I mentioned I was getting a Dell Inspiron 8200 last week, and said I would post my thoughts.
I have had the laptop since Friday, and so far the only "problem" I have had was when I was first opening the packaging. For some reason or another, Dell places a thin semi-opaque plastic covering over the top of the case, and at first glance It looks like it's part of the case. Anyways, it was crooked and I became annoyed until I noticed it was loose and I was able to peel it off.
Specs: 15" UXGA, 40 gb 5200 HD, ati 9k, 1.7 ghz p4m, 8x dvd, 384 ram
Mouse impressions: Wow, I hate touchpads. Wow, I hate the nub mouse even more, so back to the touchpad! For first time users, the touchpad takes a little getting used to, and it's very easy to do a double click when using it, by accidently tapping it twice, which can be annoying. The nub occasionally gets in the way while I am typing, but I'm sure I will get used to it.
p4 1.7m impressions: Great chip. I was originally going to get one of the "desktop replacements" with the 2+ ghz chips, but I stepped back and rejoind reality, to see that even my 600 mhz pIII still handles most of my tasks just fine. That is barring computer games, of course. Normally it runs at 1.2 ghz to 1.4 ghz I think.. I'm probably wrong, it's kind of hard to get an accurate reading with this speedstep stuff. At least for me anyways.
UXGA 15" impressions: I opted for the regular UXGA screen as I am a college student, and don't need tons of people looking at my screen. I think it is a great lcd screen, I wish I could have one of these on my desktops. My dvds have looked absolutely wonderful, and the new unreal tournament plays great as well.
5200 rpm 40 gb hd impressions: Eh.. it's a hard drive... it works. Next.
ATI 9k mobility impressions: yay! I wanted to get one of these, which was another reason I was thinking about a desktop replacement. Dell beat sager hands down on price (special deal) for a laptop with one of these. So far it works great, I've tried it with Q3 and the new unreal tournament. I score around 6255 on the 3dmark test. Anyone know if that's avg for an inspiron 8200? It beats my desktop gaming comp which only get 3700, so I like it. I can play ut in 1600x1200 pretty good with 10 bots running around, and it looks great. 2d is great as well. Only problem with this.... When I reinstalled windows it became apparent that dell had NOT given me drivers for this card (or I can't find them.. either way), my guess is that since this is such a new addition to the 8200, they are just trying to get rid of their old cds before making new ones. It was a 17 meg download over dialup, to get it working right.
8x dvd impressions: see hd impressions
The keyboard is pretty decent. As I mentioned the nub can get in the way, and it'll take me some getting used to, as this is my first laptop.
The fans aren't loud.. I'm using fangui to make them kick in at 55 until it goes down to 45, and I don't really notice when it does. The laptop seems to heat up fairly quickly, but it is probably to be expected in such a small area.
I just tested it, and it took about 1 minute for it to rise from 45 c to 55 c with no fans on.
Final thoughts... I suspect dell is phasing out the inspiron 8200. In the past week or two, dell has run great deals (300+ in free goodies/discounts). This is fine for me, since I don't need a high powered laptop, although usb 2.0 ports would be nice. If they release something new in the next 30 days, which is comparable in price, highly unlikely, I will return this one and upgrade. That's just something to think about if you're looking to get an inspiron. I am happy with my purchase. The case construction to me seems to be good quality. I haven't carried it around much yet though.
No clue on battery life, as I have had it on ac all weekend.
Experience with dell... overall pretty good. I had to call them back to get my free shipping, but they didn't give me a problem with it.
Cost: $1646 (free shipping)
My apologies if this isn't well organized. I've been writing an english paper all day and I'm sick of being careful
Hope someone finds this useful. If I think of anything else I'll update.
hardware
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