<p>Ok im basically deciding between two systems right now</p>
<p>Ibm t43 1.86 ghz, 768 ram, DVD / cdrw, 14.1 Radeon x300 64mb,3 Year On Site, For 2150$</p>
<p>Dell Latitude D610 2.00 ghz 1 gig ram, DVD-RW, 14.1 Radeon x300 64mb, 3 years on site. 1990$</p>
<p>Is it worth almost 200 dollars more for a seemingly slower computer?</p>
<p>I would need to see the complete specs to really tell, but assuming alternate specs are the same, the Dell is a much better value</p>
<p>I'd go with the Dell. While many say IBM's quality is excellent, the Latitudes are almost just as good. Be warned that Dells have a problem with their headphone jacks...but that can be resolved.</p>
<p>IBM has better support than Dell, though. But don't let that be a deciding factor, because with the sale of ThinkPad to Lenovo, there's no guarantee that the same ThinkPad support today is the ThinkPad support tomorrow. Dell's is decent support, just good luck dealing with foreign accents on the phone.</p>
<p>Well, I definately prefer the IBM laptops, there is a reason that they cost more and that is that they are better. That 200 dollars goes to the build quality and support (and I wouldnt worry about that lenovo deal, its not as big an issue as some people make it out to be).</p>
<p>You could always buy it with less ram and then buy ram elsewhere (which is cheaper) and not worry so much about on-site support (your school will have their own support with many of hte same resources as the compnay).</p>
<p>I guess its like the differance between buying the sports car from hyundai and buying hte sports car from toyota. The hyundai may cost less and have a little more power and even have a giant warranty to back it up but you know that that toyota has the most R&D money in the industry and build quality to back up their car. The Toyota is more respected by people who know their stuff but maybe the hyundai is just more appealing because it has more power from the start even if you know its not going to last as long and has lots of cheap plastic.</p>
<p>Well first, you should also check the chip in the computers - are they both pentium 4s? Pentium Ms? Celerons? -then check the FSB (front side bus) faster is better.</p>
<p>An IBM has the advantage of not coming cluttered with millions of those stupid programs Dells come bundled with for your enjoyment.</p>
<p>Also, what about sound cards + wireless, are they the same?</p>
<p>Check the Dell customer service and reliability ratings. That should make the decision very clear.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Well first, you should also check the chip in the computers - are they both pentium 4s? Pentium Ms? Celerons? -then check the FSB (front side bus) faster is better...Also, what about sound cards + wireless, are they the same?
[/quote]
oliver, the d610 only comes with a Pentium M chip, so I'm pretty sure that he's got Pentium Ms on both. Most likely the 760 on the d610 and the 750 on the t43. Also, both should have the same wireless card. (either Intel 2200 or 2900)</p>
<p>
[quote]
Be warned that Dells have a problem with their headphone jacks...but that can be resolved.
[/quote]
Let me clarify this. Most Dell Latitude laptops, as well as the Inspiron 600m, I believe, have this problem where when you're listening in the headphones and then your hard drive starts moving, then you hear this hissing. It's supposed to be annoying (although I've never heard it, so I can't say for myself). The workaround to this is to buy a small USB laptop sound card, like this one: <a href="http://www.staples.com/Catalog/Browse/Sku.asp?PageType=1&Sku=IM1D37030%5B/url%5D">http://www.staples.com/Catalog/Browse/Sku.asp?PageType=1&Sku=IM1D37030</a>.</p>
<p>
[quote]
An IBM has the advantage of not coming cluttered with millions of those stupid programs Dells come bundled with for your enjoyment.
[/quote]
The Latitude line does not come pre-loaded with all the Dell programs (like MusicMatch, AOL, etc.) that you find on a consumer Inspiron or Dimension desktop.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Check the Dell customer service and reliability ratings. That should make the decision very clear.
