Archive for the ‘Notebooks’ Category

Newer Entries »

Dell Inspiron E1705

Friday, October 10th, 2008

Once I returned the first one the new one works great. It is very easy to work on as well as play games. Clean layout. Nice true life 17″ display.Not as heavy as my Inspiron 8100 & yet bigger. I like the “True Life” display. Rich! Keyboard layout takes some getting used to. Very high up in the footprint. Battery life is poor. Bad problems with the first one. Driver issues and video card problems. Should have got Nvidia graphics. ATI is ok. Sound is average. Paid for the upgrage but not impressed. Overall a good machine.

This 17-inch dual-core notebook includes a TV tuner and delivers outstanding mobile gaming performance.

Dell’s first dual-core offering is both a workhorse and a multimedia star. It isn’t cheap–our review unit cost $2949 as of March 27, 2006–but no other notebook in its class does a better job of providing instant entertainment on a 17-inch screen.

Equipped with a 2-GHz Core Duo T2500 processor and 1GB of RAM, the Inspiron E1705 earned a superior WorldBench 5 score of 97. To help you make the best use of your down time, the new E line (which includes the E1505, with a 15.4-inch wide screen) features Dell’s one-touch MediaDirect button. With the notebook off and without starting Windows, you can press the button once to watch a DVD movie or to access videos, music, or photo slide shows stored on the hard drive, an optical drive, or a USB key or memory card placed in the five-in-one media reader. The only option that the E1705 lacks is instant-on live TV. To watch TV, you first have to launch the Windows Media Center Edition operating system.

At the time I looked at the E1705, it had the best graphics card Dell offered–a top-notch nVidia GeForce Go 7900 GS with 256MB of VRAM–and it showed in our gaming tests. (A new flagship gaming notebook alternative, the Inspiron m1710, should be available in April with an nVidia GeForce Go 7900 GTX card.) The E1705 finished first in all but one of our game tests, with results such as 98 frames per second in Doom 3 at 1280 by 1024 resolution and 32-bit color, with antialiasing turned off.

The E1705 will turn heads with its cream-colored trim and bright blue LEDs. At 8.2 pounds and with a 3-hour battery life (using the $79 nine-cell battery), it’s a friendly travel partner.

The E1705 can be configured with up to 100GB of storage, and it comes with a whopping six USB ports, along with a cutting-edge ExpressCard slot and a DVI-D port for the latest flat-panel screens. This port isn’t compatible with analog monitor adapters, but the unit includes a legacy VGA-out port as well. My one complaint about the design is that the DVD burner’s eject button is flush with the case and hard to locate by touch.

It’s something of a pain to keep track of Dell’s external TV tuner, a USB unit slightly larger than a pack of playing cards. But because it’s external, you can save a bit of travel weight by leaving it behind.

For people who plan on using an E line portable to replace a desktop, Dell sells Kensington USB 2.0 docking stations customized for Dell notebooks. A simple port replicator costs $79 and a better one including screen stand is $129.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Tags: , ,
Posted in Dell Inspiron Notebook | No Comments »

Dell Inspiron 1525

Friday, October 10th, 2008

If you don’t like the specifications of the particular Dell Inspiron 1525 we tested, you can easily configure your own online. That’s an important difference between this unit and most other inexpensive laptops: You can customize it down to the smallest detail–even lid color–before finally clicking the ‘Buy now’ button.

Our review unit will please those for whom good performance is a priority. Equipped with 2GB of memory and the best notebook CPU Dell offered for this model at the time of our review (a 2-GHz Core 2 Duo T7250), our $999 (as of 2/7/08) Windows Vista Home Premium machine earned a WorldBench 6 Beta 2 score of 78. That’s 17 percent faster than the average score of 65 earned by the five under-$1000 laptops in this roundup, and even 13 percent better than the average of 69 earned by 16 recently tested all-purpose notebooks in any price range. With the battery upgraded from the standard four-cell to a six-cell ($15 extra), our notebook lasted a fairly generous 4 hours, 4 minutes on one charge, about 10 minutes longer than our five budget laptop test group’s average.

