Which Laptop?

Associate
Joined
7 Oct 2009
Posts
94
Hi,
I have recently purchased a new laptop (macbook) and i just couldnt get used to it. So i have given to my mum :) now i need one for myself.
I have been looking around on dell and i think these two are the best options for my budget. Which would you choose

Dell Studio 15=£699
Intel® Core™ i7-720QM Mobile Processor (1.6GHz, turbo up to 2.8GHz, 6MB L3 Cache)
Genuine Windows® 7 Professional, 64bit, English
15.6in Widescreen High Definition (1366x768) WLED with TrueLife
512MB ATI Mobility Radeon HP 4570
4096MB 1333MHz Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM [2x2048]
320GB (7,200rpm) Hard Drive
Fixed Internal DVD+/-RW Slot Load Drive
6 Cell Battery
or
Dell Vostro=£539
Intel Core 2 Duo P8700 2.5GHZ,1066fsb, 3mb cache
Windows Vista Business
Premium WXGA+ 1440 x 900 with truelife
FingerPrint Reader
4gb ddr2
320gb 7200rpm Free Fall Sensor
256mb 9300M GS
6 Cell Battery
Fixed Internal DVD+/-RW Slot Load Drive

Which would you choose...
Can you reccomend me another laptop which is max £700
Thanks
 
Soldato
Joined
26 Feb 2009
Posts
14,814
Location
Exeter
I was torn between the S15 with an i7 or an XPS 16 with a C2D - went for the XPS in the end, the features, GPU and build quality were all much better. Plus I should be able to upgrade it to an i7 later down the line... I think :)
 
Soldato
Joined
28 Aug 2006
Posts
2,931
Location
Hexham
I was torn between the S15 with an i7 or an XPS 16 with a C2D - went for the XPS in the end, the features, GPU and build quality were all much better. Plus I should be able to upgrade it to an i7 later down the line... I think :)

The i7 is socket PGA998, the C2D is 'probably' socket BGA956, so that'll be a no. ;)

PS, which GPU does your XPS come with? And how much if you don't mind me asking?
 
Soldato
Joined
26 Feb 2009
Posts
14,814
Location
Exeter
It was a 3570 512mb as standard but I paid £30 to get a 1gb 4670

I paid £872 for it, 2.12Ghz with 4gb RAM, 500gb 7200RPM sata, said graphics card, WLED display, DTV tuner, 11n wifi/bluetooth, 3g card built in, slotload DVDRW, backlit keyboard, Win7 Home Premium and a bluetooth mouse
 
Soldato
Joined
28 Aug 2006
Posts
2,931
Location
Hexham
Nice, I just ordered mine as standard, £630 delivered with employee discount, not quite as nice a spec as yours, but then I only set out to pay £500 anyway! :p
 
Soldato
Joined
26 Feb 2009
Posts
14,814
Location
Exeter
It took me ages to find the right combination of vouchers and things. I looked at the EPP but I wanted to get the cashback through Quidco (which will be about 50 quid!) and had a 5% off voucher code anyway. This was it:

Studio XPS 16(N00X6002)
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor P7450 (2.13Ghz, 3MB, 1066MHz), Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium 64bit- English
£ 725.30
1
£ 725.30
Item
Description
Base
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor P7450 (2.13Ghz, 3MB, 1066MHz)
Memory
4096MB 1067MHz Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM [2x2048]
Keyboard
Internal UK/Irish Qwerty Keyboard
Video Card
1GB ATI® Radeon™ HD 4670 graphics card
Hard Drive
500GB (7,200rpm) Free Fall Sensor Hard Drive
Microsoft Operating System
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium 64bit- English
Optical Devices
Internal DVD+/-RW (DVD & CD read and write) Slot Load Drive(Software install, no media)
Wireless Networking
Intel WiFi Link 5100 (802.11 a/b/g/n 1X2) 1/2 MiniCard
Cables
1 Meter Power Cord (3 Wire) - UK
Shipping Documents
English - Documentation Studio XPS 16
Gedis Bundle Reference
N10X6002
Standard Warranty
1 Year Premium Warranty Support
Enhanced Service Packs
1Yr Premium Warranty Support
Bluetooth
Dell Wireless 370 Bluetooth Module
Order Information
Studio XPS 16 Order - UK
Primary Battery
Primary 6-cell 56 WHr Lithium Ion battery
Carrying Cases
No Carry Case
Dell System Media Kit
Studio XPS 16 Resource DVD (Diagnostic & Drivers)
Camera
Integrated Camera with Facial Recognition Software
Accidental Damage Support
No Accidental Damage Support
Online Backup
DataSafe Online Backup 2GB 1 year
Theft Protection Solution
FailSafe® Theft Protection - track and protect lost or stolen laptops - 30 days free trial
TV Tuner and Remote Control
Integrated DVB-T TV Tuner and Antenna (MLK base)
Labels
Wireless Label (Intel Wireless Cards) - Core 2 Duo
LCD
Red Leather back cover : 15.6" (inch) Truelife 1080p Full HD WLED Edge to Edge Display
DataSafe
Datasafe Local 2.0 Basic
Microsoft Application Software
Microsoft® Works 9.0 / English - (Does not include Microsoft® Word)
Protect your new PC
McAfee® Security Centre - 15 Month Protection - English
Power Supply
90W AC Adaptor
Dell Bluetooth Black Travel Mouse (Bluetooth Card required)
£ 15.64
1
£ 15.64
Total excl. VAT VAT Rate VAT Total incl. VAT
Sub-total(s): £ 740.94 15.00% £ 111.14 £ 852.08
Delivery Charge: £ 17.39 15.00% £ 2.61 £ 20.00
Total Price: £ 758.33 £ 113.75 £ 872.08
 
