance and price/WhatYouGet ratios. At the end of the day only 2 makers survived, HP for its unheard quality and Dell for its poor quality but lower price.

After missing a one time a year perfect deal from HP just before Christmas, last week I ordered Dell Inspiron 8600.

Being exteme sucker for performance in desktop systems now i needed a performance + battery life + possibly lighter weight.

So here's what i got (keep in mind this is the result of highest perfect bang for the $buck$):

cpu: 1.8ghz pentium mobile dorthan 2mb L2 cachegpu: ati 9600 Pro Turbo 128Mb/333mhz core/240mhz Memory. (MinisterOfDoom can NO longer call me a Nvidia boy!!!)

Memory: 512Mb pc2700 or DDR333, anything more than 512mb for partial gaming/workstation laptop is a waste.Hard drive: 4200 RPM, 30gb of something, well enough for mesound: onboardnetworking: RJ45/RJ11/and intel pro 2200 B/G-- I love it to deathCD/DVD: Dell CD-RW/DVD--regular one. i didn't get a DVD burner, due to the fact that it is still undergoing engineering issues with double layer support on all players etc.. later maybe a year later i will get one for desktop.Software: winxp home--saved cash + DELL JUNK LOADED ALL THE WAY, will reinstall after format.=====================================================I HATE ATI'S 9600 DRIVER FEATURES, BUT HEY ITS INTENDED FOR A MASS GENERAL CONSUMER, SO I WILL SURELY CHANGE THAT W/CUSTOM DRIVERS.=====================================================BATTERY LIFE: 4-5 hours general use, gaming only while plugged in, dvd is about 3.5 hours.=====================================================weight: about 7 pounds. its okay considering performance. IT IS HEAVY, AND SINCE I'VE BEEN SICK FOR A WEEK NOW, IT IS KINDA FEELS HEAVY.=====================================================PROS: I CAN PLAY HALF LIFE 2 ON IT WITH VERY DECENT SETTINGS, 1024X7## WITH EVERY DETAIL MAXED OUT TO HIGH, 0X ANTIALIASING AND 8X ANISOTROPIC FILTERING. =====================================================CONS: WEIGHT IS WELL OKAY. BUT THE CASE OF THE LAPTOP SUCKS, LOOKS LIKE IT IS MADE IN CHINA'S SWEATSHOPS, IT MAKES CRACKY SOUNDS AND FEELS SOFT, YOU CAN EASILY PUSH THE PLASTIC IN FRONT OF THE SPEAKERS IN. OVERALL ITS WELL STRONG, CHASSIS LET SAY IS VERY DURABLE.=====================================================LET ME KNOW WHAT DO YOU ALL THINK, I KNOW ITS A DELL, IT SUCKS, BUT AS A STUDENT I HAD TO GET IT BECAUSE OF PRICE. HERE ARE THE PICS:some pics are not mine but off the net...


Modified by sanioll at 8:53 PM 2/13/2005

another pic

..

HERES A COMPARISON OF WIDE SCREEN VS. REGULAR XGA.

INSIDES WITH SOME SPECIAL CUSTOM WIRING.. lol

Some Dells are awesome, and some suck hardcore. Decent enough layout inside.

I've been happy with my Dell Laptop, it's going on 2+ years and only had to replace the HD once. I carry it back and forth to work everyday and the keys are worn from typing. In short it gets LOTS of use.

i dont know, when i got it i was sick(still am a bit) and had 0% energy for everything and i was depressed about everything including this laptop. i guess thats the reason i'm not happy about it too much.

it was pleasant playing HL2 at work other day. very "kool"

haha...

gaming at work...never thought about a laptop like that...

What's this "custom wiring" all about?

Good choice.

Normallly I'm anti dell, but I've heard good things about the upper end Inspiron series.

You should find that 9600 pro quite impressive for an older mobile card. It's what I'm using to run HL2, and it can handle decent levels of AF AA.

Also, regarding the cheap case. That's a Dell thing. It's part of why they're so cheap. You'll probably also find that the speakers suck. Go buy some $20 or $30 headphones and you'll be better off there. But Dell almost always does better in one area that the competition overlooks: the hinge. The hinge on my old Latitude CPxH500 (PIII 500, Rage Pro 8mb, no gaming capacity whatsoever) is so strong and, more importantly, stiff, that I can lift the laptop up by it while it's open, and it won't fold open more. That means no floppy screen like you'd get with a Thinkpad or the like. OF course, that stiffness doesn't mean it's difficult to open or close. That's one thing I've always loved about Dells.

MinisterofDOOM wrote:You'll probably also find that the speakers suck. Go buy some $20 or $30 headphones and you'll be better off there. But Dell almost always does better in one area that the competition overlooks: the hinge.

speakers are fine, they sounded pretty good and loud enough watching the "Platoon." some parts of the movie are very quiet, but speakers sounded fine. sound quality sucks obviously compared to audigy2 zs on 7.1 system.

the hinge, ha ha ha. i wish they put the money they spend on designing it towards the quality of the plastic.

Dammit, image is everything, cover matters. I guess thats why i'm having a hard time getting dates.

i would like it to feel SOLID like sony products, i want it to feel strong like a rock, like my mp3 player.

WHY, WHY, WHY DO WE HAVE TO PAY SO MUCH FOR LAPTOPS, AND WHY DO THEY WEIGHT SO MUCH AND WHY THEIR BATTERY LIFE IS SO SHORT.