About the only thing the Inspiron 1525 can’t handle is 3D graphics; with an Intel Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator X3100 and no dedicated video card option, it’s limited to simple games and other 2D applications.

The 1525 is wedge-shaped but svelte at 6 pounds, including a 15.4-inch 1280 by 800 resolution screen, a DVD writer, and a good keyboard. The port variety and layout is fine (the 1525 is one of the few notebooks in this price range with an HDMI connection). And like the excellent HP Pavilion dv2600se, the 1525 gives multimedia lovers lots of entertainment features: an instant-on button, a Webcam, and even dual headphone jacks. In fact, I like the Dell’s MediaDirect button more than the HP’s QuickPlay because it has Instant Office, an application viewer that lets you access your calendar, contacts and PowerPoint presentations. Also, Dell’s volume gauge is easier to use. Alas, the raspy-sounding speakers take some of the shine off the 1525′s entertainment appeal.

The real beauty of the 1525 is its customizability. For instance, our glossy screen (a no-extra-cost option at the time of our review) was pretty reflective, so you might be happier with Dell’s standard antiglare screen. From a base configuration of $500, you can build your perfect sub-$1000 laptop that includes a lid in any one of 11 different colors ($25 usually, but included in our test model’s price), Bluetooth ($20), an integrated mobile broadband card ($150), and even built-in wireless USB ($150).

If choice of features is paramount in your budget laptop, the Inspiron 1525 is your best bet among the models in our test group.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Tags: , ,
Posted in Dell Inspiron Notebook | No Comments »

Dell XPS M1210 Review

Friday, October 10th, 2008

Dell XPS M1210 has  CPU (C2D T7200), 120GB, 2GB(667MHz), Battery (9-cell ) is fantastic even with vista! I really didn’t know what to expect with this portable from Dell using Windows Vista Home version. But, it seems alright, a few interesting help screens. Fairly easy to manage. A few programs still are not Vista compatable such as the JiWire Hotspot Helper. Overall so far, I like its weight, size and so far its performance. Connected a monitor to test its dual display capability, and it seems this could be handy, in my case during Fantasy Football season. For a lightweight portable and my needs, it’s a great investment.

Dell’s entry-level multimedia laptop, the XPS M1210 has some excellent show-biz genes, such as media buttons and a TV tuner option. But it’s also a strong, well-designed, and highly mobile performer. The Windows Vista refresh only enhances the earlier XP version’s strong points.

The 4.9-pound M1210 is not the lightest laptop in its class, but it’s still quite travel friendly. Pricing is flexible, starting at $1299, and the design is excellent. The M1210 has four USB ports, among other connections, ports, and card slots. Its 12.1-inch WXGA screen is extraordinarily bright and inviting, and the well-laid-out keyboard requires no ramp-up time. And with the unit turned off, one press of the keyboard’s MediaDirect button launches a movie, music file, video clip, or photos slide show located anywhere on the notebook. Though the M1210 is a small notebook with small-sounding speakers, it comes with two headphone ports on the front so two people can plug in and listen at the same time.

Last year Dell added an ‘Instant office’ option to the MediaDirect menu; after selecting it, you can flip through your PowerPoint slides, contacts, and calendar entries, without waiting for Windows to load.

The Mobile Media Guru configuration, included on our $2150 (as of April 11, 2007) review unit) further broadens your entertainment and communications horizons. An external USB TV tuner and a remote control enable you to watch and record live TV on the M1210′s small screen. Dell also includes an excellent Webcam and an integrated broadband antenna at this price level. (An integrated Cingular or Verizon cellular broadband card and Bluetooth cost extra, however.) The notebook’s ‘WiFi Catcher’ switch makes it easy to scan for any type of wireless signal–Wi-Fi, broadband, or Bluetooth.

Configured with Windows Vista Home Premium, a 2-GHz Core 2 Duo T7200 processor, and 2GB of RAM, our review unit earned a WorldBench 6 Beta 2 score of 76, the highest mark among the eight ultraportables reviewed in our June issue’s laptop roundup. Our XPS M1210′s 256MB nVidia GeForce Go 7400 graphics controller supported basic 3D gaming; the notebook could run both Doom 3 and Far Cry with antialiasing switched off.