[/quote]
Well, I agree that Dell's customer reps are a hassle to deal with. But Dell Latitudes, once again, are more reliable than the consumer Inspirons. So the ratings you see may not apply to the d610.</p>
<p>Hope that helps a bit! :)</p>
<p>IBMs are great. I just got one from Lenovo and it is awesome. The customer service was perfect. Are those prices you are quoting educational prices? Because IBM does have a better deal the employee pricing program. It will blow Dells out of the water with 35% off. And as stated previously do not buy ram from IBM, its overpriced. And the 1.86ghz to 2ghz diff is minimal. you wont ever notice it with what most laptops are used for. Pick up a Dell and IBM and tell me which one is made from better plastic, trust me it is very apparent. The IBMs top cover is also super super strong since it is titanium. But get what you want. Look at the most reviews from UNBIASED sources. Like more privated websites that are balanced. PC world and those mags constantly change their bias.</p>
<p>btw the ati x300 is a garbage card. all the reviews have it lower or equal to the 9600. try to get a diff card. and in ibms case this will mean looking at a t42. which is a perfectly fine up to date machine. you can get em with 2ghz processors btw</p>
<p>bigndude, how does one get the employee pricing program with IBM/Lenovo???</p>
<p>You have to know an employee. I know one and got the discount so i got my 2500 buck t42 for 1500. Not bad. But they are hard to find unless you know an employee. Every once in a while an employee will show up on an internet computer forum.</p>
<p>If im a student Going To University Of California Irvine you think i can get one on custom models?</p>
<p>id go with the dell, my family has had both ibm's and dell's over the years and dell has always been a better deal, had better service, etc...</p>
<p>Go with the Lattitude, I am typing on a (fairly) new Lattitude D610 right now, it is amazingly sexy. And Dell's poorer customer service comes from their home office service which is in India. Their business office, which services the Lattitude is much better.</p>
<p>im just scared that it will slow down and go to ****. Right now we have a dell desktop that has steadly declined to the point where it was loud when it used to be quiet the cd rom fails. And its slow as hell, even after wiping the system. Then i have a ibm laptop from like 10 years ago. And everything works perfectly well.</p>
<p>Well DDS, you just answered your own question based on your own personal experience. You seem to be more trusting of IBM than Dell, so go with the IBM then.</p>
<p>It's your decision, and you seem to be quite comfortable with IBM.</p>
<p>If you want to save money look at the t42's with better specs. If you go to the tabook you can find every model they make. I will post the link for you later today.</p>
<p>I have a T42p IBM-- the T42s are excellent. I, personally, even though I have absolutely no money, would go with the IBM. Still, I feel silly recommending a computer thats more expensive with worse specs to you... so it depends.</p>
<p>It seems that you are spending A LOT MORE than you really need to. $2,000 for a computer that is going to be obsolete by the time you graduate isn't worth it, at all. Have you considered simply building a desktop pc? It isn't very hard at all and I guarantee that one of your friends is competent enough to pick out the parts and build it.</p>
<p>I'd go dell if you don't have any problems with what can be serviced on campus. I just bought an IBM T42 for my son under the William & Mary mynotebook program because that is what they will service on campus. But, as I expected, Leonvo sucked as bad as IBM always has. Ordered with an additional 512 MB RAM installed. Came without the additional RAM; it was shipped separately and was only 256 MB. All that after I had the guy who took the order read each item and its price back to me (and the W&M plan did not even offer 256 MB as an option). Called Leonvo and they could not have cared less. Was given phone number to a number that gave me a phone number that gave me a phone number...</p>
<p>Having spent the last 20 years in my job seeing IBM always promise more than they can deliver, and not caring, I was not surprised.</p>
<p>Well it seems like your the only one who has problems. Maybe you should ask more questions. Because everybody knows IBM never installs extra parts except for hard drives. Memory is always self serviceable. Obviously you must deal with an IBM different from everyone else because they always promptly answer questions. And I just ordered my t42 three weeks ago. And of course Lenovo could have cared less about the memory because its not their job to install it. If anything they only should care about the size, and I'm sure they did care about that. If they didn't then maybe you would be better off with Dell and their foreign tech support.</p>