HOW ABOUT LAPTOPS WHICH RUN ON HALF LIFE OF RADIOACTIVE ELEMENTS WITH ZERO RADIACTIVITY LEVELS, HOW ABOUT NOTEBOOKS LIGHTER THAN 1/2 POUNDS AND STILL PERFECT FOR GAMING.

HOW ABOUT A LITTLE BIT OF PERFECTION??

What'd that thing cost you? I need a school/sort-of-gaming (I want to be able to run HL2...that's all that matters) notebook, and that looks like it'd do the job nicely.

As for the 9600's stupid drivers, that's entirely Dells' fault. Dell laptops feature Dell-created drivers. I've got a Dell with an ATI card and tried to download drivers from ATI, I was linked to the Dell site for Dell-specific drivers. It's done this way due to differences in displays. So, unfortunately, laptops don't come with the real Catalyst drivers that desktop Radeons do.

dude i'm so drunk right now. first time had this much to drink in months. schools suckss. but i'll answers your question.

actual price was 1450. i got it on a loan. so its not mine yet. this country runs on a debt what do you expect, i'm just a part of it.

if i pay it in 6 months; other day i calculated, it will cost me about 1600 overall.

as i said before, i missed a real good deal from HP. pentium mobile 2ghz was for abt 1500 just before christmas, and i the dumbass didn't buy it.

if you wanna buy a craptop like me, then go with HP for real quality, but less price with Dell.

yes, laptop is just a tool to get the job done, but i find the one that i got very amuzing. its that plus gaming pleasure.

okay i'm drunk, just get a HP before christmas or something. get a pentium mobile chip(does wondersss) and some integrated next gen video chip.

WOOF!!

man....that didn't make much sense...

That's a very nice laptop. How's it chugging along these days? Has it come to a screetching halt due to spyware

my dad has one just like that, i get a latitude provided by the university that i put to good use as well

PoorManQ45 wrote:That's a very nice laptop. How's it chugging along these days? Has it come to a screetching halt due to spyware

well, surfing for p0rn isn't as effective as with the desktop PC, so this is for game play and school work + p0rn movies. he he

but thanks to firefox and 2 spyware products, even my desktop PC isn't affected by even most scary spyware that i used to deal with back in those days by reformatting every week.

back in those days means 2 weeks ago. yes i switched to firefox 2 weeks ago and i'm loving it for its safety, not features.

Yeah, ever since I started using firefox and a proper firewall, I haven't gotten a SINGLE spyware or adware app on my system... simply amazing!

gabossie wrote:Yeah, ever since I started using firefox and a proper firewall, I haven't gotten a SINGLE spyware or adware app on my system... simply amazing!

heh, you tell me.

my p0rn collection has tripled, quadripled in only 9 days.

i'm loving it, just dont have any more space.

anyone wants some p0rn??

that's noth9ing man. I just haad to go get another 120GB Hard Drive to hold all my "special" material

THIS SUCKS. TODAY I HAD THE FIRST PLEASURE OF TYPING THE LECTURE ON THE LAPPY AND IT SUCKED.

CRAPPY KEYBOARD GOT A FLEX TO IT NEAR THE QWERTY SIDE. DAMN!!

IT WAS TIME TO GET UNDER HER SKIRT.

IT IS CONFIRMED PEOPLE. THE CASE AND CHASSIS WERE MADE IN THE SWEATSHOPS OF CHINA.
Modified by sanioll at 3:03 AM 2/27/2005

I FLIPPED THE KEYBOARD OVER AND STARTED RUBBING HER WITH OIL SLOWLY.

WELL, SOLUTION WAS TO PUT A LAYERS OF AVAILABLE SOMETHING, WHICH WOULD WITHSTAND HEAT AND BEATING WHILE TYPING AND PLAYING HALF LIFE 2.

Bahahha, I remember my stupid Thinkpad keyboard would flex. I kept tissues around to stuff underneath so I could type. Eventually IBM released an updated version when I finally had to replace the part.

well, keyboard feels very solid now, thanks to my nerves and 20 minutes of my time.

you know DELL sucks. and why it sucks, beucase the "you get what you paid for" formula still works here. beucase they got to make a profit and so they cut down costs and quality takes the beating.

So, were back to square one my friends.

Do you all remember, 10 years ago, it was the same. We were stuck with the boxes they gave us. I'm talking about the desktop PCs.

there was no way you could build a desktop PC at a reasonable price. WHy? beucase supply to the mainstream was low.

And now the cycle repeats itself; it is simply a different product.

What could I have gotten for the same price if I was able to build it myself.

Well, something close to the quality and performance of Alienware and XPS, with lower weight and thinner and quality case and keyboard.

someone said: "Life sucks more for stupid people."

And now i feel stupid.

Yes, that's true, but some laptop manufacturers are going OVERBOARD with quality. Yes, it is possible. Voodoo makes their cases from carbon fiber...well that's grand...but the case is not that heavy, even when made of plastic...so it doesn't save that much weight. So you end up spending for the case what you could have spent on better working components like RAM or video cards...it's irritating. You can't just buy a quality assembled average computer. If you want average performance, you pay low for s*** quality. If you want insane performance, you pay high for unnecessary quality. There's no middle ground...unless you count the desktop PC. It pisses me off.

whats their website? i couldn't find it.

4 beers other day finally took me to bed,. woke up today fresh as hell and ready to go.

out of having too much energy i decided to fix the cracking problem of dell's cheap case. So i took the beast apart.