Our test unit also came with a dual-layer DVD writer and a 7200-rpm, 120GB hard drive; you can increase the storage to a maximum of 160GB.

When work takes you away from electrical outlets, the M1210′s 5.3-hour battery life (our unit came with the $50 nine-cell battery upgrade in place) saves the day.

A thick, illustrated printed user manual accompanies the laptop.

With its plethora of media-oriented features, the M1210 is probably the best sub-5-pound entertainment notebook on the market. But it also has just every laptop feature that a consumer or small-business shopper could want, plus power, ease of use, and a road-friendly weight. If you’re looking for top comfort and full features in an ultraportable, you’ll find them in the M1210.

 

 

 

Popularity: 1% [?]

Tags: , ,
Posted in Dell Inspiron Notebook | No Comments »

Dell XPS M140

Friday, October 10th, 2008

have had my XPS for over a year now and have had no problems. I did alot of research before making up my mind, and could not be more pleased, Dell XPS M140 has GOOD DISPLAY,HAS PLENTY OF SPEED,NO HEATING UP.

Dell has finally gotten serious about portable entertainment with its new XPS line of notebooks. Dell’s XPS M140, a light and compact 5.8-pound notebook with a 14.1-inch display, is very impressive. The icing on the cake: The battery life rocks and the price is good, a very reasonable $1529 for our tested configuration.
Although Dell has dabbled in Windows XP Media Center Edition notebooks before, they seemed more of a patchwork effort than a serious stab at the genre. With the new XPS series, the TV tuner is still a $130 USB add-on, but that’s the only misstep. Compared with past Dell attempts at entertainment notebooks–and compared with many competitors–the XPS M140 smokes.
For one thing, the M140 sounds good, a welcome change for Dell. The front-mounted stereo speakers are clear and strong, eliminating the need for headphones. In addition, entertainment is more flexible, offering you two ways to watch movies, listen to CDs, and play photo slide shows. You can enjoy these diversions via the Media Center OS whenever you want to take a break from work, or you can start them up immediately with the press of a button through the Dell MediaDirect instant-on application, which lets you skip turning on the notebook and waiting for Media Center to launch. This is a big time-saver when all you want to do is show off your latest vacation pictures. The media control buttons, located on the front, work in either mode, which is especially nice. (The instant-play buttons on many other models lose their functionality when the notebook is turned on.) All that’s missing is instant-on TV.
A great work notebook, too, the M140 offers Dell’s best keyboard. It features a nice touchpad, comfortable mouse buttons, and a well-plotted layout, especially for Ctrl fans who will appreciate this key’s prime bottom-left location and extra large size. (Sorry, Fn-key aficionados, but that key is half-size and takes the second-place spot.) Although I prefer the Del key in the top-right corner, the M140′s PgUp and PgDn keys are a good substitute there.
The WXGA screen is bright, easy to read, and plenty roomy for mainstream applications. The port layout is pleasing, as well, with the fixed multiformat DVD burner and two of the four USB ports on the right and the power connection on the back. The M140 is the first notebook I’ve seen to eliminate the old PC Card slot in favor of its replacement, the new, incompatible ExpressCard slot, so beware if you have lots of old cards. For other types of media, the M140 is moderately well equipped, with a three-in-one slot that will take SD Card, Memory Stick, and xD-Picture Card.
Our test unit, equipped with a 1.86-GHz Pentium M 750 chip and 1GB of memory, earned a good WorldBench 5 score of 82. However, the M140 is a tad sluggish in strict comparison with other notebooks: For instance, a Toshiba Qosmio G15-AV501 we evaluated with a 1.8-GHz Pentium M 745 chip and half the RAM also earned a score of 82.
Where the M140 really shines is in battery life. The standard six-cell battery, which we did not test, is rated for about 4.5 hours. With an extended-life battery ($99 extra, but included in our price), the M140 lasted 6.8 hours, one of the best performances we’ve ever recorded for a notebook. This means you can have your entertainment cake and take it with you, too. Yum.
Upshot: With a great design, long battery life, and plenty of easy-to-use entertainment applications, Dell’s XPS M140 is an excellent Windows Media Center Edition portable.