Soldato
Joined
28 Aug 2006
Posts
2,931
Location
Hexham
Strange that yours comes with Windows 7 Home Premium as standard, and mine comes with Professional, sure they've got their reasons!

I know someone who works for Dell, and got a 10% discount code off them instead of doing the EPP, so hopefully my Quidco will pay out too, fingers crossed!
 
Don
Joined
23 Oct 2005
Posts
43,973
Location
North Yorkshire
I get my Dell Studio 15 tomorrow morning. Will give a review of it if you wish. Paid £759 with various discounts/offers at the time. Has taken nearly three weeks to arrive. Dell put the estimated delivery back three times, pretty frustrating! They put the date back to 27th of this month then when I looked again it was in delivery, must have been my snotty email :D

Anyway here is what I ordered just copied off my confirmation email so messy.

Order QTY Item Description Item #
1 N1053511 200-61454
1 Studio 1557 : Intel i7-720QM(1.6GHz) Mobile CPU 210-29597
1 Palmrest : Silver Chainlink with Black Chainlink Cover only 214-10166
1 Display : 15.6 Widescreen Full High Definition (1920X1080) WLED with TrueLife 230-11022
1 Camera : Integrated 2.0 Mega Pixel Camera 319-10317
1 LCD Back Cover : Black Chainlink 320-10979
1 Resource DVD : Studio 1557 Diagnostics and Drivers 340-19558
1 Ship Accessory : English Docs 340-19598
1 Memory : 4096MB (2x2048) 1333MHz DDR3 Dual Channel 370-15860
1 Hard Drive : 500GB Serial ATA (7200RPM) 400-18179
1 Optical Drive : 8X DVD+/-RW Drive including software 429-14342
1 Power Cord : UK 1M 450-12188
1 Power Supply : Inspiron 90W AC Adapter 450-13775
1 Battery : Primary 6 cell 56W/HR LI-ION 451-10559
1 Carry Case : Not Included 460-10282
1 Graphics : 512 MB ATI Mobility Radeon HP 4570 490-11657
1 Wireless : Dell Wireless 1397 (802.11 b/g) Mini Card European 555-11434
1 Wireless : Wireless Label CI7 555-12548
1 Keyboard : Internal UK/Irish Qwerty Keyboard 583-12488
1 Operating System : English Genuine Windows Vista SP1 Home Premium (64 BIT) including Media 619-15814
1 Software : English Microsoft Works 9.0 with Home and Student Trial 630-12198
1 Dell Dock 1.0 640-10785
1 Dell Video Chat 640-10787
1 Software : Datasafe Local 2.0 Basic 640-11632
1 Software : Dell Download Store (UK, France, Germany) 640-11714
1 English McAfee Security Centre 10 - 30 Day Trial Version 650-12371
1 1Yr Limited Warranty - Collect & Return 754-10017
1 No Warranty Upgrade 754-10046
1 No Accidental Damage Support 755-10239
1 Studio 1557 Order - UK 799-12999
1 Studio NB - System Only 990-15147
 
Associate
OP
Joined
7 Oct 2009
Posts
94
Please do mate as i am looking at gettting one if i cant get my current cpus heat down.
Please if you can take a few temp readings while it is on your lap e.t.c not on a cooling pad
Thanks
 
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