College Computer

Student Lounge College Life
1

<p>So I'm getting a full ride to college, and now that I have all this money saved up, I want to use some of it towards a laptop. I want to spoil myself and get the best one, but is it worth it? Here are the three I'm choosing from that the school offers.</p>

<p>Latitude E6500-A </p>

<p>Our Price: $1,216.00
Dell Small Business Price: $1,601.00</p>

<p>Latitude E6400 Intel Core 2 Duo P8400 (2.26GHz, 3M L2 Cache, 1066MHz FSB)
Genuine Windows Vista Business SP1, With media
2.0GB, DDR2-800 SDRAM, 2 DIMMS
Internal English Keyboard
Mobile Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD With PC-Card
160GB Hard Drive, 5400RPM
15.4" Widescreen WXGA (1280x800) Display
90W A/C Adapter (3-pin)
24X CDRW/DVD with Cyberlink PowerDVD
Digital microphone
Dell Wireless 1397 802.11b/g Mini Card
Resource DVD and Quick Reference Guide
6 Cell Battery
3 Year Next Business Day Onsite Service
3 Year CompleteCare Accidental Damage Protection
Brushed Metal Black</p>

<p>Latitude E6500-B </p>

<p>Our Price: $1,586.00
Dell Full Retail : $2,054.00 </p>

<p>Latitude E6400 Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 (2.40GHz, 3M L2 Cache, 1066MHz FSB)
Genuine Windows Vista Business SP1, With media
2.0GB, DDR2-800 SDRAM, 2 DIMMS
Internal English Keyboard
NVIDIA Quadro NVS 160M, 256MB DDR3 video RAM
250GB Hard Drive, 7200RPM
15.4" Widescreen WXGA+ (1440XX900) Display
90W A/C Adapter (3-pin)
8X DVD+/-RW w/Roxio and Cyberlink PowerDVD
Integrated Webcam with digital microphone
Intel WiFi Link 5100 802.11a/g/n Draft Mini Card
Resource DVD and Quick Reference Guide
6 Cell Battery
3 Year Next Business Day Onsite Service
3 Year CompleteCare Accidental Damage Protection
Brushed Metal Black
** upgrade to brushed Regatta Blue or Regal Red for $77.00</p>

<p>Latitude E6500-C </p>

<p>Our Price: $2,004.00
Dell Full Retail : $2,587.99 </p>

<p>Latitude E6400 Intel Core 2 Duo T9400 (2.53GHz, 6M L2 Cache, 1066MHz FSB)
Genuine Windows Vista Ultimate SP1, With media
4.0GB, DDR2-800 SDRAM, 2 DIMMS
Internal Backlit Keyboard and internal fingerprint reader
NVIDIA Quadro NVS 160M, 256MB DDR3 video RAM
250GB Hard Drive, 7200RPM
15.4" Ultrasharp WXGA+ (1920X1200) Display
Dell Wireless 370 Bluetooth Module and Dell Bluetooth Travel Mouse
90W A/C Adapter (3-pin)
8X DVD+/-RW w/Roxio and Cyberlink PowerDVD
Integrated Webcam with digital microphone
Intel WiFi Link 5300 802.11a/g/n Draft Mini Card
Resource DVD and Quick Reference Guide
9 Cell Battery
3 Year Next Business Day Onsite Service
3 Year CompleteCare Accidental Damage Protection
Brushed Metal Black</p>

2

<p>The specs aren't exactly spectacular, I would go with the middle one simply because the first one is too lowly spec'ed (some components are almost obsolete) and the last one is too expensive (most laptops will have a Blu-ray drive at the $2000 mark). However, I can see that you are paying a premium for the 3 year on-site warranty which is definitely a good idea.</p>

<p>While I wouldn't recommend it, but if you decide that the warranty is not worth it, then you can definitely get a much better spec'ed machine if you shop around.</p>

3

<p>The Latitude line is Dell's business line and you typically pay more for better service and better build quality which is why the costs seem high for the specs. I know folks that have paid the extra bucks and have been happy with their choice. Dell tends to stock replacement parts for a long time for Latitude models.</p>

<p>The nVidia Quadro video card is interesting. I don't think that these have the heat issues that their usual x4xx and x6xx cards do. I would definitely get a webcam option if you want to do video chat or record video messages.</p>

4

<p>None of those options are ideal IMO, but if I had to pick I would choose the middle one as well. The first one is pretty weak and is way overpriced - I got a superior Inspiron 1525 for roughly half that price. The second one is definitely a lot better than the first, but the third one doesn't add many useful features for the added cost.</p>

5

<p>I would personally go Apple, but if I must I would choose the middle laptop.</p>

6

<p>personally I'd get a thinkpad, but I guess the onsite warranty would probably make up the price difference if something does happen to go wrong.</p>

7

<p>Eliminating Thinkpads and Apples, which of the following laptops would you recommend for a college students who doesn't need anything for gaming.</p>

<p>HP, Sony, or Toshiba?</p>

8

<p>HP because it's cheap and good bang for your buck</p>

9

<p>Thanks. Lenovo has a great reputation but he doesn't want to spend that much. He has a Dell but wants a change. His 3 year old Dell Inspiron 6000 is still running pretty well but the thing is big and heavy (with windows XP).</p>

10

<p>Another option can you consider, if that Dell Inspiron 6000 is still running well enough for college work, is to get a netbook for on-the-go note taking, internet surfing, emailing, etc and use the Dell as a stationary dorm machine. Going that route would only cost about $500 or less for a decent netbook however that old Dell must be reliable and able to meet computing requirements for your student.</p>