 

 

Popularity: 1% [?]

Tags: ,
Posted in Dell Inspiron Notebook | No Comments »

Dell XPS M1710 Review

Friday, October 10th, 2008

 It’s a perfect notebook for a gamer who does want to bring his high tech gaming station everywhere he wants … well everywhere where there is a reachable power plug. I love it.and It’s pretty tough to overclock this thing properly, Dell XPS M1710 has her own personality I find, likes to make different sounds when I dont want her too. But for gaming shes right on the money. I can play FEAR with everything maxed and stock settings, I get 45fps. THAT IS AWESOME with EVERYTHING MAXED OUT!! Im gonna get it higher though. Max game res 1920×1200, max res FEAR 1900×1200.

Dell’s XPS M1710 is the notebook for the power desktop user who’s ready to go (sort of) mobile. Packed with high-performance hardware, it’s one of the fastest notebooks we’ve tested. But neither its price nor its weight is for the weak of heart.

Our shipping unit–priced at $3860–came with a 2.16-GHz Core Duo T2600 processor, 1GB of RAM, nVidia’s top-of-the-line 7900 GTX graphics chip (with 512MB of memory), a 100GB hard drive, and a DVD burner.

That’s a solid component list, and the M1710 put all that hardware to good use on our WorldBench 5 tests–its score of 106 tied with that of our previous top-performing power notebook, Alienware’s Aurora m7700.

The unit also did well in our Doom 3 and Half Life 2 gaming tests at 1280-by-1024 resolution with antialiasing and anisotropic filtering turned on, posting an impressive 88 and 113 frames per second in those respective games. I also fired up Bethesda’s Oblivion to run the system through its paces. This game, known for pushing even high-end desktop systems hard at its highest settings, ran very well on the M1710.

The unit’s battery life was less impressive, clocking in at just 2 hours and 33 minutes on one charge and earning only a Fair score compared with the battery life of other power notebooks we’ve recently tested. It underscores the fact that this 8.9-pound unit (10.6 pounds with its AC adapter) really is a desktop replacement.

One nice thing about a large chassis is the big screen that results, and this Dell’s crisp 17-inch display is the feature most likely to sell many users on the notebook. A wide-aspect panel with a whopping 1920-by-1200 resolution, it omits antiglare coating for a particularly sharp (if smudge-prone) picture. Sound, coming from two front-firing speakers and an integrated subwoofer, was good.

I found the keyboard pretty comfortable to use, although Dell should consider adding a separate numeric keypad (there’s plenty of real estate for one). The touchpad was responsive, and even lights up so you can see it at a dark LAN party.

The M1710 also won’t leave you wanting for ports. Six USB ports are scattered around the unit as well connections for gigabit ethernet, FireWire, headphones, and a mic. The plentiful video outputs include integrated S-video, VGA, and DVI, plus component video and S/PDIF digital-out using the included adapter. There’s also a five-in-one media card reader and an ExpressCard slot.

Dell hasn’t left much out of the M1710, and its high weight and price reflect that. However, if you’re a desktop user who’s put off buying a notebook for fear of giving up power, this notebook could be the one for you.

 

Upshot: Pricey giant-sized notebook offers processing and graphics power to spare plus a nice screen, but it’s not particularly mobile.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Dell Inspiron Notebook | No Comments »

Dell Inspiron 1720

Thursday, October 9th, 2008

Superbly crafted for a demanding home office, the 1720 has a full-size keyboard with a separate number pad. Our test machine had a single 160GB hard drive, as well as a complete contingent of connections–five USB ports, an ExpressCard/54 slot, and a memory card slot. The 1720′s weight (8.7 pounds) makes it a le

ss-than-ideal notebook for the road.

A powerful laptop does not have to be a boring laptop. Take Dell’s Inspiron 1720, a robust system that also happens to be available in seven colors besides black. The 1720 is a heavyish 17-inch notebook, but its multimedi a design is outstanding.

When you’re ready to kick back, Dell’s DirectMedia button provides instant access to the full panoply of entertainment choices: DVD movies, music, photo slide shows, and videos. The stereo sound is good; a Blu-ray Disc drive is an option, albeit a costly one ($660 on top of our test unit’s $2409 price).

Configured with a 2-GHz Core 2 Duo T7300 processor, 2GB of RAM, and an nVidia GeForce 8600M GT graphics card, the 1720 proved an agile workhorse and gaming machine. Its WorldBench 6 Beta 2 score of 75 puts it in the top 10 percent of currently tested notebooks. The 1720 kicked booty in our gaming tests, producing 116 frames per second playing Far Cry at 1024 by 768 resolution. Its 3-hour, 33-minute battery life, while not great, is above average for this class.

Our review notebook had an espresso-brown lid that I found a little drab, but if you’re looking for a notebook with some pizzazz, try the Inspiron 1720 in spring green or flamingo pink, among other available hues. Who said work isn’t fun?

All in all, Dell has another winner in the souped-up E1505. Though not for gamers, the E1505 is a strong contender for your consumer dollar.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Posted in Dell Inspiron Notebook | No Comments »

Dell Inspiron E1505 Review

Thursday, October 9th, 2008

I think The Dell Inspiron E1505 have good screen size and processor speed. The Centrino Duo is worth the money.And awsome bulit in wireless card 300mps with the N wireless, very good speeds when maxed out on memory again. The Dell Inspiron E1505 Strong battery life, reliable customer service, no cd recovery system (all pre-installed CTRL + F11

This well-rounded notebook is ideal for getting work done.

Dell’s Inspiron E1505, an entertainment notebook, including an Intel Core 2 Duo processor, music and photo editing, and movie viewing. The 6.9-pound E1505 also throws in pretty good speakers, dedicated media buttons, and a cushy keyboard with stylish white trim, giving you a great all-around choice for consumers who don’t want to spend an arm and a leg on a desktop replacement.

It’s $1186 (as of 11/6/06) E1505 came with the Windows XP Media Center Edition operating system, a double-layer DVD burner, four USB ports, a FireWire port, an ExpressCard slot, and a three-in-one memory card reader. The laptop’s 15.4-inch WXGA screen is great for mainstream work, but if you need to see more on your screen at once, a WSXGA+ resolution is an option.

Now it unit has a 120GB hard drive. You can get a 160GB hard drive, still a relatively rare notebook option, for less than $60 more. Unfortunately, a built-in TV tuner is not an option, as it is on most other entertainment notebooks, but Dell’s USB TV tuner is just $104 extra. The small external box comes with all the cables you’ll need to connect to a cable box or a set-top box.

Dell’s Inspiron E1505 equipped with a 2-GHz Core 2 Duo T7200 processor and 1GB of RAM, our machine earned a WorldBench 5 score of 102, which ranks within the top 20 percent of notebooks we’ve tested. The first E1505 we reviewed–equipped with a 1.66-GHz Core Duo T2300 processor and 1GB of RAM–did not play games smoothly and ran noticeably slower than other notebooks when we worked in multiple windows. With the faster chip, the notebook is now a much better multitasker, on a par with competitors, but game play is still poor: The laptop managed just 19 frames per second when displaying Doom and 36 fps in Far Cry. The 64MB of dedicated video memory allowed by a 128MB ATI Mobility Radeon X130 HyperMemory card just isn’t enough to get most games off the ground. (We didn’t test with the optional 256MB video card.)

The E1505 turned in excellent battery life, lasting 5.5 hours on one charge. The battery, which is located on the bottom of the notebook, sports an external gauge that lets you see how much juice is left before you have to plug the notebook in.

Like Dell’s high-end XPS entertainment portables and budget-friendly Inspiron counterparts, the E1505 has a unique “instant office” capability. The feature makes staying on top of business as simple as pressing the MediaDirect button. The button launches a menu that now includes not only the usual entertainment options–DVD, music, videos, and photos–but also additional menu selections for the application viewers. Without launching Windows, you can view–though not edit–your PowerPoint slides and Outlook and Outlook Express calendars and contacts. You can also play DVDs, music, and digital photo collections. So if you’ve forgotten the starting time for a meeting, just pause the movie and check your schedule.

Expandability is somewhat limited. The E1505 is user upgradable, with both the hard drive and memory chips in accessible bottom compartments. However, docking is nothing fancy, with only a couple of options–the better one being a screen stand port replicator, a $103 extra. (You must provide the wireless keyboard and mouse.)

Popularity: unranked [?]

Tags: , ,
Posted in Dell Inspiron Notebook | No Comments »

Dell Inspiron 6000 Review

Thursday, October 9th, 2008

I think It will do just about everything that that any computer can do and then some. Moreover,it’s a reliable feature rich box at an affordable price!

For anybody who wants a computer this a great computer. It weighs about 12 pounds but that already for me. It is very fun and easy to use and will do everything I have asked and more. I’ve had this router for a few months now and I must say that I’m pretty impressed with it’s performance. The features that I use are VPN and wireless security and the performance is great.

Dell Inspiron 6000

Dell Inspiron 6000

We can see that the Dell Inspiron 6000′s wide screen than on most other 15.4-inch displays thanks to its WUXGA resolution of 1920 by 1200 pixels. the Dell Inspiron 6000 work with higher-resolution photographs, more spreadsheet columns, and more tiled documents simultaneously on the Inspiron 6000 than you can on some 17-inch wide screens. The Inspiron 6000 is also available with a 1280-by-800-pixel WXGA screen or a 1680-by-1050-pixel WSXGA+ screen for $150 less or $50 less, respectively.

It has a lot more going for it than just its extra-high-resolution screen. We did test the nine-cell battery (a $99 option), and it lasted an impressive 5 hours on one charge, making the 6000 an excellent candidate for the road–if you don’t mind its 7.5-pound weight (I like this weight,it’s fit to me). An extra-fancy external power gauge helps you keep track of when you’ll need to recharge.

The Inspiron 6000 is a pretty laptop with a sloped front and cream-colored trim. Our unit had a multiformat DVD burner, plus FireWire and TV-out ports and four USB 2.0 ports, all placed for easy use. The 6000 accepts user upgrades easily. Like many laptops, it has two memory slots located in a compartment on the bottom of the laptop. But instead of residing in dovetailed slots, the modules lie side by side–an unusual arrangement that makes them more accessible than most. The hard drive is a breeze to remove, too: Just unscrew its bottom panel and tug the drive out through the right side of the case. Though the optical drive doesn’t have a lever for popping it out, you can boost it out by its lower edge after removing a security screw on the bottom of the case.

Dell Inspiron 6000

Dell Inspiron 6000

However,I have not found it any yet but I know the mouse pad is a little small for me; but maybe it is because I’m not use to it. and documentation is poor. some features like VPN don’t have proper guidance in the manual.

I think you’ll like the 6000′s panel of dedicated CD controls and its surprisingly good stereo sound. (Only one other model in our roundup, the Fujitsu LifeBook N6010, offered better audio.) There’s no instant-on button for playing discs without using Windows, but you can play CDs while the lid is closed, because the music buttons and speaker outlets remain exposed. Pressing one of the buttons momentarily lights the entire music panel’s bright blue LEDs, a helpful feature in dark environments.

The 2-GHz Pentium M 760-equipped review unit did well in our speed tests, earning a WorldBench 5 score of 89, about 8 percent above the average for systems equipped with the same processor.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Tags: , ,
Posted in Dell Inspiron Notebook | No Comments »

sddsds

Wednesday, September 24th, 2008

dsddsds

Popularity: 1% [?]

Posted in Acer | No Comments »

Notebooks

Wednesday, September 24th, 2008

Notebooks

Popularity: 1% [?]

Posted in Notebooks | No Comments »

Newer Entries »